Northern Hai Phong city’s port authority under the Vietnam Maritime Administration (VMA) has required all ships traveling from China’s ports to the locality within 14 days to be medically quarantined at the Hon Dau anchorage before entering Hai Phong port.

A corner of Hai Phong port (Source: VNA)

The regulation, which began from February 4, aims to prevent the acute respiratory disease caused by the 2019 novel coronavirus (nCoV).

In a notification, the authority asked agents and ship owners to make medical declarations for their ships leaving from Chinese ports to Hai Phong port, and notify the Hai Phong International Health Quarantine Centre for medical quarantine procedures in line with regulations.

According to representatives from the authority, in order to prevent and control the nCoV, the agency has arranged 24/7 personnel to receive and update information related to the disease and arriving vessels.

It has coordinated with the centre to arrange anchorage and isolation areas for ships with crew members aboard having symptoms of this disease.

Captain of ships from China were requested to call the phone number:  0225.3842.682 or 0225.3842.065, and the hotline: 0976.119.979 if their crew members suffer from such symptoms as fever, cough, and breath difficulty.

Previously, the VMA sent an urgent dispatch to its member port authorities to ask for more attention to the medical quarantine work, towards effectively preventing and controlling the epidemic.