The tests were done by health and tourism authorities in the central city, now the country’s Covid-19 epicenter, on those that had registered to return to Ho Chi Minh City at the request of the latter’s Department of Health.

Stranded tourists were taken by buses, seated at a safe distance from each other, arranged by the tourism department to a school for the testing.

People staying with friends and relatives went to the school by themselves with assistance from the staffs of the department and tourism companies.

The test results would be available on Tuesday, Truong Thi Hong Hanh, director of the Da Nang Department of Tourism, said.

Nearly 1,700 visitors, mainly from HCMC and Hanoi, are stuck in Da Nang.

The tourists are expected to fly back home in the next two or three days.

Hanh said Hanoi has however not asked them to be tested.

Two airlines have agreed to operate flights but have yet to arrange for crews because many of their flight attendants are still in mandatory quarantine after returning from stricken areas, Hanh added.

The city imposed social distancing measures for 15 days starting on July 28 following a renewed local outbreak of Covid-19.

Public transport, including flights to and from the city of 1.1 million people, was suspended.

The local outbreak on July 25 came after a hiatus of more than three months, and since then there have been 355 cases, 269 of them in Da Nang.

The disease has spread to 14 more cities and provinces, including HCMC and Hanoi.

So far 13 people have died.