The case is a 63-year-old man from Hai Duong Province who was admitted to Thanh Nhan Hospital on August 9 and later tested positive for the coronavirus, technically known as SARS-CoV-2.
The patient has no known links to the hot spot of Da Nang where most of the Covid-19 cases in latest outbreak in Vietnam have been reported.
As news of his infection emerged, Hanoi has immediately worked to trace people that have had close contact with him at the places where the patient had visited and informed the authorities in his hometown of Hai Duong, which has also activated its virus prevention system.
Hai Duong Province, which is about 70 kilometres to the east of Hanoi, had already reported a Covid-19 case, a Da Nang resident who went to a hospital in the province’s eponymous capital city last week.
According Hanoi’s heath officials, the city has collected more than 16,200 samples from people who have returned from Da Nang from July 15-29 and over 11,000 have produced negative results.
They said the remaining tests will be completed within the first half of next week.
As Hanoi remains highly susceptible to the coronavirus, the city authorities continue to call on its residents to take precautionary measures such as wearing masks and washing hands.
Festivals and the operation of bars, discos and karaoke parlours have also been suspended.
Meanwhile in Quang Nam Province, which neighbours Da Nang and where many cases have been reported, the provincial government decided to ban a wide range of activities from August 13 in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
This includes all passenger transport services from Quang Nam to Da Nang and Quang Ngai, culture and sports events, religious ceremonies, and events of more than 20 people in public places and tourism sites.
The province has also suspended the operation of beauty salons, entertainment and recreational facilities, and education and skill development centres, among others.
Since the emergence of the first case in Da Nang on July 25, the province of Quang Nam has reported 77 cases of Covid-19.
