Health workers disinfect a confirmed COVID-19 patient's residence in District 3, HCM City, on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vũ

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam’s national COVID-19 tally surpassed 7,000 cases after 250 community cases were confirmed by the Ministry of Health on Sunday.

The northern province of Bắc Giang, Việt Nam’s biggest hotspot at the moment, logged an additional 124 cases – all in quarantined or locked-down areas related to outbreaks involving workers at industrial zones and manufactories here – bringing the province’s caseload to 2,188 since the beginning of Việt Nam’s fourth wave on April 27.

The COVID-19 cluster in HCM City, which involves a Christian church, continues to grow in size, with 59 new infections confirmed today, making the southern city the second-worst hit place in the country today.

Municipal authorities announced this morning that social distancing orders will be imposed city-wide for two weeks starting Monday, with non-essential services and shops closed, public and indoor gatherings heavily restricted, and people are advised to only go outside when necessary.

Gò Vấp District, where the headquarters of the Christian church is based, will be under stricter lockdown measures for 15 days, with people not allowed to go out unless for justified reasons or in emergency situations. Residents in the district have rushed to supermarkets and malls to buy food and other essential items in fears of scarcity during the weeks to come.

Head of the city’s trade department Bùi Tá Hoàng Vũ told the Việt Nam’s Government Portal that there will be no shortage and no price hike with supply to the city intact, urging people to remain calm and not gather in crowds at markets and malls which will risk exposing themselves to the virus.

The department has also urged companies to promote online shopping to reduce crowds, Vũ said

Today, Bắc Giang’s neighbouring province Bắc Ninh and the capital city of Hà Nội followed in third and fourth places with 43 and 18 COVID-19 cases, respectively. The outbreak at the Kim Chung facility of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hà Nội recorded two more patients.

Hải Phòng, Hải Dương, Đà Nẵng, and Long An each posted one new local case.

Sunday’s 250 local cases marked the third-highest daily increase in this fourth wave, after record-breaking May 25 with 444 community infections and May 29 with 277.

The fourth wave has recorded 4,034 cases so far.

A total of 2,950 patients out of the total 7,107 have been declared clear of the virus, while 70 patients have tested negative for the coronavirus for three consecutive tests.

The country has logged 47 COVID-19 related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic. — VNS