The Ma Lang area in HCM City is sealed off to conduct COVID-19 testing for all local residents after a new coronavirus infection was found here (Photo: VNA) Facing complex developments of the coronavirus,Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong on February 8afternoon ordered to halt all cultural, sports, and entertainment activities,beauty salons, karaoke palours, dance halls, restaurants, bars, pubs, beerclubs, massage and sauna parlours, e-game stores, wedding centres, tea shops,theatres, sports centres, and billiards stores.
The administration also requested religiousrituals and activities with 20 people or more at religious sites and places ofworship be halted.
The suspension will last from the noon ofFebruary 9 until further notice.
Meanwhile, gas stations, shops selling essentialgoods and medicine, as well as medical establishments remain open but have tocomply with anti-COVID-19 measures as regulated by health authorities.
Phong told local relevant forces to strictlydeal with any people not wearing face masks in public places, ramp up controlof those illegally entering Vietnam in the city, ensure security and order, andguarantee sufficient supply of goods.
The municipal People’s Committee recommendedlocal residents stay calm, minimise movement, avoid mass gatherings, and notshare unconfirmed information about the pandemic.
It also asked people to proactively report tolocal health agencies if they recently returned from outbreak-hit areas or knowany having close contact with confirmed cases.
After HCM City recorded 25 new locally-infectedcases of COVID-19 on February 8, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc told aGovernment meeting the same day that he agreed with the Ministry of Health’sproposal to permit HCM City and Hanoi to impose social distancing in certainareas.
He also stressed that chairpersons of thePeople’s Committees of HCM City, Hanoi, Hai Phong, and some other big citiescan apply strong and appropriate measures to contain the spread of thecoronavirus in the community, especially during the approaching Lunar New Yearholiday (Tet).
The 25 new cases in HCM City are linked with the baggagehandlers previously testing positive for the virus at Tan Son Nhat International Airport. The handlers haven’t been found tohave any contact with passengers.
The baggage handling team at the airport isconsidered a hotbed with relatively complicated developments since neithersources of virus transmission nor the starting point of transmission has beenidentified.
Authorities predicted that there could be morecases of community transmission there in the time ahead.
The new cases have raised the total infectionsin HCM City to 30 in the latest outbreak.
In the face of this situation, HCM City hasre-activated the entire COVID-19 prevention and treatment system and raised thealert level in the pandemic fight.
It also completed the second testing of the1,600 staff members of the baggage handling company at Tan Son Nhat Airport onFebruary 8 evening while temporarily sealing off all affected areas in sevendistricts.
As of February 9 morning, Vietnam had reported2,053 cases of COVID-19, including 1,163 local infections with 470 posted sinceJanuary 27.
As many as 1,472 patients have recovered whilethe number of related fatalities remains at 35, according to the NationalSteering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control./.
VNA
