Three districts in Bangkok were declared maximum control zones on Friday after Thailand recorded 279 new cases of Covid-19 and two deaths – one in the capital.
Nong Kheam, Bang Plad and Bang Khun Thian districts were placed under maximum controls, said Bangkok Metropolitan Authority (BMA) spokesman Pongsakorn Kwanmuang.
Meanwhile, the closure of Bangkok public schools has been extended for another two weeks until January 17.
The Bangkok Communicable Disease Prevention Committee has ordered the following venues to close across the whole city from Saturday: schools, children’s playgrounds, tutorial centres, nurseries, water theme parks, parks, game kiosks, snooker halls, cockfighting rings, bullfighting rings, amulet centres, tattoo shops, internet cafes, martial arts schools, boxing rings, massage parlours, and banquet rooms.
On Saturday, the BMA will meet with the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration to discuss its plan to ban eat-in food services at shops and restaurants. This measure is expected to be imposed from Monday (January 4), meaning only take-home food will be available.
The first three days of the notorious ‘Seven Dangerous Days’ of the New Year holidays saw 186 deaths amd more than 1,600 injured in road accidents, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation reported on Friday.
The road accidents occurred from December 29-31.
Thailand tends to see a huge spike in road accidents during long festival holidays because of the large number of people travelling from their places of work or business to their hometowns or to visit relatives.
“On December 31, there were 652 accidents with 67 deaths and 642 people injured,” said Chainarong Wasanasomsit, deputy director-general. “Accumulated accidents from December 29-31 are at 1,652 with 186 deaths and 1,654 injured.
“The most common cause of accidents is drunk driving (38.04 per cent), followed by speeding (34.36 per cent) and
Chiang Mai reported the most accidents with 63, while Nakhon Ratchasima had the most deaths at 13,” he added.
Chainarong added that the department had deployed officials at police checkpoints nationwide to provide roadside assistance as well as safety guidance, especially at mountainous tourist attractions which are mostly covered with fog that could limit visibility and could cause accidents.
“Officials have also been instructing travellers to follow Covid-19 preventive measures and maintain social distancing to prevent the outbreak from spreading inter-provincially,” he added.
Samut Sakhon’s famous Talay Thai shrimp market will reopen for business on Monday after being closed since December 21 due to a new wave of Covid-19 infections in the province.
The Samut Sakhon Shrimp Trader Club announced on Friday that the market will start serving customers from Monday during its normal 4pm to 10pm service hours. It also said all visitors to the market will be required to wear a mask and clean their hands regularly. Those violating this order will be prohibited from entering the market.
Meanwhile, regular customers and vendors need to always carry ID cards issued by the club. Delivery persons and people who are not regular buyers are required to have a certificate showing they are free from Covid-19.
Two succumb to virus, 273 of 279 new Covid-19 cases contracted locally National Jan 01. 2021
By THE NATION The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) announced 279 confirmed cases on Friday, 273 of which were transmitted locally. Two patients also succumbed to the virus on Thursday.
Of the local cases, 257 are Thai nationals and 16 migrant workers living in the country.
The Thai patients include 90 in Samut Sakhon, 51 in Chonburi, 37 in Rayong, 29 in Chanthaburi, 20 in Bangkok, 13 in Samut Prakan, seven in Trat, two in each Pathum Thani and Sa Kaew, and one in each Nakhon Si Thammarat, Lamphun, Surin, Nakhon Pathum, Ubon Ratchathani and Chachoengsao.
The 16 infected migrant workers include 15 in Samut Sakhon and one in Ang Thong.
The six cases in state quarantine included five foreigners and one Thai returnee from the US. Of the foreigners, one is a German national, one Italian and one Slovene, both of whom flew in from the UK, and two Chinese nationals from Hong Kong and China.
The deaths, meanwhile, include a 44-year-old in Bangkok and a 70-year-old in Mae Sot. The Bangkok resident tested positive for Covid-19 on December 30.
CCSA spokesman Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin said the patient had visited a restaurant in the capital on December 20, before developing a cough and runny nose between December 26 and 27.
On December 28, he developed a fever and breathing difficulties, and went to Charoenkrung Pracharak Hospital on December 30 when his symptoms worsened. He tested positive for the virus on the same day.
When his state worsened on Thursday, he was shifted to Chulalongkorn Hospital where he died at around 3pm.
Meanwhile, the 70-year-old in Tak’s Mae Sot district tested positive for the virus on December 4 and succumbed on Thursday at 10pm to pneumonia and respiratory failure.
The total number of confirmed cases in Thailand has risen to 7,163 – 5,142 of which were contracted domestically, comprising 1,408 migrant workers, and 2,021 returnees. So far, 4,273 have recovered and been discharged, while 63 people have died.
Lamphun and Sa Kaew are the latest to be added to the list of 51 provinceswhere Covid-19 patients have been reported.
According to Worldometer, as of 10am on Thursday, the total number of confirmed cases globally had risen to 83.80 million (up by 736,680), 59.32 million have recovered, 24.48 million are active cases (106,378 in severe condition) and 1.82 million have died (up by 13,411).
Thailand ranks 136 in the global list of most cases, while the US tops the ranking with 20.44 million, followed by India 10.28 million, Brazil 7.67 million, Russia 3.15 million and France 2.62 million.
A group of people suspected of attempting to rob motorcycles in Tak province escaped on Friday before soldiers could apprehend them.
Security officials found six motorcycles that they were attempting to illegally transport to Myanmar by boat.
The incident happened in Mae Ramat district. The soldiers reportedly saw the suspects trying to travel by boats with the motorbikes from the Thai border to Myanmar.
When officials tried to corner them, the suspects reportedly jumped into the river and swam towards Myanmar.
The soldiers later checked the motorcycles and found no evidence of possession in the system. They suspect that the persons were auto thieves.
Separately, soldiers in the Mae Sot district of Tak found two people — a Thai and a Myanmar national — allegedly illegally crossing the border.
Impact Convention Centre in Nonthaburi province clarified on Thursday that it was free from Covid-19 risk, in response to a report that a coronavirus patient had visited the centre last month.
Operators said via Impact’s Facebook page that a patient had visited the convention centre on December 19 to watch a concert before he was found to be infected on December 28.
However after medical investigation, the health personnel informed Impact that the patient on December 19 had not been in the phase of the disease when the virus could be spread to others. Therefore Impact is at no risk for spreading the virus, the centre said.
A Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO) staff is suspected to have been shot dead by a policeman in Bangkok, according to an eyewitness.
Five minutes into the New Year on Friday, Dusit Police Station were informed about a murder case. The body of GPO staffer Piyapong Rungwittayakul was found dead with several bullet wounds in front of the police station.
The dead man’s friend reportedly told police that the tragic case started at a flat located close to this police station. The slain man and he were drinking in front of the flat, celebrating the arrival of 2021.
Suddenly an undercover policeman appeared before them and started a brawl with the GPO staffer. The witness told police that he had tried to stop the brawl but his efforts were in vain. It ended with the GPO staffer being shot dead. The witness said the suspected policeman had even tried to shoot him, but he managed to flee the scene.
The witness did not explain how the man was found dead in front of the police station, not at the flat. However, it was surmised that the GPO staffer had likely run to the police station for help.
Dusit Police Ptation has launched a hunt for the suspected culprit.
Nonthaburi’s Covid-19 Operation Centre said on Thursday that provincial Governor Sujin Chaichumsak had signed an order to temporarily shut the two markets.
“Merchants in both markets have been told to receive testing free of charge, and will be allowed to resume their business on January 4 only if they provide a doctor’s note confirming that they are healthy,” said the centre. “Customers who have recently visited the markets should also receive testing or remain in self-quarantine and monitor their symptoms closely. If you have fever, cough, sore throat, loss of sense of smell or taste, please see a doctor immediately.”
On Thursday, Nonthaburi authorities also announced that people who have travelled from provinces hit by the recent outbreak, such as Samut Sakhon, Bangkok, Rayong, Nakhon Pathom, Chonburi, Samut Prakarn and Chanthaburi will need to scan a QR code at the border checkpoint and provide personal info and travel history to officials.
Seven new cases were reported in Nonthaburi on Thursday, bringing the total confirmed cases in the province to 181 people, including 65 from the recent outbreak in which Samut Sakhon emerged as a hotspot.
The Iconsiam shopping complex in Bangkok’s Khlong San district, in cooperation with Tourism Authority of Thailand, organised the “Amazing Thailand Countdown 2021” at its premises by Chao Phraya River at the midnight hour on Thursday to usher in the New Year.
Under the theme “Celebrate the Shining Spirit of Thailand”, the event featured 25,000 fireworks at midnight, which could be seen from over 1.4 kilometres of the Chao Phraya River bend. The fireworks show was divided into seven themes: Great Hopes, Believe in the Future, Brilliant Life, Beautiful World, Blossoming Prosperity, Be Together, and Best Beginning.
According to the event organisers, the fireworks were eco-friendly as they were made from sticky rice.
The event organisers said they had also complied with the Ministry of Public Health’s measures in preventing the spread of Covid-19 by skipping the annual concert and other stage performances this year to reduce crowding, while urging visitors to wear face masks and maintain social distancing.
Local people and tourists flocked to the Ratchaprasong intersection in Bangkok’s Pathumwan district on Thursday night to count down to 2021 and celebrate the New Year by taking pictures with giant decorated Christmas trees and a light tunnel.
Due to the Covid-19 outbreak, event organisers have deployed “new normal” measures, which include a mandatory face mask policy, maintaining social distancing and providing alcohol-based hand sanitizers to visitors. Some visitors, however, took off their masks while taking photos.
File photo of Phichai Market.
