Vietnam has confirmed 38 local coronavirus infections since April 27, with more than 585,000 people having been given the first shot of COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country had gone about a month without detecting any community transmission before finding the first case on April 27, the health ministry said in a report on Wednesday morning.

A total of 38 domestic infections have been recorded since.

Most of the domestically-transmitted cases were traced to clusters in Ha Nam Province, located in northern Vietnam.

Vietnam has logged 2,996 coronavirus infections, including 1,608 local cases, since the virus first struck the country on January 23, 2020, according to the health ministry’s data.

Recoveries have numbered 2,560, while 35 patients have died, most suffering critical pre-existing conditions.

Public health authorities had administered the first shot of AstraZeneca vaccine to 585,539 people by 4:00 pm on Tuesday, the ministry said.

Those vaccinated were medical staff and other frontline workers.

The government is quarantining 40,736 people who either came into close contact with infected patients or entered Vietnam from pathogen-struck regions.

Vietnam is still closing its borders to international arrivals but it takes in foreign experts, diplomats, and Vietnamese repatriates.

All are required to undergo different forms of isolation upon entry.