The joy of relatives and workers from Nghe An returning from Equatorial Guinea

Special Flight

To bring 219 Vietnamese people from Guinea back to the country, including 120 people found to be infected with Covid-19, with a high risk of infection, the State organized a special flight, carefully prepared.

The flight departed Hanoi for Equatorial Guinea at 7:00 a.m. on July 28. The entire crew and interior of the Airbus 350 aircraft were equipped with special medical protection, with the highest epidemiological requirements. This was an unprecedented flight of Vietnam on the Hanoi - Equatorial Guinea - Hanoi route, lasting nearly 30 hours. The flight crew consisted of 19 people, including: 5 pilots, 8 male flight attendants, 2 technical staff and 4 doctors from the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

Scene before the Vietnamese plane takes off at the airport in Bata (Equatorial Guinea). Photo: Provided by the character

After receiving all 219 Vietnamese citizens stranded in Equatorial Guinea, the Airbus 350 made a return flight. After nearly 15 hours of taking off from Bata airport, the flight landed safely at Noi Bai International Airport at 3:10 p.m. on July 29.

Five ambulances were dispatched to the airport to take the five critically ill patients away as soon as possible. At around 5 p.m., the remaining patients were also taken to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases, branch 2 in Dong Anh, Hanoi.

Over the phone from the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Mr. Hoang Dinh Trung (30 years old), from Hau Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, who had just returned from the Bata - Noi Bai "rescue" flight, said that he had been working in Equatorial Guinea at the Sendje hydropower project for just over 9 months. On July 6, he was diagnosed with Covid-19 by local health officials.

The patient compartment on the "special" flight. Photo: Dinh Trung

“After being found infected, I and many others were quarantined at a motel, dozens of kilometers away from work. Your country is still in difficult circumstances, so there are no conditions to care for those in quarantine. The main food is bread and instant noodles. Occasionally we get to eat Vietnamese food. There are not many medicines, only occasionally we get some headache pills and vitamins,” Trung said.

According to Mr. Trung, at the quarantine site, some workers from his hometown had symptoms of chest pain, and they asked to go to the doctor or get an X-ray but were not allowed. Therefore, all those infected wanted to return home for treatment. In Equatorial Guinea, they were worried every day.

Mr. Trung could not hide his joy: "After many weeks of waiting anxiously in the quarantine area, on the morning of July 28, we received information that a Vietnamese plane was going to Guinea to bring everyone back home. We felt extremely excited and happy."

After landing at the airport, everyone was taken to quarantine and treated at the Central Tropical Hospital, branch 2. Photo: Provided by the character

The joy of returning home kept many people on the "rescue" flight awake, and as soon as the plane landed at Noi Bai airport, everyone was eager to contact their relatives. Mr. Le Dinh Sy (29 years old), from the same hometown as Mr. Trung, said: All three brothers in Dong Thuong hamlet, Hau Thanh commune, who were on this flight were infected with Covid. After the plane landed, the health of the brothers was stable. Currently, everyone has been arranged by department for treatment.

Returning on the special flight from Equatorial Guinea were many other Nghe An compatriots. Except for Mr. Lanh from Dien Chau district who had difficulty breathing throughout the journey, everyone else was happy and excited to return to Vietnam, such as Mr. Trung, Mr. Sy, etc. Everyone was aware that they needed to try to treat themselves well and recover soon to return to their families.

The joy of relatives

Present at the house of Mrs. Tran Thi Thao in Hau Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district - a family with 3 children (2 sons, 1 son-in-law) returning on the "rescue" flight Airbus 350, we could not help but be moved when we saw many brothers, relatives, and neighbors coming to visit, encourage and congratulate Mrs. Thao's family.

Exciting atmosphere at Mrs. Tran Thi Thao's family in Hau Thanh commune (Yen Thanh). Photo: Huy Thu

In the story about her children in Equatorial Guinea, Mrs. Thao said: Since hearing the news that the Covid epidemic was spreading in this country, especially when hearing that her children were infected with Covid, everyone in the family was extremely worried, could not eat or sleep well, worrying day and night about the lives of the children there.

It was her daughter-in-law, Ms. Vu Thi Phuong (Mr. Le Dinh Sy's wife), who wrote a "call for help" for her husband and many of her Nghe An children who were stranded in Equatorial Guinea and sent it to the authorities at all levels. Worried about the lives of her husband and children, Ms. Phuong and many others brought the petition to the district, province, Department of Foreign Affairs and even Hanoi to ask for help.

The special Guinea - Hanoi flight bringing 219 Vietnamese citizens from Guinea back to Vietnam on July 29 made hundreds, thousands of their relatives in their homeland happy, including many families in Nghe An.

The joy of talking with relatives returning from Equatorial Guinea. Photo: Huy Thu

“Thankfully, the Government has shown concern and sent a plane to Guinea to bring our citizens back home for treatment. We don’t know what would have happened there. We are extremely grateful for the care and help from the Vietnamese authorities. At this moment, we are so happy because our children have returned home safely. We hope that they will try to treat themselves and follow all the regulations in the quarantine area to recover soon,” Ms. Thao shared.

Just like in Yen Thanh, at Mr. Nguyen Thai Minh's family in Long Minh hamlet, Minh Son commune, Do Luong district, all day long, many brothers and relatives came to visit and congratulate when the family's son, Mr. Nguyen Thai Thin (32 years old) was also on this special flight.

The excitement was evident on the faces of every member of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Ky's family in Minh Son commune (Do Luong). Photo: Huy Thu

On the night of July 29, Mr. Minh's family had dinner later than usual, because everyone was waiting for news of his son from Hanoi. Yesterday afternoon, while sitting in the car on the way to the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Mr. Thin contacted his family to inform them: "I have returned to Vietnam safely, parents, wife and children do not need to worry anymore."

Mrs. Nguyen Thi Ky, Mr. Minh's wife, could not hide her emotion: "Since we heard that our child was infected with Covid, for the past month, the atmosphere in my family has been gloomy, there was no laughter, everyone was worried. Now, thanks to the Government sending a plane to bring our child and hundreds of others back to the country, we are so happy, we don't know what else to say."

It is known that in the past time, implementing the direction of the Prime Minister, based on the wishes of citizens and the capacity of domestic quarantine, Vietnam has organized more than 60 flights, bringing back more than 16,000 citizens from more than 50 countries and territories, ensuring safety in preventing and fighting the Covid-19 epidemic. The joy of relatives whose children live and work far from the Fatherland is spreading with each "rescue" flight.