A week before Tet, flower market in Hanoi Old Quarter still quiet

Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam Chairs the meeting of the Steering Committee for COVID-10 Prevention and Control in Hà Nội yesterday. VNA/ Photo 

HÀ NỘI — Representatives of the Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control yesterday said people can enjoy a peaceful Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday in the ‘new normal’ state if the health sector and pandemic prevention and control teams stay alert.

Trần Đắc Phu, an adviser of the Centre for Emergency Public Health Event under the Ministry of Health, said the COVID-19 clusters in Hai Duong and Quang Ninh provinces have been basically put under control thanks to drastic efforts to isolate pandemic-stricken areas and contract tracing.

In general, anti-pandemic work in localities across the country has basically caught up with the pandemic situation and the rate of disease risk has decreased, except for in Bình Dương and Gia Lai provinces.

However, he stressed that forces and people should always stay alert. The risk from imported cases is still very high, he said.

Hải Dương 

At the meeting, a representative of Hải Dương Provincial People’s Committee said the situation was zoned and controlled well in the province.

Since the first case eight days ago, Hải Dương has recorded a total of 235 positive cases. The results showed the number of positive cases decreased gradually, with 72 cases on the first day and 11 cases yesterday.

Notably, authorities have not been able to trace the connections of two cases recorded in Cẩm Giàng and Ninh Giang districts on Tuesday.

In terms of treatment, under the support of the Government, Hải Dương Province has set up a third field hospital.

Quảng Ninh 

In a report at the meeting, a representative from Quảng Ninh Province said up to now, the province has traced more than 74,000 people and is speeding up testing for F1 cases. The province has recorded 42 positive cases.

The representative said Quảng Ninh had controlled the outbreak at Vân Đồn Airport. The province has also invested in additional equipment to improve testing capacity. Quảng Ninh has set a target that by February 9, all outbreaks will be zoned.

Quảng Ninh has proposed the central Government to support the province in treatment capacity while also adjusting regulations to increase allowances for people performing anti-pandemic work.

Hà Nội to raise prevention level

From January 28 to date, Hà Nội has recorded 21 positive community cases. Yesterday the city reported a patient who is a notary office employee with a complex travel history who had come into contact with multiple people and so far 22 F1 cases have been identified.

The capital is continuing to enhance investigation and testing. Some 653 of F1 cases have been tested and all F1 cases have been isolated. The city is also strictly monitoring the home quarantining of F2 cases.

The city has also raised prevention work by one level as authorities ordered the closure of bars and karaoke clubs to avoid large crowds, and required restaurants to have partitions, and also ordered the closure of online game and internet shops.

Local police are also asked to punish individuals who do not wear masks in public places.

A representative of the city’s COVID-19 quick response team said that cases of infection were mainly caused by close contact, like family contact or in closed space. Notably, in all infectious cases, the patients did not wear masks.

The steering committee suggested provinces with high community infections raise their prevention level compared to the previous outbreak, including implementing social distancing or restricting crowds.

Gia Lai Province

Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long said the situation in Gia Lai is relatively complicated since this is an area where many ethnic minorities live, making contact tracing difficult. This is also an area where the pandemic had yet to make a great impact, so local forces lack experience.

The Ministry of Health has sent delegations to set up facilities in Gia Lai Province, headed by Deputy Minister of Health Đỗ Xuân Tuyên. Experts from Bạch Mai Hospital and Chợ Rẫy Hospital have also been dispatched. —