Police in Vietnam are tracking down foreigners and Vietnamese people who entered the country from March 7 to March 24, as the latest move to curb the spread of the coronavirus that has caused 123 cases of infection in the nation.

Health quarantine at Noi Bai International Airport. Photo: Zing

Local policemen will conduct house-to-house check and report to the Ministry of Public Security before Wednesday 6:00 pm and submit to the prime minister for further measures.

The move aims to identify people who came from epidemic-hit areas but now are not localized. It poses risk of secondary transmission that might heighten if the authorities fail to zone the affected places.

Vietnam requires 14-day quarantine to all people abroad regardless of Vietnamese or foreigners who entered the country from March 21.

Before the date, only people from epidemic-stricken areas were required to undergo mass quarantine.

In addition, a large number of passengers on 21 international flights that carried Covid-19 patients have not been identified. The Ministry of Health has been searching for the passengers and asked them to contact health agencies for protective measures and checkup.

At present, as many as 42,466 foreigners and Vietnamese from abroad are under quarantine, including 19,441 at military barracks and the remaining at concentrated facilities in a number of localities across the country.