Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam recorded nine new community infections ofCOVID-19 over the past 12 hours as of 6am on January 29, according the NationalSteering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Among those, there is one living in Hanoi’s Hai Ba Trung district. The patienthad been in close contact with a security worker at the Van Don InternationalAirport, who tested positive on January 27.

The Ministry of Health said the other new cases include one from the northernport city of Hai Phong city, one from the northern province of Bac Ninh, twofrom the northern province of Quang Ninh, and four from the northernprovince of Hai Duong.

Patient 1,561 fromHai Phong and Patient 1,565 from Bac Ninh both live in Hai Duong and areconnected to the virus hotspot in Chi Linh city, Hai Duong province.

Patients 1,573 and 1,574 are from Quang Ninh had also been in close contactwith the airport guard.

All the new casesare currently being treated and health officials are continuing to track andtrace anyone who may have come into contact with the new patients.

After almost twomonths without any locally transmitted cases, a new surge of positive patientsemerged in northern Vietnam on January 28.

Chi Linh city,home to more than 200,000 people, has been locked down and flights in and outof Van Don Airport were suspended.

Report from the Treatment Sub-committee under the National Steering Committeeshowed that 1,430 COVID-19 patients have been recovered while 35, mostlyelderly with serious underlying health conditions, succumbed to the disease.

Among those stillunder treatment, 14 have tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once, ten twice and 10other thrice.

To date, Vietnam has reported 1,651 infections, including 786locally-transmitted cases.

There are 21,354 people who had close contact with confirmed cases or came frompandemic-hit areas under quarantine at present, including 134 in hospitals,20,014 in other quarantine facilities, and 1,197 at home./.