Authorities on Phu Quoc Island off the southern Vietnamese province of Kien Giang are searching for direct contacts of the island’s first COVID-19 case during the current outbreak.

The patient is N.T.D., a 27-year-old trucker from the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, the Phu Quoc steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control confirmed on Thursday evening.

D. transported asphalt from Ha Tien ferry dock, located in the namesake city in Kien Giang, to Kim Thuy Lam ferry dock on Phu Quoc on July 22.

He then headed to S.O.S Phu Quoc Clinic, where he took a rapid COVID-19 test.

After the result came back positive, D. was asked to undergo a confirmatory test at Phu Quoc Medical Center. The retest also returned positive.

D. is the first local coronavirus infection to be recorded on Phu Quoc Island since the fourth transmission wave hit the country on April 27.

The S.O.S Phu Quoc Clinic has been temporarily locked down and all staff members have been quarantined.

The Phu Quoc steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control is now looking for individuals who traveled on the same ferry as the patient.

They are required to contact the nearest medical center for further guidance on pandemic preventive measures.

Vietnam had documented 78,269 cases as of Friday morning, with 13,421 recoveries and 370 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has recorded 74,570 local infections in 62 provinces and cities, including 109 cases in Kien Giang Province, since April 27.

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