Residents Exercise At 3AM To Avoid Covid-19 Patrols, Police Wake Up Early To Enforce Rules

Hanoi residents exercise at 3AM despite Covid-19 restrictions

Starting from 18th July, Hanoi has imposed movement restrictions and advised residents to remain indoors to curb the Covid-19 spread.

With the emergence of new cases in the community, residents of the capital city are facing the risk of a Covid-19 outbreak.

As alarming as the situation is, it can’t scare a large population of the city whose fitspiration outweighs their fear of coronavirus.

Here’s what they have been doing to keep their love for sports alive these days.

They exercise at 3AM to avoid police officers

Image adapted from: VNExpress

Even though local authorities have made it very clear that outdoor activities are banned until further notice, many people still ignore this warning.

Image adapted from: VNExpress

To avoid patrol officers and run-ins with the law, many residents, most of whom are the elderly, get their sweat on as early as 3AM. Before the outbreak, Hanoi residents’ regular workout time usually started between 5-6AM.

Image adapted from: VNExpress

Many people are still seen working out at restricted areas such as the lakeside walkways, while some were spotted cycling, running, and exercising without masks on.

For this reason, many patrol officers have no choice but to wake up early and stand guard at public areas at 3AM to police violations.

Image adapted from: Zing News

“We have to stand guard at 3AM, using loudspeakers or pulling people over to advise them to go home. Before the issuance of Covid-19 safety rules, local residents didn’t exercise this early. Since the restrictions take effect, they skirt around the rules by working out at wee hours, when law enforcers are not around,” a police officer at Hoan Kiem told Zing News.

Covid-19 situation in Vietnam

Image credit: Thanh Nien

3 months into the 4th wave, the Covid-19 situation across the country is showing no signs of easing.

As of this morning, Vietnam has reported 61,196 infections since 27th April.

Saigon continues seeing a sharp rise in daily infections with 1,739 new cases at the time of writing. Binh Duong, Saigon’s neighbor, has reported an alarming number of 657 new infections today.

Image credit: Thanh Nien

To curtail the spread of Covid-19, 19 provinces and cities across southern Vietnam have closed their borders to non-essential travel.

Figures cited from Suc Khoe Doi Song indicate that Hanoi is battling a new outbreak with 40 new cases this morning. Worrisomely, 9 of them were found in the community through quick tests.

Stay home for now

Regular outdoor exercise is a wholesome daily habit that’s worth encouraging. However, a toned body and strengthened social ties can’t help protect you against the coronavirus. Besides, exercising with your mask off can increase your risks of contracting coronavirus and affecting the people around you.

If you are in desperate need of getting your sweat on, please do that in your own home.

Our frontline workers are going into an overdrive to enforce social distancing and prevent the spread of coronavirus. Let’s not make our battle against the pandemic harder than it already is.

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Cover image adapted from: VNExpress

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