Da Nang has recorded its fourth positive case of the novel coronavirus, the municipal Department of Health announced on Wednesday.

The latest case was confirmed in a 41-year-old male American national who married a female resident of Da Nang. He has become the 68^th case to be diagnosed with coronavirus in Viet Nam till date.  

The Da Nang Centre for Disease Control (CDC) said on Wednesday it had tested the American man for the virus and his tests have returned positive. His positive tests have been confirmed by the Nha Trang Pasteur Institute.

Since 11 February, the American man has travelled to India, Spain, Morocco, Switzerland, Germany, Hungary and the Netherlands.

The American national travelled on a flight SQ323, in seat 57H, departing from Amsterdam City in the Netherlands at 11.25am on 13 March, and arrived in Singapore at 5.55am on 14 March.

Later, he flew to Da Nang at 11.00am on 14 March on a SilkAir flight MI 632, in seat 15F, from Singapore.

After implementing entry procedures and making health declaration with local health officials at the city’s airport, the man was sent to the Police Hospital No 199 for quarantine.

Currently, he is receiving treatment at the Da Nang General Hospital, and his health conditions are stable, with no fever and shortness of breath.

After tests on the American man came back positive on 15 March, local health officials have traced 40 passengers and 10 crew members who shared a plane with American infected patient from Singapore to Da Nang on 14 March.

The municipal health officials are closely monitoring close contacts with the patient. Included are seven passengers who sat near the infected patient, along with 4 quarantine officers, 2 security officers, and 2 staff members of the Vietnam Airport Ground Services Company Limited (VIAGS) at the airport.

Amongst the 7 passengers, two foreigners were founded to stay in hotels in Ngu Hanh Son and Son Tra districts in Da Nang, and the remainder are in Quang Nam Province’s Hoi An City.

On 17 March, the two foreigners who are staying in Da Nang tested negative for the virus, but they now remain quarantined at the Sam Grand Hotel at 7 Pham Van Dong Street. Hotels in Ngu Hanh Son and Son Tra districts where they had stayed before have been sprayed with Chloramine B.

Meanwhile, the 8 employees at the airport are undergoing 14 days of isolation at district-level medical centres.

The Da Nang CDC has already sent a list of all passengers on the flight MI632, including the number of their seats, to provinces and cities nationwide to monitor these cases.

By PHAN CHUNG - Translated by MAI DUNG