Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City are locating five people, including four foreigners, who were on the same flight as a Japanese national who has now tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The Japanese passenger was on Vietnam Airlines flight VN814 from Siem Reap, Cambodia that landed at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City at 10:03 pm on Tuesday.

The passenger boarded a connecting flight, VN340, to Nagoya, Japan that departed at 1:19 am on Wednesday and tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving in Japan with a fever.

Among the 67 passengers on the Siem Reap - Ho Chi Minh City flight, 61 boarded connecting flights to other destinations while six entered the city.

The six passengers include one Vietnamese, three French, one Australian, and one Filippino.

The Filippino passenger already left Vietnam for their home country on Wednesday.

The other five passengers remained unquarantined in Ho Chi Minh City as of Wednesday evening as quarantine units were working with airport authorities to locate their whereabouts, according to the city’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“We request that the five passengers contact local health authorities immediately to receive support and instructions on necessary preventive measures as per regulations,” a CDC representative said on the same day.

Meanwhile, at least 70 people including crew members, passengers, and ground staff of Vietnam Airlines flight VN341 which returned to Ho Chi Minh City from Nagoya at 1:55 pm on Wednesday after having transported the sick Japanese passenger have been placed in quarantine in the southern metropolis.

Over 94,100 people have been infected and 3,219 killed globally by COVID-19, which first surfaced in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, according to the Vietnamese Ministry of Health.

Over 1,000 infections have been confirmed in Japan, with 12 deaths, as of Wednesday.

Vietnam has so far confirmed 16 cases of the viral infection, including 13 Vietnamese, one Vietnamese American, and two Chinese.

All of them have fully recovered and have been discharged from the hospital.

The country has reported no new infections since February 13.

Vietnam requires a compulsory 14-day quarantine period for anyone entering the country with a recent travel history to areas affected by COVID-19.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!