Order governed Ho Chi Minh City during its effective first lockdown, but laxity has returned

The mood in the Vietnamese city, home to some 13 million people, is one of confidence. Given the country’s low active-case total, there has been no sense of panic.

By Michael Tatarski

HANOI, VIETNAM - JULY 31: Motorbike riders with protective face masks travel during the afternoon peak hour on July 31, 2020 in Hanoi, Vietnam. As of July 31, community transmissions have spread from Da Nang city to five other cities including Hanoi & Ho Chi Minh City. With the 45 new cases, the largest number of domestic infections reported in one day in Vietnam ever since the first cases were detected in the country in February, the nation now has 509 Covid-19 patients. Of these, 369 have recovered and no deaths. (Photo by Linh Pham/Getty Images)

On 24 July, Vietnam was enjoying its 99th consecutive day without any detected community transmissions of coronavirus. The country’s Covid-19 death toll stood at zero, while the case total was just 416, many of which were Vietnamese people returning from abroad, and were quarantined upon arrival. While the borders remained closed, daily life had largely returned to normal: masks were no longer required, social distancing regulations had expired and domestic travel was doing major business, with popular destinations packed on weekends.

That changed the following day, when a community transmission case was confirmed in Da Nang, a city of one million on the central coast. The case total has since climbed to 1,060, while the death toll has reached 35, and the source of the initial transmission remains a mystery.