Vietnam's coronavirus cases rise to 18: Health ministry

A photo taken on Feb 2, 2020, shows travellers at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi. PHOTO: AFP

HANOI (REUTERS) - Vietnam's Ministry of Health on Saturday (March 7) confirmed another coronavirus case, raising the total number in the South-east Asian country to 18.

The 27-year-old patient, who had been to the South Korean city of Daegu, returned to Vietnam on a Vietjet flight on Wednesday and was quarantined upon his landing, the ministry said in a statement.

On Friday, Vietnam reported its first coronavirus case in three weeks after a 26-year-old woman returning to the capital city of Hanoi from Europe tested positive.

The first 16 cases in the country have been cured and released from hospitals, and there have been no deaths.

On Friday night, Hanoi authorities were seen blocking several streets around the woman's house, which was sprayed with disinfectant on Saturday.

The ministry said 101 suspected coronavirus cases are quarantined in the country while 23,228 others are being monitored.

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