Ministry of Public Health reported on Tuesday (April 12) morning that in the past 24 hours there are 19,982 new patients who tested positive for Covid-19, 52 of whom have arrived in Thailand from abroad.
Death toll increased by 101, while 28,057 patients were cured and allowed to leave hospitals.
Cumulative cases in the country since January 1, 2022 are at 1,702,419.
With PM2.5 hitting unsafe levels in 49 provinces on Monday morning, The Nation offers 10 methods to protect yourself against the health impacts of air pollution.
The provinces where PM2.5 air pollution exceeded safe levels according to the Centre for Air Pollution Mitigation were: Bangkok, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Nakhon Pathom, Samut Sakhon, Samut Prakan, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Mae Hong Son, Phayao, Nan, Lampang, Phrae, Uttaradit, Sukhothai, Tak, Phitsanulok, Kamphaeng Phet, Phichit, Phetchabun, Nakhon Sawan, Uthai Thani, Sing Buri, Lopburi, Saraburi, Suphan Buri, Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi, Phetchaburi, Nakhon Nayok, Prachin Buri, Sa Kaew, Chachoengsao, Chonburi, Rayong, Nong Khai, Loei, Udon Thani, Nakhon Phanom, Sakon Nakhon, Mukdahan, Kalasin, Roi Et, Chaiyaphum, Ubon Ratchathani, Sisaket, Nakhon Ratchasima and Buriram.
Ten ways to protect yourself from PM2.5 health hazards:
Check the air quality before going outdoors via Air4Thai.com or the Air4Thai smartphone app.
Wear a face mask, preferably of N95 grade.
Keep yourself healthy and well-rested; drink a lot of water.
Eat all five food groups, especially vegetables and fruits that are rich in antioxidants.
Repair gaps along the edges of doors and windows to shield against PM2.5.
Avoid outdoor activities when air pollution exceeds safe levels.
People with chronic conditions such as asthma, allergies and conjunctivitis should prepare medicines and appliances, and follow doctors’ advice.
Clean houses, especially spots where dust gathers, such as air-conditioners and fans.
Watch out for symptoms such as coughing, difficulty breathing, chest pain and dizziness.
Reduce PM2.5 by planting trees and not burning crops or using vehicles that emit black smoke.
Thai Airways International (THAI), Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and THAI Smile Airways (THAI Smile) on April 8 signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to promote Thai tourism in the Indian market.
Acting THAI CEO Suvadhana Sibunruang said following the reopening of international borders in various countries, air travel and tourism industry are showing positive signs of recovery.
He said the LOI aimed to enhance travel experience and develop marketing activities for the Indian market, to offer passengers with privileges and joint promotions, especially for leisure, golf, visiting friends and relatives and wedding travellers, and to exchange information on the tourism industry for sustainable development in the industry.
“In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic, 1.9 million travellers from India generated more than 8.5 billion baht in revenue for Thailand,” he said.
“This collaboration is expected to boost the recovery of Thai tourism businesses and the Thai economy after the pandemic.”
THAI and THAI Smile currently operate the following flights to India:
1. Roundtrip Bangkok – Delhi: 14 flights per week
2. Roundtrip Bangkok – Mumbai: 7 flights per week
3. Roundtrip Bangkok – Chennai: 7 flights per week
4. Roundtrip Bangkok – Bengaluru: 7 flights per week
5. Roundtrip Bangkok – Kolkata: 7 flights per week by THAI Smile starting April 11
6. Roundtrip Bangkok – Phuket – Mumbai: 7 flights per week by THAI Smile starting April 10
“In addition to the collaboration in the Indian market, THAI operates flights in over 34 continental and intercontinental routes in its summer 2022 schedule,” he said.
Suvadhana added that passengers may travel further with THAI Smile and Star Alliance member airlines.
“Flight frequencies may increase in response to the growing travel demand and the government’s upcoming policy,” he added.
Vice Minister for Tourism and Sports Napintorn Srisunpang said the Indian market is significant in South Asia both in market size and tourist purchasing power.
This market is necessary for every country driven by the tourism economy, he pointed out.
“This collaboration is the opportunity to boost the recovery of the Indian market following the Air Travel Bubble agreement between Thailand and India,” he said.
Citing the Tourism and Sports Ministry’s Economics Tourism and Sports Division, he said Thailand welcomed 1.99 million inbound tourists from India in 2019, 24.85 per cent higher year on year, and earned THB86.37 billion, an increase of 27.45 per cent.
“This reflects the potential of the Indian market,” he added.
TAT deputy governor for international marketing Asia and South Pacific Tanes Petsuwan said that as part of the “Visit Thailand Year 2022” campaign, TAT will focus on quality inbound tourists from this particular market through celebrities and influencers marketing to the millennials target audience.
He said TAT Delhi and Mumbai offices will also notify local tour agents about Thailand’s immigration measures and new travel products and services to plan joint promotion activities for luxurious tourists.
He also confirmed that Amazing Thailand Wedding Expo 2022 will be held this month to boost wedding travellers later this year.
Meanwhile, TAT is joining the South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange 2022 in Delhi from May 18 to 20 to promote Thailand on its readiness in tourism, he added.
“Based on THAI and THAI Smile load factor figures, up to 13,000 tourists from India are expected to visit Thailand every month from this April,” he said.
“The number is expected to rise to 80,000 as soon as the situation improves,” he added.
Police are still hunting for two men who hurled two ping pong bombs into the compound of the First Infantry Regiment where the prime minister’s residence is located.
Security camera footage showed two men riding a motorcycle to the front gate of the regiment and the pillion rider hurling two ping pong bombs into the compound at 7.50pm on Sunday, Government Spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said on Monday.
The two bombs landed on the lawn in front of the security booth of the regiment. No one was injured from the small explosions.
Thanakorn said the regiment has filed a complaint with police, who are still trying to identify the assailants whose faces were concealed by their crash helmets.
The spokesman said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had no comment about the incident and had not give any special orders. The prime minister only assigned police to investigate the incident in accordance with normal procedure, the spokesman said.
Thanakorn said Prayut would continue to work in his official residence in the compound of the regiment during the long Songkran holidays and would be on stand by to give orders to government agencies in case of emergency.
Following the incident, police of the Tha Rua Police Station arrested a man, identified as Thanayut, 20, after he injured himself with a ping pong bomb that fell from his pocket. Police have withheld his surname.
The man was walking home in the Rom Klao community in Klong Toei district when a ping pong bomb fell from the right pocket of his trousers and exploded on Sunday night. He was slightly injured.
Police searched his house and found 172 ping pong bombs and 23 smoke bombs.
Police interrogated the man and concluded that he was not the one who had hurled the bombs into the First Infantry Regiment compound, but they believe he might know the suspects.
Police are using information from Thanayut to try to locate the two suspects.
Miss Grand Thailand 2022 contestants sashayed down the runway at Suvarnabhumi on Sunday, touching down an hour later in Khon Kaen for the start of this year’s beauty pageant.
“We are thrilled to host and accompany the gorgeous Miss Grand Thailand 2022 contestants on the Thai Vietjet flight,” gushed the airline’s commercial director Pinyot Pibulsonggram.
The low-cost carrier, which was nicknamed the “Bikini Airline” for advertisements featuring scantily clad flight attendants, is sponsoring the swimsuit section of this year’s pageant.
The airline also sponsors Miss Grand International, ferrying beauty contestants from all over the world to promote various destinations in Thailand.
Among its passengers last year was Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien, the reigning Miss Grand International queen from Vietnam.
Other beauties to have graced the cabin of Vietjet since 2016 include Miss Grand Thailand winners Kantida Lungjareon (Phrae), Nicharee Boonsiri (Sakon Nakhon) and Unchaya Petchamanee (Songkhla).
Miss Grand Thailand has been held annually since 2013 to select national beauties to compete in global pageants – including its sister contest, Miss Grand International.
This year, the preliminary competition will be held in Khon Kaen while the grand final coronation night will take place in Bangkok on April 30.
Former Bangkok governor Aswin Kwanmuang was seen at a local market in Bangkok’s Saphan Sung district on Sunday introducing himself to voters ahead of the upcoming elections.
He was accompanied by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Council member Adul Sewiset, who is also part of the Raks Krungthep group.
Bangkok and Pattaya residents will be voting for a new governor and city council members on May 22.
When asked about his third place in a recent opinion poll conducted in Bangkok by the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA), Aswin said he actually considered himself to be in the second position.
“The top choice was Chadchart [Sittipunt], while the second most selected answer was ‘undecided’, while I came in third,” Aswin said. “This means that technically I’m in the second place among all candidates, which is understandable because I began campaigning a little later than others.
“Personally, I’m not too concerned about the poll results,” he said.
“I will continue campaigning as planned to introduce my projects and am confident that I will come out as the top choice for voters.”
Other candidates were also busy campaigning on Sunday.
Move Forward Party’s Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn visited Chulalongkorn University’s Centenary Park to introduce his green projects to voters, while Chadchart was greeting residents in the Minburi district and introducing them to his zoning initiative. His aim is to turn Minburi into a satellite town to help ease Bangkok’s traffic woes.
Suvarnabhumi Airport is offering free long-term parking for travellers flying back to their hometowns over the Songkran holiday.
Parking fees at Zone C will be waived from April 11-17, Suvarnabhumi’s operator Airports of Thailand (AOT) announced on Sunday.
Zone C is designated for long-term parking and has room for 718 vehicles.
The move is aimed to reduce financial burdens for travellers during Thailand’s biggest holiday of the year.
The airport will also provide a free shuttle bus service from the parking lot to passenger terminals. The bus leaves every 15 minutes and is available 24 hours a day until April 17.
AOT urged people to arrive at the airport at least three hours before departure time for international flights, and at least two hours for domestic flights, as they expect a high volume of passengers during the long holiday.
For more information, contact the call centre at 1722 or (02) 132 9511.
PM2.5 levels that have soared above the safe limit in Bangkok and adjacent provinces will fall during the Songkran holiday this week, the Pollution Control Department (PCD) predicts.
Air quality will improve as traffic heads out of the city for Songkran family reunions upcountry, it explained.
Greater Bangkok recorded levels of dangerous PM2.5 particles at 50-92 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m3) on Sunday at noon. The government-set safe limit is 50μg/m3.
The PCD advised people to wear face masks and avoid outdoor activities for an extended period – especially among small children and the elderly.
“Please avoid burning garbage or weeds outdoor during this period, and use vehicles only when necessary to not add to the air pollution problem,” the department added.
PM 2.5 readings in other regions were as follows:
• North: 41 to 95μg/m3
• Northeast: 49 to 123
• Central region and West: 58 to 100
• East: 50 to 74
• South: 10 to 18
The PM2.5 situation can be followed at Air4Thai.com and bangkokairquality.com or the PCD’s Centre for Air Pollution Mitigation Facebook page. Smartphone users can download the AirVisual (worldwide) and Air4Thai (Thailand) apps for real-time updates or the new Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) app called “เช็คฝุ่น”.
Hot to very hot weather is forecast for the whole country during this Songkran week (April 10-16), with isolated thunderstorms in upper Thailand.
The Thailand Meteorological Department said a heat low-pressure cell will send temperatures soaring as high as 40 degrees centigrade by the end of the week.
People in parts of upper Thailand were warned to watch out for isolated thundershowers and gusty conditions brought by southerly and southeasterly winds.
The South will be drier thanks to a weak easterly wind across the Gulf of Thailand.
Weather forecast for the next 7 days:
North
April 10-14: Hot to very hot days with haze and isolated light rain. Temperature lows of 21-23C and highs of 33-39C.
April 15-16: Hot to very hot with haze, isolated thundershowers and gusty winds.
Lows of 24-26C and highs of 35-40C.
Northeast
April 10-14: Hot with haze and isolated thundershowers. Lows of 22-25C and highs of 32-36C.
April 15-16: Hot with haze with isolated thundershowers and gusty winds. Lows of 23-26C and highs of 34-38C.
Central
Hot and hazy throughout the week, with isolated thundershowers and gusty winds on April 15-16. Lows of 23-27C and highs of 34-39C.
East: Hot and hazy throughout the week, with isolated thundershowers on April 13-16. Lows of 23-27C and highs of 33-38C. Waves less than a metre high rising to a metre during thundershowers.
South (east coast)
Isolated thundershowers throughout the week. Lows of 21-26C, highs of 30-37C. Waves about a metre rising to over 1 metre during thundershowers.
South (west coast)
Isolated thundershowers throughout the week. Lows of 22-27C, highs of 30-37C. Waves about a metre rising to over 1 metre during thundershowers.
Bangkok and surrounding areas: Hot and hazy throughout the week. Isolated thundershowers with gusty winds from April 11-16. Lows of 23-27C and highs of 33-38C.
Ministry of Public Health reported on Monday (April 11) morning that in the past 24 hours there are 22,387 new patients who tested positive for Covid-19, 87 of whom have arrived in Thailand from abroad.
Death toll increased by 105, while 27,680 patients were cured and allowed to leave hospitals.
Cumulative cases in the country since January 1, 2022 are at 1,682,437.
Thanakorn said Prayut would continue to work in his official residence in the compound of the regiment during the long Songkran holidays and would be on stand by to give orders to government agencies in case of emergency.
Police searched his house and found 172 ping pong bombs and 23 smoke bombs.
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