Hanoi's authorities have ordered residents to wear face masks in public places such as hospitals, bus stations, markets, supermarkets, shopping centers, cinemas, and public bars to avoid contracting the novel coronavirus.

In an official letter issued on the night of April 18, the municipal People's Committee ordered relevant forces to step up enforcement of wearing face masks in public, especially during Vietnam's upcoming long holidays of Reunification Day on April 30 and International Workers' Day on May 1.

The move has become urgent after Hanoi hospitals reported an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in recent days.

The official letter states that service staff, managers, and workers in indoor venues such as bars, discos, karaoke and massage parlors, beauty salons, gyms, restaurants, cinemas, theaters, circuses, and gymnasiums must wear masks at all times.

Masks are also required for service workers, managers, and patrons at cultural and tourist sites and other places where large crowds gather.

The municipal government has asked all relevant authorities to remain vigilant and monitor the situation to make timely plans, including vaccination and safety measures at businesses and other establishments such as schools, borders, and health care facilities.

Residents wear face masks at a supermarket in Hanoi. Photo: Phuc Long

The hot and humid weather is exacerbating the outbreak. Many people are not using masks as they used to, allowing the infection to spread, according to the official letter, emphasizing that authorities and residents should not be inattentive and negligent.

The dissemination of messages on prevention and control of Covid-19 should be accelerated to raise people's awareness of the issue, especially their compliance with the "2K" message, Khau trang (face mask) and Khu khuan (disinfection).

The Hanoi People's Committee has also instructed the city's Health Department to regularly update the situation and measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, and to respond to any situations that may arise during the treatment of Covid-19 disease.

On April 18, the Hanoi Department of Health announced that the highly contagious omicron variant XBB.1.9.1 had been detected among Covid-19 test samples in Nam Tu Liem District.

The Hanoi Center for Disease Control (CDC) has collected ten more Covid-19 samples from the city's six districts and sent them to Bach Mai Hospital for genetic sequencing. The results have not yet been released.

This is the first time the XBB.1.9.1 variant has been detected in Vietnam. The variant is circulating in several countries, including Germany, France, Singapore, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), XBB.1.9.1 is a new variant spreading rapidly but has mild symptoms.

The WHO said the virus is unlikely to cause large-scale outbreaks, and researchers have been studying its capacity for infection, virulence, and immunity.

In early April, Vietnam's Ministry of Health reported that severe cases accounted for about 1.4% of the total. More than 30% are found in people over 50, and children account for about 2-6% of all cases.

In the first three months of this year, a total of 2,070 new cases were reported nationwide, with an average of 160 per week. No deaths have been recorded in the last 108 days. The total number of deaths due to Covid-19 was nearly 43,200, or 0.4% of the total infections.

Hanoi has seen the highest number of cases in the last five days, with an average of 96 new cases per day. Nearly 570 people have been hospitalized, with 29 requiring oxygen support.

Last week, Ho Chi Minh City also confirmed the presence of Omicron variant XBB.1.5, another highly contagious variant found for the first time in Vietnam.