Hanoi wholesale market shut after vendor found to have Covid

Nguyen Minh Tam, people’s committee chairman of Hoang Mai District, where the South wholesale market is situated, said an egg seller there had a fever on Monday night and was confirmed as coronavirus positive the next morning.

Local authorities are disinfecting the market and carrying out contact tracing, and it would remain closed until further notice, he said.

Rapid testing has been done at the market and contact tracing of shoppers is underway, he said.

Since it is a wholesale market with a large number of shoppers, it would take until Wednesday morning to do a rigorous job, he added.

The market, situated in the Den Lu Residential Area, sells a wide range of products including fresh vegetables, fruits, seafood, clothes, and home appliances.

Hanoi last Friday announced a 15-day social distancing order starting 6 a.m. last Saturday amid rising coronavirus concerns in both the capital and nationwide.

The city has recorded 1,007 local Covid-19 cases in the fourth coronavirus wave that struck Vietnam in late April.