HCMC suspends lottery, takeaway services

Starting Friday, HCMC will halt all lottery services, either via retailers or street vendors, as well as food and drink takeaways for 15 days.

The rules are part of social distancing measures for Ho Chi Minh City to curb the Covid-19 spread.

It will also suspend all motorcycle taxi drivers, either traditional or ride-hailing, for the 15-day period, but shipping services are to continue.

For the food and drink takeaways, even shipping services via food delivery apps must also be suspended.

In late May, the city had ordered all restaurants, drink stalls and street food eateries to only provide takeaway services to avoid large gatherings in confined spaces.

The latest policies arrive at a time when the city has decided to impose a 15-day social distancing order starting Friday.

The campaign, imposed under Directive 16 that comprises the most stringent social distancing regulations, requires residents to stay at home and only go out for basic necessities like buying food or medicines or seek medical treatment, to work at factories or public offices that are allowed to open, or in case of funerals, fire or other disasters.

People must wear face masks when going out and keep a distance of at least two meters. No more than two people can gather in public apart from workplaces, schools or hospitals.

The majority of public transportation will be shut down and there will be no travel to other localities.

Production facilities, construction sites, traffic and construction works, establishments providing essential products such as food, pharmaceuticals, gasoline, electricity, water, banks, treasuries, service providers directly related to banking activities and supporting businesses such as notaries, lawyers, registry, registration of secured transactions..., securities, postal, telecommunications, transportation support services, as well as import and export services, medical examination and treatment, and funerals are allowed to continue operating.

All captains and crew members of foreign and domestic ships entering and leaving HCMC’s seaports are not allowed to go ashore. For inland waterway vessels entering or leaving an inland port, the captain and crew members are limited from disembarking and only one is allowed to go ashore to complete port-related procedures.

The city also assigned the Department of Transport to propose to the Ministry of Transport to restrict or suspend air and rail transport services to and from HCMC.

Saigon Railways has announced to suspend picking up and dropping off passengers in HCMC during the social distancing period.

HCMC, home to 13 million people, is suffering the worst Covid-19 community outbreak ever.

It is now the most infected locality with more than 8,500 local cases recorded so far in the ongoing wave that hit Vietnam on April 27.

Hundreds of new cases have been confirmed daily in recent days, with many detected via random testing at hospitals and mass tests in the community.