The information was given by Hanoi’s Party Secretary Vuong Dinh Hue at an emergency meeting held late Friday.
Hue (second from left) at the meeting
The patient, a 26-year-old woman, is a hotel manager residing on Truc Bach Street in Ba Dinh District. She was tested positive to the virus after returning from a trip to Italy and the UK for around two weeks, starting from February 15.
She returned to Hanoi on a Vietnam Airlines flight on March 2 and went through immigration normally without a fever. She stayed at her apartment in Truc Bach Street.
The woman had a fever on March 3 and this got worse on March 5 when she came to Hong Ngoc Hospital near her house for medical examination. She was diagnosed with pneumonia.
She was moved to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi at 6 pm on Thursday where she tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
So, Hanoi authorities have decided to monitor 176 people in Truc Bach Street where the woman’s house is located.
According to Nguyen Duc Chung, chairman of Hanoi People’s Committee, the list of people who have been in close contact with the woman include 17 staff from Hong Ngoc Hospital, her father, driver and a domestic helper.
On the return flight to Vietnam, the woman shared the business class lounge with other 27 people.