Medical officials perform the COVID-19 tests. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — HCM City authorities have ordered all non-essential services and entertainment, cultural and sports activities to be suspended from noon on Tuesday amid continuing COVID-19 transmission.

All beer clubs, pubs, karaoke parlours, bars, discotheques, beauty salons, massage parlours, saunas, gymnasiums, cinemas, theatres, and gaming and wedding facilities will remain closed until further notice.

Religious events with 20 or more people gathering has been banned.

The chairman of the city People’s Committee, Nguyễn Thành Phong, made the announcement following a meeting with the city Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control on Monday.

Those offering essential goods, petrol stations, pharmacies, and healthcare facilities can remain open but need to fully comply with the Ministry of Health’s pandemic preventive measures.

The Nguyễn Huệ flower street will open on Wednesday (February 10) but its opening ceremony has been cancelled.

Phong instructed district people’s committees to impose strict fines on people not wearing masks in public.

The HCM City Centre for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday morning reported two new cases, both workers at Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport.

Up to now, seven airport employees have tested positive and 25 others in the city have contracted the virus from them. —VNS