The southern province of Đồng Nai will fine people for not wearing face masks from August 12. — Photo tuoitre.vn

ĐỒNG NAI — A number of people have been punished for violating COVID-19 prevention rules as localities across the country strengthen measures to prevent the outbreak from spreading.

The southern province of Đồng Nai will fine people for not wearing face masks or not disposing them properly, following similar policies in Hà Nội and HCM City.

From April 12, a VNĐ200,000 (US$8.5) fine will be imposed on people who are not wearing masks in public.

The provincial police was assigned to coordinate with local authorities to patrol the area and detect unregistered residents and suspected cases to send them to quarantine centres.

The provincial People’s Committee asked the Health Department to work with other agencies in preparing facilities, medicines and human resources to receive Vietnamese returning to the country on repatriation flights.

It was necessary to tighten the management of concentrated quarantine centres, preventing people fleeing the centres. All violations should be strictly dealt with.

Đồng Nai Province has recorded two COVID-19 infected cases.

The province has isolated 182 households with about 900 people in Biên Hòa city’s Quang Vinh ward for 14 days starting on August 3.

More than 400 are quarantined at provincial concentrated facilities and about 2,300 others are monitored at home.

In the northern province of Quảng Ninh, the police summoned a woman from Uông Bí City’s Thanh Sơn Ward for spreading false information related to COVID-19.

On July 27, she used a personal Facebook account to post false articles about Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam's statement on the COVID-19 situation and the tourism sector. They contained misinformation about the pandemic as well as prevention and combat measures, misleading public opinion and hampering pandemic prevention and control work.

On July 27, she admitted to the police that the information posted on her Facebook page was false. She removed the post and committed not to do so again.

Two men from the northern province of Hải Dương’s Gia Lộc District have also been punished for posting misinformation relating to Deputy Prime Minister Đam’s statement on COVID-19.

They have been asked to remove the articles and ordered to pay a VNĐ5 million (US$214) fine. —  VNS