Repatriated citizens waiting for quarantine procedures. VNA/VNS Photo

Four new imported COVID-19 cases were recorded in Việt Nam on Thursday evening, raising the country’s total number of infections to 1,304, the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control has announced.

All were quarantined upon arrival in the northern provinces of Hà Nam and Nam Định.

Patients 1,301 and 1,302, aged 49 and 24, arrived on November 16 at Vân Đồn International Airport in Quảng Ninh Province from Canada on Vietnam Airlines flight VN5028.

They tested positive for the SAR-CoV-2 virus on their third tests on November 17. They are being treated at Hà Nam General Hospital. 

Patients 1,303 and 1,304, aged 28 and 67, flew from London on flight VN56 on November 6 and landed at Vân Đồn International Airport.

The first tests on November 7 were negative. But the second tests on November 17 were positive for the virus.

The patients are being treated at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hà Nội’s Đông Anh District.

The committee also reported that there were 18 patients making a full recovery on Thursday.

Of the total 1,304 cases, 691 were locally transmitted cases, including 551 cases linked to the outbreak in the central city of Đà Nẵng that began on July 25.

Citizens repatriated from Europe

A Vietnam Airlines flight brought close to 280 Vietnamese citizens back home from over 20 European nations on Wednesday and Thursday.

The passengers included children under 18, students who completed their studies, the elderly and others in extremely disadvantaged circumstances.

The Vietnamese Embassies sent staff to Germany’s Frankfurt airport, where the citizens gathered, to assist them with boarding procedures.

In-flight safety and preventive measures against the COVID-19 pandemic were rigorously enforced to protect the passengers’ health and prevent the spread of the disease.

Upon arrival at Vân Đồn International Airport in the northeastern province of Quảng Ninh, all passengers and crew members received medical check-ups and were sent to quarantine in line with regulations.

The repatriation of Vietnamese citizens in disadvantaged circumstances abroad will continue to be conducted in line with their wishes, the developments of the COVID-19 pandemic, and quarantine capacity in Việt Nam.