Returnees from RoK’s coronavirus-hit areas under strict observation

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A special quarantine area for COVID-19 patients (Photo: VNA)

The order came as the number of coronavirus infection cases had skyrocketed in the two Korean localities, home to 26,000 Vietnamese citizens.

At a meeting on February 23, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung asked competent departments, sectors and agencies to arrange Korean, Japanese, Chinese and English interpreters for areas inhabited by a large number of foreigners to facilitate communication work.

Wards, districts, local police, and management boards of apartment buildings were urged to keep close watch on the number of foreigners living and working in the areas. Meanwhile, hotels in the city were asked to keep track on their customers’ travel schedules.

Restriction of entertainment zones like karaoke and bars should be put into effect to prevent the virus spread, he said, adding returnees from the virus-hit areas must inform local authorities so that they will have timely response measures.

According to Vice Director of the municipal Department of Health Hoang Duc Hanh, quarantine has been served as the most effective and important measure amidst the complicated development of the epidemic.

The department has ordered Koreans traveling to Hanoi to self-quarantine at their residential areas, while quarantine sites have already been set up for Vietnamese returnees from the East Asian country, he added.

Local citizens are advised to avoid travel to areas affected by the novel virus and places vulnerable to the disease. Besides, foreign tourists at entertainment zones and tourism hotspots must undergo body-temperature check, he stressed.

The health department’s report showed that as of 15:00 on February 23, Hanoi reported no COVID-19 case and 77 suspected people tested negative for the virus. Medical quarantine was applied for 64 cases while 384 others were under home-quarantine.

Meanwhile, the central city of Da Nang has quarantined two Vietnamese people as they showed signs of fever after returning from the RoK and northern Vinh Phuc province, which reported many cases of COVID-19 infections.

One of the two, a 25-year-old man was detected with fever at Da Nang International Airport and suspected of infecting the virus after traveling from a COVID-19-hit area in the RoK on February 23, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Health Nguyen Tien Hong said.

He was then taken to Da Nang Hospital for Lung Diseases for quarantine and medical monitoring, Hong said, adding that the man is now in stable health conditions.

The other, a six-year-old child with fever has been quarantined at Da Nang City Paediatrics and Obstetrics Hospital since February 22. The child had travelled to Vinh Phuc province, which reported 11 out of 16 infection cases in the country to date.

According to the health department, the city kept a close watch on 49 flights with 3,708 arrivals. It has had no cases testing positive for the virus so far./.