Festive fights: 5,000 people hospitalized from brawls during Tet holiday A patient being admitted to Hanoi's Bach Mai Hospital. Photo: Thuy Hang Fights during the latest Lunar New Year holiday have sent more than 5,000 people to hospital across Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Health.  While the total number of fatalities has not been revealed, the ministry said on a certain peak day, there were 11 deaths out of 900 people hospitalized for injuries from fighting.  From February 15-22, more than 1,500 people were admitted to hospital for food poisoning. Five of them have died.  Hospitals nationwide have also admitted nearly 195,000 patients, of which 35,000 caused by traffic accidents. The government granted state employees nine days off for the Tet Lunar New Year holiday, which ends Monday. According to the National Traffic Safety Committee, traffic accidents killed 246 people and injuring 415 others from February 15-22, the first seven days of the break. An overwhelming majority of them were caused by motorcyclists who breached traffic rules, such as driving under the influence of alcohol, not wearing safety helmets or piling too many people onto one motorcycle, the agency said. Doctor Nguyen Tien Quyet of Hanoi’s Viet Duc Hospital said the hospital has admitted fewer traffic accident victims than last year. “However, many people were more seriously injured as more accidents happened on highways,” he said. Thanh Nien News