A total of 3,646 new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Viet Nam in the past 24 hours to 5pm on October 20, along with 72 more deaths, the Ministry of Health announced.

A local resident in Que Vo district, Bac Ninh province, has sample taken for COVID-19 testing. (Photo: VNA)

The nationwide tally since the beginning of the pandemic stands at 869,193. The total number of deaths is 21,416.

Among the new cases, 11 were imported and the rest were local transmissions. Of the new infections, 1,810 were detected in the community.

The number of infections increased by 608 cases compared to the previous day’s figure.

Ho Chi Minh City still has the highest infection rate with 1,347 cases, followed by its neighbouring provinces of Binh Duong (492) and Dong Nai (305). The capital city of Hanoi reported 10 new cases.

Other provinces and cities that logged COVID cases in the past 24 hours are An Giang (194), Soc Trang (100), Bac Lieu (99), Gia Lai (93), Kien Giang (87), Dak Lak (77), Long An (72), Tien Giang (65), Tay Ninh (52), Phu Tho (50), Binh Thuan (50), Ca Mau (46), Can Tho (44), Ha Giang (40), Khanh Hoa (39), Tra Vinh (38), Nghe An (33), Thanh Hoa (25), Quang Nam (24), Dong Thap (24), Hau Giang (23), Quang Tri (23), Ha Nam (19), Ben Tre (18), Quang Ngai (17), Binh Dinh (16), Vinh Long (14), Bac Ninh (13), Binh Phuoc (13), Ba Ria - Vung Tau (13), Kon Tum (12), Thua Thien Hue (11), Da Nang (8 ), Ninh Thuan (5), Dak Nong (4), Quang Binh (3), Nam Dinh (3), Lao Cai (3), Hai Duong (2), Yen Bai (2), Son La (2), Phu Yen (1), Ha Tinh (1), Vinh Phuc (1), Dien Bien (1), and Tuyen Quang (1).

The Ministry of Health has directed the health departments of Bac Ninh, Phu Tho and Thanh Hoa provinces to urgently expand their epidemiological investigations and trace those who have close contact with new locally transmitted cases.

In the past two days, a cluster of at least 11 community cases relating to a local pre-school has emerged in Que Vo district in Bac Ninh province, a previous COVID-19 hotspot.

The local authority has urgently conducted their epidemiological investigations relating to this cluster, to quickly locate infected people and prevent infections from spreading further into the community.

It was also announced on October 20 that 1,737 patients have fully recovered from the virus, bringing the total number of recoveries to 796,583.

Of the 3,879 COVID-19 patients being treated in hospital at the moment, 20 are on life support (ECMO).

More than 67 million doses of vaccines have been administered so far in the country. Over 19 million people have fully received two jabs.

Source: VNA