Thousands flee southern coronavirus hotspots to northern towns

Most of the residents are migrant workers who came to Ho Chi Minh City and other industrial localities in the south to earn a living. However, the prolonged COVID-19 outbreak has left them stranded in the south.

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Now when social distancing measures are being eased, the workers, who have been unemployed for several months, seek to return to their homes in the north. However, this large gathering of people raises severe concerns about the risk of infection within the local community.

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Authorities warn that the situation will become increasingly worse if people continue flocking home en masse. Traffic police operating in Da Nang city, central Vietnam, assign a group of officers to escort domestic migrant workers during their trip back to their hometowns.

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The migrant workers even risk their lives driving motorbikes overnight passing through Da Nang city.

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A child feels exhausted as he moves thousands of kilometres to return back to his hometown together with his parents..

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His family travels from Binh Duong province to Son La in the north.

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His family travels from Binh Duong province to Son La in the north.

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Several people take a rest at a petrol station as they continue on their long journey.

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The majority of them are workers, street vendors, and small traders who were out of work and have no income because of the extended social distancing order in place.