The Vietnamese Ministry of Health confirmed that a Vietnamese 29 year old woman died of the A/H1N1 flu earlier this week, the first death of the flu in the country since its outbreak, said a report of the ministry on Thursday.

The woman named Tran Thi Kim Loan from the central Khanh Hoa province was confirmed by the provincial health department two days ago.

The A/H1N1 flu has been spreading in Vietnam at the community-level. The flu cases were reported at some public buildings in the country, including schools, high-storey departments, office buildings, said the ministry.

Vietnam on Wednesday reported nine more cases of A/H1N1 influenza, raising the total number of flu patients in the country to 1,004. Of the total, 588 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals, said the report.

However, many hospitals receiving flu patients in the country are being overloaded and facing a shortage of tamiflu for treatment.

The health ministry plans to set up a store of 5 million doses of A/H1N1 vaccine to handle flu patients in timely and effective manner.

At the recently-ended regular government's meeting this month, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung asked relevant ministries and agencies to take drastic measures to combat the A/H1N1 flu.

(Xinhua News Agency August 6, 2009)