A total of 291 Vietnamese and foreign passengers on board a flight from Japan have tested negative for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) following their arrival at Da Nang International Airport on July 3.

Medical workers are on hand to meticulously check the health of each person before entering the isolation area.

The information about the negative tests was confirmed on July 6 by Dr Ton That Thanh, director of the Da Nang city Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

Among the group are 178 Vietnamese citizens who are now being quarantined in military camps in Da Nang. A child has been placed into isolation at the Da Nang Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital.

The remaining 112 passengers who are experts from Japan, Thailand, and other countries employed by FPT Group have been put into a self-paid isolation area in the Sand Grands hotel in Son Tra district of Da Nang.

Each of the arrivals will have their samples taken again on July 16 before ending a 14-day isolation period.

No new COVID-19 cases on July 7

No new case of COVID-19 was reported during the past 12 hours to 6pm on July 7, with the total cases remaining at 369, according to the national steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control.

Among the 369 confirmed cases so far, 229 were imported and put in quarantined immediately after arrival.

The country has recorded no community infection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, since April 16, or 82 straight days.

Also on July 7, one COVID-19 patient was given the all-clear, raising the number of recoveries to 342.

Among the remaining patients under treatment, three have tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once and three others negative for at least twice.

A total of 13,047 people who had close contact with COVID-19 patients or arrived from pandemic-hit areas are under quarantine.

Over 240 Vietnamese citizens arrive home from Taiwan

Domestic agencies, the Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei and budget carrier Vietjet Air worked with authorities in Taiwan (China) to bring more than 240 Vietnamese citizens home on July 7.

The passengers included those under 18 years old, elderly and sick people, workers with expired visas and labour contracts, stranded tourists and students who did not have accommodations due to dormitory closures. 

Vietjet took all necessary measures to ensure security, safety, and hygiene on the flight.

After landing at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City, passengers underwent health checks and were then placed under quarantine.

Similar flights will be conducted in the near future to bring more Vietnamese citizens home amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Three more COVID-19 patients recover in Vietnam

Three more COVID-19 patients in Việt Nam have recovered, raising the total recovered patients to 345, the Central Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control announced on Wednesday morning.

The latest recovered cases are male patients, who are 33, 35 and 36. They were treated at Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu General Hospital in the south-central province of Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu.

As of 6am Wednesday, Việt Nam has gone 83 days without any community infections.

Currently, 11,373 people are in quarantine and have their health status monitored across the country.

Philippines, Indonesia confirm over 1,000 new COVID-19 cases each

The Philippines and Indonesia reported more than 1,000 cases of COVID-19 infection each on July 7.

The Philippine Department of Health confirmed 1,540 new cases on the day, raising the number of COVID-19 infections in the country to 47,873. The new patients included 619 in Metro Manila.

The COVID-19 tally in the Philippines has grown rapidly over the past days. Local health officials warned that the number will continue increasing in the following days due to community transmission and that people should be more cautious.

Meanwhile, the number of recoveries further rose to 12,386, and the death toll also increased to 1,309, according to the department.

The same day, Indonesia recorded 1,268 new coronavirus infections, bringing the total number of cases to 66,226, including 3,309 deaths.

Meanwhile, the Lao Ministry of Health said on July 7 that this country has conducted 18,091 tests for COVID-19 since January, with 19 of them positive, and all the confirmed cases have been discharged from hospitals.

The country announced its first two COVID-19 cases on March 24, and the last patient was discharged from hospital on June 9.

However, its government still warned people and relevant authorities not to neglect containment and preventive measures to prevent a second wave of the disease. VOV/VNA/VNN