Da Nang will re-introduce ban on swimming at beaches, hairdressers and barbers,  indoor and outdoor sports from the midday, today (July 15) until further notice as part of the city’s new measures to tackle the rising number of coronavirus cases of unknown cause.

Da Nang Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Van Quang on Wednesday afternoon called on officials to put in place all necessary measures to control the spread of the virus, and strengthen the role of leaders at the local level in outbreak prevention and response.

Municipal Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Van Quang (left) called for all necessary measures to control the spread of the virus on Wednesday afternoon. Photo: PHAN CHUNG

Faster contract tracing and testing needed

Da Nang finds it very hard to find the source of new infections following a spike in COVID-19 community cases.

Secretary Quang called for faster contact-tracing, quarantining and testing of all contacts of new confirmed cases to prevent the further spread of the virus. 

The city Party chief criticised some units and localities for delay in quaranting and testing for all contacts of new postive cases. Therefore, he requested leaders at the local level to take action to make sure that all appropriate measures are adopted to handle people with suspected COVID-19 symptoms.

“The heath ageny must work with relevant units to take proactive steps to quarantine positive cases and their primary close contacts in their workplace where they are detected with proper precautions in place to make these venues COVID-secure and safe for staff and ensure their smooth operations during the pandemic”, Mr Quang remarked.

Secretary directed healthcare facilities across the city to develop an action plan to prepare for treatment of patients with COVID-19 as well as to conduct screening tests for their staff members to allow positive cases to be caught quickly.

Municipal People's Committee Chairman Le Trung Chinh said that Da Nang is entering a more complex and unpredictable phase of the pandemic due to the rise in community acquired cases.

Chairman Chinh remarked that it is a crucial step to identify contacts faster and further prevent transmission. He asked district authoritties to prepare for setting up designated quarantine facilities which can accommodate about 1,000 people in each of their areas.  

The city government leader directed the health agency to quickly roll out COVID-19 tests for stall holders in wet markets where confirmed cases visited along with people in their surroundings.

Mr Chinh called on every one across Da Nang to have a role to play in the fight against the deadly virus by taking action to keep themselves and others safe during the pandemic. He urged them to continue to stick to advice and guidance on infection prevention and control from the municipal government and health bodies, especially the 5K recommendations of the Ministry of Health.

Stronger measures needed to combat the deadly virus

Dr Ton That Thanh, the Director of the Da Nang Center for Disease Control and Prevention, called for better coordination among relevent units to tighten oversight of arrivals and returnees from COVID-19 affected areas as well as enhance surveillance and investigation of new cases.

Mr Thanh aslo highlighted the important role of police officers in conducting investigations into COVID-19 cases which provided false and misleading information for health officials to help tracers quickly identify their contacts in order to slow the spread of the virus.

Director Thanh suggested that businesses should pay for testing and treatment of their infected employees. He also stressed the need to enforce stricter penalties for non-compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures in businesses which lead to virus spread.

Dr Ngo Thi Kim Yen, the Director of the Da Nang Department of Health suggested businesses to give top priority to helping their employees who are contacts of COVID-19 cases get tested for the virus as soon as possible to curb the spread of the virus.

Da Nang recorded 45 new cases of COVID-19 in total since July 10, according to the municipal Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

On Wednesday (July 14) alone, 21 positive cases were detected in Da Nang. In addition, two more clusters were identified in the city.

In the evening of July 13 and during the day of July 14, all close contacts of new cases were already tracked down and placed under quarantine, some of them tested positive for the virus.    

Reporting by PHAN CHUNG – Translating by H.L