Two soldiers stand guard at a Covid-19 checkpoint in District 12, HCMC, August 23, 2021.
Photo by VnExpress/Dinh Van 

Starting Monday, military forces have tightened patrols to ensure social distancing measures are strictly followed across Covid-19 epicenter Ho Chi Minh City. 

Special teams have been sent to 312 wards and communes in 22 districts and Thu Duc City of HCMC.

More than 500 infantry soldiers of 7th Military Region, which commands armed forces defending southeast Vietnam, started their mission in the first hours of Monday at 30 Covid-19 checkpoints in 11 wards of District 12.

In addition to the checkpoints, the force will join 10 mobile inspection teams and 33 patrol groups in the wards, tightening social distancing measures.

Five kilometers away, hundreds of soldiers managed by 7th Military Region have showed up in 16 wards of Go Vap District.

Before going on duty, all soldiers have been vaccinated with one dose and will be tested for the new coronavirus every three days.

Nguyen Van Duc, chairman of District 12, said in addition to controlling social distancing, the military force will provide food to people in difficulty via a list drawn up by local authorities.

Soldiers join force with HCMC's traffic police to patrol Quang Trung Street
in Go Vap District, August 23, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran

HCMC commenced a new two-week campaign to tighten its coronavirus restrictions on Monday, requiring people to "stay where they are," isolating homes from homes, streets from streets and wards from wards and have military forces support existing teams in the city in all activities to fight the pandemic, including patrolling and treating patients.

The Ministry of National Defense has planned to mobilize about 35,000 militiamen and thousands of soldiers from 7th Military Region and 4th Corps, one of the four regular army corps of the People's Army of Vietnam stationed in Binh Duong Province that borders HCMC.

At the same time, more than 2,000 medics and 30 ambulances managed by the military in the north will be sent to HCMC to participate in testing and treating Covid-19 patients.

1,000 soldiers and military doctors had arrived in HCMC and nearby provinces from the north. Another 1,100 embarked on the journey Monday.

HCMC has been hit hardest in the ongoing Covid-19 wave that emerged in Vietnam in late April.

The city of 13 million including migrants has recorded around 176,000 community infections and 6,538 fatalities.