An apartment building in Hanoi has been temporarily locked down after a man who had recently returned to the capital from Ho Chi Minh City tested positive for COVID-19.

Hemisco Xa La – a 30-story apartment block with more than 500 units in Phuc La Ward, Ha Dong District – was fenced off on Thursday night, according to Nguyen Duc Tien, the ward's chairman.

Health workers have collected samples from residents living on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd floors for COVID-19 testing. 

They have also begun to disinfect the building.

The lockdown will be gradually lifted in accordance with regulations when the test results are returned, chairman Tien stated.

The decision follows a contact tracing report from the Hanoi Center for Disease Control, which announced a suspected coronavirus case earlier the same day.

The 39-year-old patient resides at the Apartment P2103 of Hemisco Xa La.

He flew to Ho Chi Minh City on May 26 and stayed at Harmony Hotel on Bui Thi Xuan Street in District 1.

During his time in the southern city, he worked at Cen Group JSC in District 1, where three COVID-19 patients have so far been confirmed.

The man returned to Hanoi on flight VN220 at 8:00 pm on May 30.

After being informed of the COVID-19 cases at Cen Group, he asked his chauffeur to take him home from the airport.

The man also filed a health declaration and isolated himself inside a room at his apartment.

He had his samples collected for COVID-19 testing on Wednesday and the result later came back positive.

His direct contacts include his five family members and his chauffeur.

Local authorities are further tracing other close contacts of the suspected case.  

Vietnam had documented 8,115 COVID-19 cases as of Friday morning, with 3,085 recoveries and 49 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has recorded 5,008 local infections in 37 provinces and cities since April 27, including 430 cases in Hanoi and 288 in Ho Chi Minh City.

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