The central city of Vinh in Nghệ An Province has tightened COVID-19 restrictions from Monday. — Photo baonghean.vn

NGHỆ AN — The central city of Vinh in Nghệ An Province has tightened COVID-19 restrictions, ordering people to 'stay where they are' and not to leave their homes for seven days in the light of the rapidly increasing number of COVID-19 infections.

Chairman of Nghệ An Province’s People’s Committee, Nguyễn Đức Trung, ordered the city to ensure sufficient supply of food and essential goods for households and avoid supply chain disruption during the lockdown.

Under the new order, people are not allowed to leave their houses, even for shopping. All entries into the city are also banned, except for people tasked with pandemic prevention and control work.

The number of staff working at offices must reduce to 10 per cent.

During the tightened lockdown, the authorities will conduct pooled rapid testing for all 500,000 people in the city to detect and isolate infected people from the community, Trung said at a meeting on Sunday.

The province’s Department of Health will mobilise about 1,000 staff to assist the city in taking samples for COVID-19 testing in four days, starting from Tuesday.

Chairman of Vinh City’s People’s Committee, Trần Ngọc Tú, said the pandemic situation in the city is very complicated with many cases in the community. The lockdown has been implemented to isolate those infected from the rest of the community and establish green zones without any cases.

He said the city will ensure social security and promptly support the disadvantaged as well as quickly supply sufficient goods to households.

The leader of Nghệ An Province also said that Vinh City must pay attention to the disadvantaged and vulnerable people, offering free supply of food and goods for them.

The city must also have plans for healthcare and medicine supplies so people don’t have to leave their homes.

As of Sunday, Nghệ An Province had 876 cases of COVID-19 infection in 21 localities, of which 408 were recorded since August 14 and among them 189 were reported in the community.

Earlier Vinh City implemented social distancing measures under Directive 16. It has 25 communes and wards with total population of more than 500,000 people. — VNS