Covid-19 epicenter in Danang must be stamped out: PM

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on August 3 asked for all-out efforts to be made nationwide to handle the resurgence of the novel coronavirus in Vietnam, first and foremost in the central city of Danang, local media reported.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc presides over the government's regular meeting for July. Photo: Quang Hieu

Phuc warned localities not to be complacent and not to let the disease break out again on a large scale.

“Early August would be the decisive time to prevent the pandemic from spreading on a large scale, therefore all resources must be pooled to promptly handle the outbreak, especially the one in Danang,” the PM said.

He added that the Vietnamese government has taken swift actions to help Danang deal with the outbreak by dispatching a large number of health professionals from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to the locality. Other localities, like Quang Nam, have also adopted drastic measures to curb Covid-19.

Danang has become a hot spot over the past week after the first locally-transmitted coronavirus case was detected on July 24, ending a 99-day streak in Vietnam without community transmission.

As the second wave of the epidemic broke out in Vietnam, PM Phuc reminded localities of the spirit of “fighting Covid-19 like fighting the enemy” adopted several months ago.

He said the government has embarked on the policy of pandemic prevention and economic recovery at the same time to get the coronavirus-hit economy back on track. However, the PM acknowledged that challenges are still ahead.

At the time of writing, Vietnam had recorded 652 Covid-19 cases, including 374 recoveries and eight fatalities.