280 foreigners in central Vietnam complete quarantine

By Nguyen Dong, Vo Thanh, Dac Thanh   March 25, 2020 | 03:05 am PT
280 foreigners in central Vietnam complete quarantine
A foreign woman (L) receives a certificate from a Hoi An official for completing her Covid-19 quarantine, March 24, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Dac Thanh.
175 tourists in Da Nang, 66 in Quang Nam Province and 40 in Thua Thien-Hue Province have finished their 14-day compulsory isolation.

None tested positive for Covid-19 during the quarantine period, either at hospital or centralized facility.

Quang Nam, home to popular ancient town Hoi An, on Wednesday sent a batch of 66 foreigners to Da Nang International Airport from where they would fly home. These had previously met with patients who had contracted the new coronavirus, which causes Covid-19, and thus entered quarantine.

The province has tested 508 people so far and found three positive cases, with 109 still pending.

For now, Quang Nam is keeping 47 in quarantine, all in stable condition. Previously, it had released 54 foreigners from isolation.

Da Nang City has so far admitted 118 foreign tourists into hospitals for quarantine as they had either arrived from stricken areas or come into close contact with Covid-19 patients, with all displaying Covid-19 symptoms (coughs, fever, shortness of breath, sore throat). By Wednesday, 107 had been discharged after testing negative more than once.

The city has also released 68 other foreigners quarantined at centralized facilities after they arrived from stricken areas. It is now treating four Covid-19 cases, two Britons, one American and a Vietnamese woman who had close contact with the Brits.

In Thua Thien Hue, 44 have been released from hospital after each tested negative for the novel coronavirus twice while in quarantine.

The province now has two Covid-19 patients under treatment, both British. Previously, it had confirmed 53 foreigners were completing their two-week quarantine.

Foreign tourists pose with Thua Thien-Hue officials as they hold souvenirs and quarantine completion certificates, March 24, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Vo Thanh.

Foreign tourists pose with Thua Thien-Hue officials as they hold souvenirs and quarantine completion certificates, March 24, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Vo Thanh.

Vietnam has recorded a total of 134 infections, including 11 fresh cases confirmed Tuesday.

Of the total, 17 have been discharged after treatment and among the current active cases, 15 have tested negative once, twice or thrice.

By Wednesday, Vietnam had classified 1,596 people as potential carriers of the Covid-19 virus, marking the highest number of people deemed Covid-19 suspects in a day since the pandemic started as an outbreak in Vietnam late January. 

Suspected infections include those who’ve returned from stricken areas or have had direct contact with returnees from those areas and show symptoms like coughs, fever and shortness of breath. Those tagged as suspects are quarantined at hospitals specialized in Covid-19 treatment after testing positive twice.

Aside from quarantining suspects, Vietnam has placed many others under medical monitoring - those entering Vietnam from virus-hit areas or have met with infected people but have not showed any Covid-19 symptoms.

These are routinely checked at entry ports before sent to medical camps for 14 days of monitoring. Some with low infection risks are quarantined at home, and monitored and checked by local medical staff each day.

Anyone showing signs of Covid-19 will be placed in hospital quarantine. If they test negative for the coronavirus, they will undergo additional monitoring at home or at a medical camp.

Almost 45,000 are currently under medical monitoring, with over 26,100 quarantined at home.

The Covid-19 pandemic has killed almost 19,000 people globally as it spread to 194 countries and territories by Wednesday afternoon, down from 196 the previous day.

 
 
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