Vietnam struggling with Delta variant outbreak after being hailed COVID-19 success story

Vietnam reported just 1,500 coronavirus cases last year, but the number of people infected has now soared past 230,000 — the vast majority recorded in the past two months.

Throughout 2020, the South-East Asian nation was hailed as having one of the best COVID-19 responses in the world.

Its combination of strict border closures, its quarantine system and uncompromising lockdowns meant Vietnam did not see a single coronavirus-related death in the first six months of the pandemic.

But now the country has had more than 4,000 deaths, including 388 reported on Tuesday.

More than 90 per cent of its 230,000 cases have been recorded since May this year.

Key points:

• The Delta strain has spread rapidly in high-density areas, particularly in Ho Chi Minh City
• Vietnam's former epicentre Da Nang has imposed a strict lockdown to slow the spread of the virus
• Experts believe countries like Australia could do more to help in a global effort to control the pandemic

Source ABC News: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-12/delta-variant-smashed-vietnam-covid-19-success-story/100361376