Southern localities on COVID-19 alert as stranded workers return home

Many provinces in the southwestern region of Vietnam have reactivated concentrated isolation and COVID-19 treatment facilities as thousands of stranded people, mostly workers, are returning home from coronavirus hotspots.

Over the past days thousands of people have driven motorbikes returning to their home from coronavirus hotspots such as Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, and Dong Nai which are home to major industrial parks, after these localities eased social distancing measures. Local authorities have arranged temporary accommodation, delivered food, and conducted quick COVID-19 tests for the returnees.

Tan Hiep district in Kien Giang province has so far welcomed approximately 4,000 returnees, many of whom were pregnant women and children. Meanwhile, Ca Mau and An Giang provinces have received 6,000 and 17,000 people respectively, posing a huge challenge to local authorities.

An Giang has arranged schools as concentrated isolation areas and at the same time made plans to allow returnees to quarantine themselves at home in order to avoid overloading at military run quarantine facilities.

Similarly, Soc Trang has put into operation isolation areas and asymptomatic F0 treatment areas, with each room having separate toilets to prevent cases of cross transmission.

The flux of returnees from coronavirus hotspots have raised concerns about the possibility of the virus to spread in coming localities. Indeed, hundreds of positive COVID-19 patients have been found following the recent mass movement of people. Relevant agencies have detected 14, 70, 60, and 50 F0 cases among those coming back to An Giang, Dong Thap, Soc Trang, and Hau Giang provinces, respectively.

Currently, thousands of people are continuing to flock to southwestern localities, prompting local authorities to fear that the sheer number of returnees will overwhelm quarantine capacities and risk more infections.

In provinces such as An Giang, Kien Giang, and Soc Trang, relevant forces are now working hard to classify groups of returnees depending on their vaccination and testing status so that the returnees are monitored either at home or in concentrated isolation facilities.

Nguyen Thanh Binh, chairman of the An Giang provincial administration, suggested that Ho Chi Minh City, and Binh Duong, Dong Nai, and Long An provinces persuade workers to stay with incentives and prioritise vaccinating them, in an attempt to halt the mass movements.

Returnees are also required to co-ordinate with local authorities to trace suspect cases and undergo COVID-19 tests to nip in a bud a possible outbreak in the community.