HANOI (UCAN): Father Joseph Hoang Trong Huu, who has been offering voluntary services to villagers in Son Loi Commune, in Vinh Phuc province, Vietnam who have been quarantined due to the Covid-19 outbreak, has called on people to respect and send medical supplies to them.
The 35-year-old Father Hoang, has been providing pastoral and health services for the sub-parishes of Ngoc Bao and Ba Cau, since February 16.
The Vietnamese government sealed off the 10,600-member rural commune for 20 days on February 13 due to fears over the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. The commune, situated 44 kilometres from Hanoi, has five coronavirus patients.
The northern province of Vinh Phuc has confirmed 11 of 16 cases of infection, including a three-month-old baby. The virus came to the province after eight female workers returned from Wuhan, China.
Father Francis Xavier Nguyen Duc Dai, the parish priest of Huu Bang, said Father Hoang, who was ordained last June, brought soap, antiseptic lotion, face masks and medicine to villagers.
Father Hoang, who has skills in health care, said on Facebook that local people protect their families and community by wearing masks and washing their hands. They still work on farms and keep to their daily activities as normal. He said health workers work hard to offer health instructions, supplies and basic information on the virus to families.
The young priest said that although everyone fears the coronavirus, individuals including young people still visit churches and pray.
“I plan to place the Eucharist on church altars so that people can adore and seek divine hope,” he said.
Father Hoang called on people from other places to pray for, give encouragement and offer medical supplies to health workers, patients and people suffering from physical and mental pain. He stressed that people should sympathise, share and journey with quarantined people rather than keeping away from them.
The priest, who is from Lai Te Parish, said all people there including himself, still face the risk of infection at any time. He said patients have much hope of being cured of the disease, but that the feelings of being kept away, ostracised and disrespected by others seems to prevail.
“It is you who will heal our feelings here,” Father Huu wrote on Facebook.
In a video clip, Bishop Cosme Hoang Van Dat of Bac Ninh, encouraged people to prevent infection by carrying out health workers’ instructions as acts of Christian charity.
“I daily pray for you and patients around the world,” Bishop Hoang said, adding that the diocese would give them what they need to prevent a virus outbreak and added he would visit the commune when the situation allowed.
Vietnam has quarantined thousands of citizens returning from China at military camps and temporary facilities.
As of February 28, 36,443 people are reported to have recovered from Covid-19 while 83,872 have been infected and 2,872 have died—mostly in mainland China.
