Police and local authorities in Đồng Nai Province prepare to take workers back to Ninh Thuận. — VNA/VNS Photo Công Thử

HÀ NỘI — More than 1,200 workers, from Bình Thuận and Ninh Thuận that are working in Đồng Nai Province, have travelled back to their home towns to avoid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They were led by Biên Hòa City and Vĩnh Cửu District police and authorities on Saturday, after being given rapid COVID-19 tests.

The delegation was also escorted by a medical team and transport vehicles with food and drink supplied by local authorities, free of charge.

Most of them are ethnic Chăm people.

Nguyễn Hữu Nguyên, chairman of the Biên Hòa City People’s Committee, said that to ensure that workers could come back to their hometown safely, the city had allocated coaches for pregnant women and children.

Due to the complicated COVID-19 situation, many enterprises have temporarily stopped work.

Nguyên said that the city would continue to help facilitate the return of workers to their hometowns.

Thạch Ngọc Hòa Thanh, from Ninh Phước District in Ninh Thuận Province, said he and his wife were both workers and had boarded in Hóa An Ward, Biên Hòa City for many years.

For the past 20 days, their employer had been closed as it was located in an area that was locked down. Along with their 10-month-old baby, they had been staying at home all day, every day since. During this time they had burned through all of their savings. With few other options, Thanh registered with the city to help them return home.

“My boarding room is very narrow with a high risk of COVID-19 transmission. Our health will be affected and also create a burden for local authorities. So I registered for my family to return home. I hope to reach my hometown as soon as possible,” said Thanh.

Last Thursday and Friday, the Vĩnh Cửu District also brought home more than 1,700 workers from Đắk Lắk Central Highland Province that were working in different enterprises in Thạnh Phú Commune. — VNS