The Pingxiang Railway checkpoint will open from January 4 to 17 to allow the large quantities of Thai fruit lying stranded at Dongxing into China.
Exporters have until Tuesday to change their phytosanitary certificates after which the fruit can undergo customs clearance at Pingxiang crossing before entering China.
According to the Department of Agriculture, Thailand has exported more than 2 million tonnes of fruit worth 148 billion baht in the first 10 months of 2021.
The top three fruits exported to China are durian, longan and young coconut, but many shipments have been stuck at the border due to new clearance rules introduced late last year.
Krabi’s beautiful Maya Bay has been opened to tourists from January 1 for the first time since June 1, 2018.
Pramote Kaewnam, chief of Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, said only 375 tourists can visit for just one hour at a time. He also said swimming in the bay is strictly prohibited.
January 1 saw many speedboats and long-tail boats delivering groups at Phi Phi Leh island’s Loh Samah Bay Pier.
Maya Bay was closed to tourists in June 2018 due to “irreparable” ecological damage and to give the area a chance to recover.
Images of “big piles of garbage”, ranging from bottles to cans of fake snow spray, strewn along the length of Phuket’s Patong beach were posted on Facebook over the weekend.
The images attracted strong comments, with many netizens slamming partygoers for being ignorant, selfish and uncaring.
One of the main posts read: “Celebrate the festival of happiness and leave suffering for others. New Year’s aftermath 2022. Thank you!”
As many as 7,391 motorists were arrested for drunk driving between December 29 and 31, the first three of “seven dangerous days”.
“This was up 75.39 per cent compared to the same period last year,” deputy National Police chief Pol General Damrongsak Kittiprapas said on Saturday.
He added that 1,240 checkpoints have been set up across the country to ensure motorists’ safety during the New Year holidays. Of these, 769 checkpoints are responsible for traffic discipline and 471 aim to catch drunk drivers.
Over the three days, 198,159 motorists were detained for violating traffic laws, up 7.64 per cent compared to the same period last year.
Damrongsak, however, said road accidents, injuries and fatalities between December 29 and 31 have dropped compared to the same period last year. This year there were:
• 1,339 road accidents, down by 309 or 18.75 per cent
• 153 deaths, down by 31 or 16.85 per cent
• 1,322 injuries, down by 313 or 19.14 per cent
“The cause for most accidents or 34.96 per cent was speeding and 29.93 per cent was due to drunk driving,” he said.
Damrongsak called on motorists to refrain from drinking alcohol, take care of their health, check their vehicle, study traffic routes and adhere to the law.
“Police officers are ready to take care of motorists until they reach their destination safely,” he added.
Motorists requiring assistance can call 191 or 1193.
Ministry of Public Health reported on Sunday (January 2) morning that in the past 24 hours there are 3,112 new patients who tested positive for Covid-19, two of whom have been found in prisons.
Death toll increased by 12, while 2,921 patients were cured and allowed to leave hospitals.
The country’s total caseload from Covid-19 stands at 2,229,558 – 2,174,730 of whom have recovered, 33,108 are still in hospitals and 21,720 have died.
Separately, another 5,993 people were given their first Covid-19 shot in the last 24 hours, 9,894 their second shot and 12,111 a booster, bringing the total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered nationwide to 104,472,167.
According to Worldometer, confirmed cases globally had risen to 289.70 million on Monday, 254.14 million of whom have recovered, 30.11 million are active cases (89,072 in severe condition) and 5.45 million have died (up by 3,875).
Thailand ranks 24th in the global list of most cases, which is topped by the US with 55.86 million, followed by India with 34.88 million, Brazil with 22.29 million, the UK with 13.10 million and Russia with 10.51 million.
The Thailand Meteorological Department said on Sunday (January 2) that the rather strong high-pressure system covers upper Thailand with cool to cold in the North and the Northeast.
Morning cool with strong winds will be likely in the Central and the East regions. Cold to very cold is forecast on mountaintops. The minimum temperature of the North mountaintops is in range of 7-15 °C while the Northeast ranges by 10-16 °C.
“People in the upper country should keep healthy due to the variable weather,” the department said.
The strong northeast monsoon prevails across the Gulf with isolated heavy rains in the lower South. The strong wind forces the waves about 2 metres in the upper Gulf, 2-3 metres in the lower Gulf and above 3 metres in thundershowers, while the Andaman Sea has waves 1-2 metres high and offshore about 2 metres high.
“People in the South (east coast) should beware of inshore surges while the lower South beware of heavy rains,” the department said, “All ships should proceed with caution and small boat in the lower Gulf keep ashore.”
The 24-hour weather forecast for different regions:
North: Cool to cold; temperature lows of 15-19 °C and highs of 29-33 °C; temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 7-15 °C.
Northeast: Cool to cold with strong winds; temperature lows of 14-19 °C and highs of 29-31 °C; temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 10-16 °C.
Central: Partly cloudy with morning cool and strong winds; temperature lows of 18-22 °C and highs of 30-32 °C.
East: Cool in the morning with strong winds; temperature lows of 20-23 °C, highs of 31-33 °C; waves 1-2 metres high and about 2 metres offshore.
South (east coast): Cool in the morning in upper part with isolated thundershower and heavy rains in lower part; temperature lows of 22-24 °C, highs of 29-31 °C; waves about 2 metres high and above 2 metres in thundershowers in Surat Thani upwards, while 2-3 metres high and above 3 metres in thundershowers in Nakhon Si Thammarat downwards.
South (west coast): Isolated thundershower; temperature lows of 23-25 °C, highs of 30-33 °C; waves 1-2 metres high and about 2 metres offshore.
Bangkok and surrounding areas: Cool in the morning with strong winds and a decrease in temperature by 1-2 °C; temperature lows of 21-23 °C, highs of 30-33 °C.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha applauded the organisers of countdown events as well as partygoers for strictly adhering to Covid-19 prevention measures.
“PM Prayut is pleased that the events concluded without any problems thanks to the cooperation of all parties in adhering to measures such as Covid Free Setting and Universal Prevention,” government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said on Saturday.
“The success of these New Year events could set a new standard for celebrations in the future.”
In a bid to prevent the spread of Omicron, event organisers were instructed to strictly adhere to Covid-19 preventive measures such as requiring that all staff and attendees are fully vaccinated and undergo an antigen test at entrances. Events could only be held in open-air venues, with a limited number of guests and the application of social distancing.
“In Bangkok, countdowns at CentralWorld, Iconsiam and Siam Paragon shopping malls saw participants wearing facemasks and maintaining a safe distance from one another, while organizers provided free ATK tests at entrances and demanded to see vaccination certificates,” Thanakorn said. “Similar steps were taken at events in other tourist provinces like Chonburi, Phuket and Chiang Mai.
“PM Prayut is pleased that people willingly follow the Public Health Ministry’s measures to protect themselves from Covid-19,” he added. “This means we are ready to move ahead with reopening the country so the economy can recover fully, while people can rest assured that they will remain safe from the virus.”
Separately, a train crashed into a pick-up truck that was trying to cross the tracks in Nakhon Ratchasima at around 11am on December 30. Two people were slightly injured and taken to Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital for treatment.
Bangkok University pollsters asked 1,117 people across the country what they want the most in 2022, and here are some answers:
• 59.8% want the Thai economy to improve • 53.7% hope there are no more severe variants of Covid-19 • 50.1% hope there are no new Covid-19 clusters • 47.1% wish for peace and unity • 40.8% hope the cost of living remains affordable
When asked what they wanted from the government:
• 40.4% want Phase 4 of the “Kon La Khreung” (Let’s Go Halves) scheme • 20.6% want new welfare schemes to be introduced • 10.7% want New Year accident insurance coverage at a premium of 10 baht • 10.1% want the government to cut the interest on student loans. The poll was conducted between December 17 and 21.
Though many government-sponsored countdown events were cancelled to prevent the spread of Omicron, the private sector was allowed to hold parties to usher in 2022.
Event organisers, however, were instructed to strictly adhere to Covid Free Setting measures, which require all staff and attendees to be fully vaccinated and undergo an antigen test at the entrance. Events could only be held in open-air venues, with a limited number of guests and the application of social distancing.
Here are some photos of top countdown events across the country:
“Centralworld Bangkok Countdown 2022” at CentralWorld shopping mall in Bangkok’s Pathumwan district.
“Amazing Thailand Countdown 2022” at ICONSIAM shopping complex in Bangkok’s Khlong San district.
“Siam Paragon Countdown 2022: The Universe of Happiness Celebrations” at Siam Paragon mall in Bangkok’s Pathumwan district.
Amazing Thailand Countdown 2022 “Amazing New Chapters @Phuket” at King Rama X Public Park on Saphan Hin Beach.
“MONO29 PATTAYA COUNTDOWN 2022” at Bali Hai Pier in Chonburi’s Bang Lamung district.
Amazing Thailand Countdown 2022 “Amazing New Chapters @Chiang Mai” at Royal Park Rajapruek.
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