Da Nang Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Van Quang has urged the municipal  Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control to take effective action and necessary precautions to control COVID-19 during his meeting on Monday with local health officials and representatives of relevant agencies.

Party Secretary Nguyen Van Quang delivering his instructions at Monday meeting with local health officials and representatives of relevant agencies. Photo: PHAN CHUNG.

The move came after one new coronavirus positive case had been confirmed in a 23-year-old man who come from the neighbouring Quang Nam Province’ Hoi An City and is working for a hotel in Da Nang, on Monday evening by the municipal Department of Health.

The municipal Party chief asked local medical workers to take action to quickly identify, isolate and test close contacts of Da Nang's new confirmed case in an effort to limit the transmition of the virus in our community. Mr Quang also urged the public across Da Nang to stay vigilance against COVID-19 and strictly follow the city-government-recommended measures in order to protect themselves and the wider community.

Secretary Nguyen Van Quang also demanded relevant agencies to keep people informed of  Viet Nam’s 2,899^th positive case who has been confirmed in a 28 year- old man in the northern province of Ha Nam . Top priority should be given to speeding up contact tracing, isolation and testing of people who have been in close contact with the two COVID-19 infected Chinese men. In addition, it is necessary to clarify the responsibilities of organizations and individuals who failed to implement infection prevention and control practices.

Colonel Tran Dinh Chung, Deputy Director of the Da Nang Police Department highlighted the importance of taking extra precautions against COVID-19, tightening the management of foreign nationals who are staying in local serviced accomodation establishments, and conducting random testing of people in jobs such as taxi driving, and restaurant and hotel management. Heed should be paid to tightening measures to control COVID-19 that are put in place in receiving and isolating arrivals from abroad.  

Data published by the Da Nang Department of Health by the end of May 2, a total of 2,625 people had been put under isolation in 18 hotels, the Da Nang Lung Hospital, and other medical facilities across the city. Since the start of this year, Da Nang city has received and isolated 11,800 arrivals from abroad; of whom, 240 were foreigners and 11,560 were Vietnamese returnees.

Till date, tests on 29 Da Nang close contacts of the confirmed case in Ha Nam Province have came back negative for COVID-19.  In addition, 7 people who shared a plane with Ha Nam infected man from Japan to Da Nang on 7 April and were put under isolation in the same hotel as infected man have tested negative for the virus once. Besides, all 43 people travelling on the same coach as the infected man from Da Nang to Ha Nam have been isolated and tested negative for coronavirus.

Moverover, COVID-19 tests on 72 Da Nang close contacts of the two Chinese positive cases have came back negative.

Medical workers cleaning and disinfecting places where the two Chinese infected men had visited during their trip to Da Nang. Photo: PHAN CHUNG

Dr. Ngo Thi Kim Yen, Director of the Da Nang Department of Health underscored the need for the public across Da Nang to strictly follow the Health Ministry-mandated 5K (in Vietnamese) motto: namely ‘Khau trang’ (Face mask) – ‘Khu khuan’ (Disinfection) – ‘Khoang cach’ ‘Distance’ - ‘Khong tu tap’ (No gatherings) – ‘Khai bao y te’ (Health Declaration) in a bid to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Director Yen also urged agencies, organisations and people in Da Nang to increase vigilance against COVID-19 with a focus on raising awareness around COVID-19, enforcing strict penalties for violations of Da Nang’s regulations for the prevention and control of COVID-19, and creating COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Plan.

Reporting by PHAN CHUNG – Translating by H.L