Vietnam at almost two weeks with no confirmed locally spread cases of Covid-19

Vietnam-

Even as Myanmar continues to find new cases and escalates concerns on the border with Thailand, Vietnam, who had been dealing with a second wave of Covid-19 infections since late July, appears to have got the situation under control.

Today, September 14, 2020, will mark twelve days in a row with no new, confirmed cases of the Covid-19 Coronavirus that are locally spread and non imported. The second wave had started in the popular tourism city of Da Nang on July 25 and caused the Vietnam government to take strict actions to control the virus.

Da Nang locked down, banning gatherings of over two people, restricting domestic travel, ordering all non essential business to close and in some cases “hard lock-downed” certain neighborhoods and areas, confining people to their homes or hospitals and delivering needed supplies. The ultra-strict measures appear to have succeeded, controlling the virus and causing most of the infections from the second outbreak to primarily be centered in Da Nang.

Vietnam also has an extensive contact tracing system which was used to successfully curb the virus, along with mandatory and extensive testing for the virus. Additionally, even when Covid-19 patients were released from the hospital after three consecutive negative Covid-19 tests Vietnam requires home isolation for an additional two weeks, erring on the ultra conservative and cautious side of things.

The total number of COVID-19 infections in Vietnam remained at 1,060, of which 691 are locally transmitted cases. The total number of deaths in the country was 35, the vast majority elderly with multiple preexisting medical problems. The government in Vietnam is slowly and cautiously starting to lift restrictions and measures made to control the virus.

The exact cause of the second outbreak was never determined but is believed to be illegal immigration, causing the country to double down on border enforcement.