Hanoi deserted streets during social distancing

A street in Hanoi Old Quarter, which used to be bustling with shops, traders and vehicles. The capital city of Vietnam has gone through 49 days of social distancing that has been in place since July 24, in line with Directive 17 of the municipal People’s Committee. As social distancing measures continue in Hanoi and from this week measures have been loosened in some parts of the city, people who have been vaccinated are questioning the possibilities for travel and work. The city’s health sector can administer up to 200,000 doses of vaccines per day, and more than 2.2 million doses have been administered in total on 26.65 percent of its population. Since April 29, Hanoi has logged 3,779 COVID-19 infections, with 1,595 locally-transmitted ones. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Barriers are set up at an intersection between Hang Bac and Dinh Liet streets. All people are required to wear face masks when leaving their house. Most people comply with stringent preventive measures by local authorities. Authorities of Hoan Kiem district in downtown Hanoi decided to lift the medical lockdown imposed on its Chuong Duong ward at the stroke of September 12. As a COVID-19 patient was detected on July 30, the area with nearly 23,000 residents was sealed off. It has not recorded any new infection in the community for 25 days. More than 411,450 COVID-19 vaccine doses were administered in Hanoi on September 11. The city has fulfilled 77.1 percent of its inoculation plan (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Stores remain shut in Hanoi as the city is being put under a strict social distancing order in accordance with the Prime Minister’s directive in an effort to curb the spread of the pandemic. Henceforth, passing through old streets of Hanoi in early morning, many people find it strange to see an unfamiliar sight that is contrary to the usual bustling scene of the capital city. As of September 8, Hanoi had fulfilled 81.78 percent of its target of collecting 1 million samples for mass COVID-19 testing, according to the municipal Department of Health. The mass testing work is being carried out in the city with the aim of separating infections from the community and assessing the level of risk in each area for designing appropriate pandemic prevention and control measures.(Photo: VietnamPlus)

Vehicles parked in front of closed shops in downtown Hanoi. Busy streets in Hanoi have become strangely quiet. Barricades are set up at many locations across the city. The capital city of Vietnam has gone through 49 days of social distancing that has been in place since July 24, in line with Directive 17 of the municipal People’s Committee. The city is planning to ramp up the vaccination in the last three months of this year when it is possibly allocated with a higher amount of vaccines. Heath authorities and agencies in Hanoi were asked to make sufficient preparation for COVID-19 vaccination in the city so the process could be organised safely, effectively and in a timely way. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

It is not the first time that Hanoi has been put under social distancing, and most of the Hanoians adhere to regulations. From September 6 to 21, the city is ramping up testing. People in locked-down or health quarantine areas in “very high-risk zones” (red zones) will be tested every two or three days. Those who live in “high-risk zones” (orange zones) will be tested every five to seven days. Families living in areas free of COVID-19 free (green zones) will have one or two members tested regularly as a way to protect the zones from coronavirus. The city had proposed the Government to allow local authorities to decide the health quarantine period for people who are suspected of having SARS-CoV-2. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Hang Buom street in Hoan Kiem district’s Old Quarter at the heart of Hanoi. The street is normally a busy area with various shops frequented by both locals and visitors. The number of tourists to the city in the first half of 2021 is estimated at 2.9 million, down 25 percent year-on-year, according to the Hanoi Tourism Department. The city has earned only 8.1 trillion VND (352.6 million USD) from tourism services, a year-on-year decrease of 57 percent. Currently, Vietnam has not yet opened its doors to international tourists. The number of foreigners coming to Hanoi during this time is modest, mainly experts and workers staying in Vietnam. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

The capital city of Hanoi has applied strict social distancing measures from 6am since July 24 to prevent further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The measures to stamp out worsening outbreaks of COVID-19 are following the Prime Minister’s Directive 16. Under the new measures, all public transport services including buses, taxis, contract vehicles and coaches are banned, excluding those in service of pandemic prevention and control and transporting workers and experts. Taxi motorbikes are also suspended from transporting passengers. People in the city are asked to stay at home and only go outside in necessary cases like business trips, working at essential businesses (State agencies, factories, essential shops and service providers), buying food and medicines, or emergencies such as medical issues, fires or natural disasters. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

The Dinh Liet-Hang Bac intersection. Hanoi will tighten the check of travel permits from September 8. A new form of travel permits using QR codes will be put into use on September 8, which is required for going through checkpoints that separate Zone 1 and other zones (orange and green) which have lower risk of COVID-19 infections. People must maintain a distance of two metres in public places, and must not congregate in groups larger than two outside hospital, workplaces, or schools. They are required to submit health declaration forms via website www.tokhaiyte.vn or Ncovi and Bluezone apps. Those who have symptoms such as fever, coughing or difficulty breathing must contact local medical establishments for further instructions. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

The Dao Duy Tu – Ma May intersection. Since April 29, Hanoi has logged 3,779 COVID-19 infections, with 1,595 locally-transmitted ones. As of September 8, Hanoi had fulfilled 81.78 percent of its target of collecting 1 million samples for mass COVID-19 testing, according to the municipal Department of Health. The mass testing work is being carried out in the city with the aim of separating infections from the community and assessing the level of risk in each area for designing appropriate pandemic prevention and control measures. The city is planning to ramp up the vaccination in the last three months of this year when it is possibly allocated with a higher amount of vaccines. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

As social distancing measures continue in Hanoi and from this week measures have been loosened in some parts of the city, people who have been vaccinated are questioning the possibilities for travel and work. The city’s health sector can administer up to 200,000 doses per day, and more than 2.2 million doses have been administered in total, 26.65 percent of its population. The city is planning to ramp up the vaccination in the last three months of this year when it is possibly allocated with a higher amount of vaccines. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Hang Chieu street during days of social distancing measures. People in Hanoi are asked to stay at home and only go outside in necessary cases like business trips, working at essential businesses (State agencies, factories, essential shops and service providers), buying food and medicines, or emergencies such as medical issues, fires or natural disasters. Masks are mandatory in public places. People must maintain a distance of two metres in public places, and must not congregate in groups larger than two outside of hospital, workplaces, or schools. Non-essential services and businesses must close. Delivery services such as Grab will continue to operate as normal but not be allowed to transport passengers. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Quan Chuong Gate with no one passing through. It is the only remaining gate of the old Thang Long Citadel, which holds a rustic charm despite daily changes of the capital city of Hanoi. Quan Chuong Gate was built in 1749 under the reign of King Le Canh Hung, and renovated in 1804 under the reign of King Gia Long. Officially called as Dong Ha Gate, yet Quan Chuong Gate is preferred by locals. The gate, 20 metres in width and 7 metres in length, was built with stones and large-sized bricks which are similar to those used to construct the Temple of Literature also in the capital city. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

A corner of Nguyen Sieu street. The social distancing measures to stamp out worsening outbreaks of COVID-19 are following the Prime Minister’s Directive 16. Under the new measures, all public transport services including buses, taxis, contract vehicles and coaches are banned, excluding those in service of pandemic prevention and control and transporting workers and experts. Taxi motorbikes are also suspended from transporting passengers. People in the city are asked to stay at home and only go outside in necessary cases like business trips, working at essential businesses (State agencies, factories, essential shops and service providers), buying food and medicines, or emergencies such as medical issues, fires or natural disasters. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

An empty street in Hanoi during social distancing. Under the measures, for the agencies and offices of Hanoi and the central Government based in Hanoi, companies, enterprises and corporations (including foreign-invested companies) must develop arrangements to ensure their staff work online and only go to the offices in case of necessity. Malls, supermarkets, traditional markets and wholesale markets in the city are to ensure adequate supply of daily necessities for the local population, arrange stalls and reception procedures (from parking to entry) to reduce the number of customers in the same place at the same time, minimise close contacts and encourage online shopping and delivery. (Photo: VietnamPlus)