Hanoi has managed to test 70,689 residents who recently returned from Da Nang coronavirus hotspot, with all the tests coming back negative, said Nguyen Khac Hien, director of the Hanoi Health Department.

Hanoi Mayor Nguyen Duc Chung chairs a recent meeting of the municipal Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control. Photo: Hanoi Moi newspaper 

The capital has so far recorded 143 positive novel coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, including 121 from the initial outbreak earlier in the year, two fresh locally-transmitted cases returning from Da Nang, in addition to 20 returnees who arrived on July 29 after being repatriated from Equatorial Guinea.

With regard to the investigation into returnees from Da Nang, Hien reported that up to August 3, the entire city had recorded approximately 88,289 people returning from Da Nang since July 8 after travelling to the central city.

"The epidemic situation in Vietnam remains complicated, with Hanoi having a large number of returnees from Da Nang, a current major outbreak spot in the nation, so it is still imperative for all residents to voluntarily conduct self-isolation for strict health monitoring to prevent all sources of infection. Health facilities need to strictly follow the process of medical examination and treatment as well as patient family members' entrance and exit," the Hanoi Health Department director emphasised.

According to Hanoi Mayor Nguyen Duc Chung, the outbreak in Da Nang has gone on to spread to nine provinces and cities nationwide. Indeed, this indicates the dangerousness of the epidemic whilst research shows that a new SARS-CoV-2 strain increases the risk for citizens.

If Hanoi records no more new COVID-19 cases in the community until August 12, then it can be considered temporarily reassuring, the Mayor noted. However, he underlined the necessity of stepping up communication on epidemic prevention measures, intensifying mass testing, and conducting isolation of individuals in a timely manner.