HCMC – More than 300 Covid-19 checkpoints in innercity areas in HCMC were dismantled this morning, July 13, just one day after they were set up to control the movement of people between the districts amid the raging Covid-19 outbreak.
Under the 15-day stay-at-home order, with effect from July 9, fines will be imposed on people who travel on the streets for non-essential reasons. City residents should refrain from going out except for necessary purposes such as buying food, medicine and other necessities or working at State-run agencies or diplomatic units, or for armed forces.
With no checkpoints operational in innercity areas, the city will send out patrol teams to conduct random checks and those violating anti-pandemic regulations will be fined.
The HCMC Police Department has directed the local police units to withdraw their staff from the checkpoints and establish patrol teams, the local media reported.
These teams will check if local residents violate traffic regulations, hold large gatherings and step out without a legitimate reason.
Senior Lieutenant-Colonel Nguyen Van Binh, deputy head of the Road and Railway Traffic Police Division under the HCMC Police Department, said 12 checkpoints at the gateways to the city were still operational.
Four days after the stay-at-home order came into force, vehicular traffic on the roads plunged 86%, according to statistics from the municipal Department of Transport.
