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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40011020

The Thailand Meteorological Department said on Thursday (January 13) that the westerly trough moves to cover the upper North of Thailand while the high-pressure system covers upper Thailand and the South China Sea. Cool weather and morning fog are forecast in upper Thailand with isolated thundershowers in some areas of the North.

Mountaintops in the North and the Northeast are cold to very cold with temperature ranging from 6 to 15 °C. All transports should take caution due to poor visibility.

The Department also mentioned that the northeast monsoon across the Gulf of Thailand and the South brings isolated light rains to the South.

The weather forecast for the next 24 hours is as follows:

North: Cool weather with fog in the morning; temperature lows of 16-18 degrees and highs of 28-35 degrees Celsius. Temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 6-14 degrees Celsius.

Northeast: Cool weather with light fog in the morning; temperature lows of 16-20 degrees and highs of 31-32 degrees Celsius. Temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 9-15 degrees Celsius.

Central: Cool weather with light fog in the morning; temperature lows of 16-19 degrees, highs of 32-34 degrees Celsius.

East: Cool weather with light fog in the morning; temperature lows of 18-23 degrees, highs of 31-34 degrees Celsius; waves less than a meter high and over a meter high offshore.

South (east coast): Partly cloudy with isolated light rains; temperature lows of 21-24 degrees, highs of 30-32 degrees Celsius; waves 1-2 meters high and about 2 meters high during thundershowers.

South (west coast): Partly cloudy with isolated light rains; temperature lows of 22-25 degrees, highs of 32-34 degrees Celsius; waves less than a meter high and about a meter high offshore.

Bangkok and surrounding areas: Partly cloudy with light fog in the morning; temperature lows of 23-24 degrees, highs of 33-34 degrees Celsius.
 

Source: Thailand Meteorological Department

Published : January 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40011018

Bangkok is in the process of preparing a plan to explore and develop the Saen Saep and Prem Prachakorn canals.

The city clerk said he had assigned related agencies to “create understanding” with communities encroaching on waterways and invite them to join the Prem Prachakorn Canal Development Plan to rehabilitate the canal that includes areas of Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi and Ayutthaya.

The Drainage Bureau and the district office have collected waste under houses along the Saen Saep Canal and inspected pipelines to collect wastewater at the Bang Sue Wastewater Treatment Centre.

Permanent Secretary for Bangkok Kajit Chatchawanich said the development of the Prem Prachakorn and Saen Saep canals is a major project.

There is currently a plan to move houses that encroach on canals and a dam construction plan is in progress, he said.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40011016

The Public Health Ministry is urging people in risk groups, such as the elderly and those who need to take immunosuppressive drugs, to get a fourth vaccine dose three months after receiving the third dose to stimulate immunity against Covid-19, Department of Disease Control director-general Dr Opas Karnkawinpong said on Wednesday.

The Immunisation Subcommittee decided that if the third, or booster, dose was AstraZeneca, they should receive a fourth dose of AstraZeneca, Pfizer or Moderna, while those who got Pfizer as a booster must go in for Pfizer again or Moderna.

As for those who have received two Sinovac doses plus an AstraZeneca booster, Dr Opas suggested that the fourth dose should also be AstraZeneca.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40011015

The Cabinet has given the Royal Thai Air Force the green light to purchase a first batch of four fighter jets with a budget of 13.8 billion baht across four years – 2023-2526.

Air Force spokesman Maj-General Prapas Sonjaidee revealed on Wednesday that the Cabinet yesterday (January 11) approved a proposal to consider procurement of attack fighter aircraft to replace the first four F-16 fighters.

At this time, however, no decision has been made on whether F-35 planes will be purchased from the United States.

The Air Force commander-in-chief has stated that he wants the F-35 because of a considerable drop in the price of the warplane.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40011014

The government plans to collect 300 baht from each foreign tourist entering Thailand from April this year.

Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha plans to promote tourism this year under the Tourism and Sports Ministry and the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s “Amazing Thailand New Chapter” that will help create sustainable and safer tourism.

Known as the “Kha Yeap Pan Din” (landing fee), the money collected from foreign tourists will be used to develop tourist attractions in Thailand and provide insurance for tourists. For example, in major accidents or death, foreign tourists or their families stand to receive a maximum amount of 1 million baht or medical coverage worth 500,000 baht.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40011005

The Education Ministry plans to vaccinate 5.2 million students aged 5 to 11 against Covid-19, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said on Wednesday.

Thanakorn said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha was briefed on the progress of the ministry’s vaccination campaign for students who are between 12 and 18 years old and the plan to cover younger students aged 5 to 11.

The prime minister was informed that there are about 5.2 million students between 5 and 11 years old in schools under the Education Ministry and other ministries.
Thanakorn quoted Prayut as instructing the Education Ministry to try its best to explain the need for vaccinations to parents of the 5.2 million kids to win approval from as many parents as possible.
The Education Ministry is expected to open registration for vaccinations for 5-to-11-year-olds in the last week of this month and the kids will be administered with the same dose of vaccine as those in the 12-18-years group, the spokesman said, adding that Prayut was pleased with the progress of the vaccination of these students.

So far, 4,317,337 out of 5,148,710 students in this age group agreed to be vaccinated. Precisely 4,102,827 or 95.03 per cent have received the first jab while 3,040,726 or 70.43 per cent have received the second jab.
The spokesman said the government would speed up the process so that students are fully vaccinated amid the spreading Omicron variant, allowing them to return to school as soon as possible.
The prime minister also instructed government agencies concerned to monitor and prevent a shortage of test kits and medicine for fighting the outbreak.
Prayut was informed that the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation would sell 3 million ATK kits for Bt35 each on Friday at eight outlets of the state enterprise. Sales would go online from January 17, the spokesman added.
In its latest update on the situation, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced on Wednesday that there were 7,681 new Covid cases and 22 additional fatalities in the previous 24 hours.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40011000

A wildlife rescue team rushed to Rayong’s Khao Chamao district on Tuesday to treat “Coke”, a wild pachyderm who was injured in his leg after a thundering battle with another elephant.

Protected Areas Regional Office 2 (Sriracha) veterinarian Dr Sunita Wingwon said officials initially faced difficulty in treating the elephant as it lived in a forest.

“Hence, officials decided to use an immobilising dart so they could check the elephant closely,” she said.

Sunita said a wound of approximately 15 centimetres on Coke’s right front leg was due to the goring he received from the other elephant’s tusk.

“Veterinarians cleaned the wound, treated it with anaesthetic and applied anti-inflammatory medicine to it,” she explained.

The Siraman forest protection unit is now monitoring Coke’s symptoms and protecting the animal from other elephants, Sunita added. The unit has also been instructed to report on Coke’s progress to the veterinarian team periodically.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40010999

The Department of Health Services Support resolved on Tuesday to allow Thai health insurance companies to launch packages that cover Covid-19 treatment for foreign tourists and expand hotel isolation for patients with mild symptoms.

Department director-general Tares Krassanairawiwong said the key problem among foreign tourists is their health insurance does not cover treatment expenses if they are infected with Covid-19 and develop mild symptoms.

“In this regard, the department has proposed that the Office of Insurance Commission allow Thai health insurance companies to launch packages that cover Covid-19 treatment for foreign tourists,” he said.

“This will help foreign tourists to make faster claims for treatment expenses. It normally takes 7-10 days to claim expenses with some foreign health insurance companies.”

Tares said more and more hotel operators are requesting that they turn their facilities into hospitels under the hotel isolation scheme.

He pointed out that Chonburi has launched a hotel isolation scheme for tourists, with most patients developing no symptoms.

Tares expected hotels in tourism provinces to be allowed to operate as hospitels.

“Treatment expenses under the hotel isolation scheme will remain at 1,000 baht per person in line with National Health Security Office regulations,” he added.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40010998

A respected epidemiologist at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine warned on Wednesday that the spread of the highly infectious Covid-19 Omicron variant will accelerate in Thailand in the second half of this month.

Doctor Thira Woratanarat issued the warning on his Facebook page, saying the country may not be able to cope with the spread in terms of detecting newly infected people in time.

Thira said the outbreaks of Omicron in other countries showed that new infections occurred swiftly, prompting a curving line of new cases to become nearly vertical in a short period.

Taking into account the trend in other countries, he believes the spread of Omicron will accelerate after the middle of January.

The acceleration of new cases could lead to shortage of rapid antigen test kits (ATK) while laboratory tests using the RT-PCR method will also not be able to cope with fast-spreading new infections.

“This will affect how people lead their lives and how they take care of themselves,” Thira said in his post.

“The virus will spread much faster because people will not know if they have been infected or not,” he warned.

Thira said the government must rush to help by controlling the prices of ATK kits and considering distributing free kits to all families.

The doctor advised everyone to wear two face masks and avoid crammed and poorly ventilated areas to minimise the chance of catching the virus.

He cited World Health Organisation (WHO) figures to show the worsening situation. He said WHO’s weekly epidemiological update on Tuesday showed that the number of new Covid-19 cases around the world increased by 55 per cent while the death rate rose by 3 per cent compared to the previous week.

He said sequences posted on the GISAID site showed that Omicron now accounted for 58.5 per cent of cases, while the Delta variant dropped to 41.4 per cent.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40010995

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a budget of Bt1.1 billion for the construction of a new zoo on a royally granted plot of land in Pathum Thani, government spokeswoman Ratchada Dhnadirek said.

The budget will be used across fiscal years 2023 to 2027, she said.

The Zoological Park Organisation aims to build the new zoo on a 300-rai plot, which has been granted by His Majesty the King for the purpose, in Klong Hok, Tambon Rangsit in Pathum Thani’s Thanyaburi district.

The zoo, to be built in honour of His Majesty the King, will be made an international-level comprehensive facility with exclusive zones for people to learn about nature and the environment and study about local and foreign wildlife, Ratchada said.

There will also be zones for studying about a perfect ecological system and how to conserve and breed wild animals before they are returned to the wild, the spokeswoman said.

Furthermore, the zoo will become a new eco-tourism spot as initiated by late King Rama IX, Ratchada said.

The whole facility will be divided into six zones – a public park, a commercial area, a flood-prevention site, a research area, a car park, and the zoo itself.

The display area will be divided into subzones featuring African, Asian, Australian and South American animals. A display subzone of “cute” animals for kids will also be located there, she added.

Published : January 12, 2022

By : THE NATION