The Da Nang government on Monday asked permission from the Prime Minister to suspend repatriation flights bringing Vietnamese citizens in dire circumstances home to the Da Nang International Airport.

The desperate request came after the city reported a new COVID-19 positive case on Monday.

According to municipal People's Committee Chairman Le Trung Chinh, since the beginning of this year, the city received around 11,800 entrants from abroad. In April alone, it has hosted over 8,000 people entering Viet Nam.

The city has recorded 61 imported COVID-19 positive cases already since March 30.

The Da Nang Lung Hospital, is the only medical facility in the city to treat COVID-19 imported cases, has experienced long-lasting pressure at work. In reality, the medical staff are facing overwhelmed tasks for treating COVID-19 patients whilst still performing other professional missions.

Besides medical workers, Da Nang's other functional forces in the COVID-19 fight, including those taking responsibility in quarantining missions, are being overloaded as well.

Based on the actual conditions in terms of human resources and isolation facilities, Da Nang, therefore, has asked for permission from Viet Nam's national government to suspend repatriation flights in a bid to help the city to control COVID-19.

Over the past times, the reception and quarantine of the returnees to Da Nang has always been carried out in a strict manner under the guidance of the Vietnamese Ministry of Health.

Reporting by PHAN CHUNG- Translating by A.T