The north-central province of Quang Tri has managed to quarantine a local businessman who sent one of his employees to a quarantine camp in his place after he had traveled on the same flight as a passenger infected with the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

L.T.H., chairman of a wind power company in Huong Hoa District, Quang Tri, was brought to Dong Ha City for quarantine on Monday, said provincial deputy chairman Hoang Nam on the same day.

H. boarded flight VN1547 from Hanoi to the central city of Hue, about 85 kilometers south of Quang Tri, on March 6.

One out of 154 passengers on the flight tested positive for the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 on Sunday.

Authorities in Quang Tri later determined that H. and three other company employees traveled on that flight and ran a high risk of being infected. They were all required to be quarantined.

As provincial forces came to Huong Hoa District to take the four people to a quarantine camp on Sunday night, H. asked one of his employees to stand in for him.

It was not until Monday morning that the authorities found out about the imposter and returned to Huong Hoa District to force H. into quarantine.

Both H. and his substitute are now under quarantine.

The novel coronavirus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, has infected over 114,100 people and killed more than 4,000 globally, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

Vietnam has so far confirmed 34 infections, including 20 Vietnamese, two Chinese nationals, one Vietnamese American, nine British citizens, one Mexican, and one Irish national.

Sixteen of the patients had recovered and been discharged from the hospital by February 26.

Vietnam confirmed its 17th patient on Friday last week after the country had reported no new infection since February 13.

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