Thaiger
- Covid-19 News
15 minute coronavirus tests now on trial in Thailand – VIDEO
As promised, Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University has rolled out a new 15 minute Covid-19 coronavirus test strip, aimed at increasing the number of people that can be screened for the Covid-19 virus and easing the burden on Thailand’s health system. Virus infections rose sharply in March, with panicked citizens flocking to already stressed hospitals for coronavirus testing. The situation is expected…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand coronavirus cases rise to 1771, two more deaths
Thailand now has 1771 Covid-19 coronavirus cases, with 120 new cases confirmed over the last 24 hours and 2 more patients dying.The government’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration made the announcement this morning (April 1). The cases are divided into three groups… The first group of 51 are connected to cluster cases. One person joins the “boxing match cluster,” 11…
- Covid-19 News
6 new coronavirus cases in Phuket (Wednesday)
Phuket has confirmed 6 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases today (Wednesday), bringing the total on in the southern province to 75 since the outbreak began in January. Phuket has effectively sealed its borders and become a virtual fortress. It will close its airport on April 10 but some flights are still leaving taking foreigners back home. All the new cases have a…
- Covid-19 News
Urgent repatriation notice for Swiss and German citizens as immigration rules tighten
An urgent repatriation notice has been issued for Swiss and citizens in Thailand. According to Richard Barrow’s Twitter feed, flights are being urgently chartered to evacuate citizens of both nations: A notice posted on the Embassy of Switzerlad’s website reads… For Swiss travellers in Thailand: Swiss charter flights from Thailand to Switzerland/update… Bangkok – Zurich – Good news: seats are…
- Covid-19 News
Bangkok police arrest 6 Vietnamese in mask hoarding sting
Immigration police yesterday arrested 6 Vietnamese nationals in a sting operation, for allegedly hoarding hand sanitiser and facemasks. The items are highly prized due to the current Covid-19 coronavirus situation. They were arrested at a house in Bangkok’s Suan Luang district. Police reportedly found 142,500 face masks and 12,000 bottles of hand gels, 13 barrels of alcohol, three gel making…
- Covid-19 News
PM warns not everyone eligible for 5000 baht aid package
“About 20 million people have registered for the assistance. But this does not mean they will all get the money.” A week ago, the Thai government announced it would supply “informal workers” with 5000 baht per month for 3 months during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis. Now it warns it will take it back from those who have registered but are…
- Covid-19 News
40 new coronavirus test clinics coming in April
Getting tested for the Covid-19 coronavirus in Thailand will soon be a lot easier, as 40 more labs are expected to be given approval to run tests nationwide within a month. A spokesman for the Department of Medical Sciences says there are currently 57 labs being certified to run tests, with 40 more awaiting assessment before they can begin testing.…
- Covid-19 News
Immigration: Beware online swindlers claiming they can extend your visa
After a wave of complaints, the Immigration Bureau yesterday issued urgent advice to tourists and visitors about extending their visas amid the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis. While some immigration offices have requested that expats to file their 90 day residence reports reports online to promote social distancing and avoid crowded conditions, officers say fraudsters have been going online on Facebook and…
- Covid-19 News
Canadian family of 4 among Phuket’s coronavirus infections
Authorities in the southern island province of Phuket today announced that 3 more members from a Canadian are among 7 new confirmed Covid-19 coronavirus infections. The new cases include a 37 year old Canadian woman, her 2 year old son and 4 year old daughter. All are believed to be infected by the woman’s husband, and children’s father, also a…
- Environment News
Lockdowns, closures mean cleaner air in European cities
Lockdowns, travel restrictions and factory closures due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic are having some unexpected positive consequences. Satellite images show that cities around Europe, including Brussels, Paris, Madrid, Milan and Frankfurt, are showing a huge reduction in air pollution average levels of noxious nitrogen dioxide over compared with the same period last year. New images, including heat maps, released…
- Covid-19 News
Chon Buri bans alcohol sales 6pm to 6am
Chonburi’s governor has banned the sale of alcohol in the province, including Pattaya, from 6am to 6pm, effective immediately, and restaurants are now only allowed to offer takeaways – all to fight the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. The order is over and above all other closures in the province over the past two weeks. The provisions of the order…
- Covid-19 News
Pattaya eyes hotel as quarantine area
Pattaya’s Committee for the Surveillance and Prevention of Covid-19 is proposing to use the city’s Grand Bella Hotel as a temporary medical shelter for people under investigation for Covid-19 coronavirus symptoms. Pattaya currently has 12 total cases, with a total of 16 in Bang Lamung and 53 in Chon Buri province. 105 people are currently being scrutinised for the virus…
- Covid-19 News
Bangkok monks now sporting bespoke facemasks
Monks (well, some of them, anyway) in the nation’s capital have begun wearing custom face masks and even facial shields, as they make their daily morning alms rounds. Abbot Phra Maha Somkiat Yansuttho and his novices from Bangkok’s Wat Matchan Tikaram temple, aka. Was Noi, wore face masks while they went out to ask for alms and chat with neighbouring…
- Covid-19 News
127 new coronavirus cases in Thailand (Tuesday), total 1651, 10 deaths
The Department of Disease Control of the Ministry of Public Health today (Tuesday, March 31) confirmed 127 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases in its daily press briefing. 1 more death was reported, bringing the national total to 10 since the outbreak began in January. The latest number raises the total number of confirmed infections in Thailand to 1,651 The southern island…
- Covid-19 News
Third stimulus package coming, valued at 500 billion baht
Thailand’s economy has been hit hard by the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, as it’s heavily reliant on exports and tourism. As of yesterday, Thailand had reported 1,524 cases of coronavirus and nine deaths as a result of the outbreak. So the finance minister yesterday announced a new stimulus package valued at more than 500 billion baht to alleviate the impact. The…
- Covid-19 News
8 killed as Medevac plane crashes in Manila – VIDEO
“Unfortunately, no passenger survived the accident.” A plane evacuating a Covid-19 coronavirus patient exploded during takeoff in the Philippine capital of Manila on Sunday, killing all eight passengers and crew. The victims included an American and a Canadian. The plane, owned by a Philippine-registered charter service Lionair, was bound for Japan. It burst into flames at the end of the runway…
- Covid-19 News
Government aims to limit travel around Thailand by 90%
It won’t do much for oil prices, but it will flatten Thailand’s Covid-19 ‘curve’ and help with the country’s air pollution problems. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration is aiming to cut public transport use by as much as 90% around the country in order to stem the rise of Covid-19 coronavirus infections. Just yesterday, Thailand’s Department of Land Transport announced that…
- Covid-19 News
Some southern provinces stop interprovincial public transport
Thailand’s Department of Land Transport announced today that four southern provinces – Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Phuket – are closed to all public transport, except essential goods vehicles, medical and government vehicles, after witnessing an increasing number of Covid-19 coronavirus patients. Director-general Jirut Wisanjit made the announcement and the closures began today (Monday, March 30) to help prevent the virus…
- Crime News
Woman convicted for 2005 stabbings, allegedly kills 5 year old
A mental patient who served prison time for the 2005 stabbings of 4 girls in Bangkok has turned herself in to police after allegedly stabbing a 5 year old girl to death. 50 year old Ms. Jitrlada Tantiwanitchasuk gave herself up to police in Nakhon Pathom province otside Bangkok yesterday. The 5 year old victim was pronounced dead on arrival…
- Covid-19 News
Coronavirus spreads to Lamphun province
The northern province of Lamphun, near Chiang Mai, has reported its first 2 Covid-19 coronavirus cases. Provincial Governor Pongrat Piromrat made the announcement yesterday. A 39 year old man is the first case. He returned from abroad on March 19 and began home quarantine from March 20 until today, when he tested positive and was transferred to a local hospital.…
- Crime News
Former US gangster arrested after Chon Buri 7-11 robbery
A man with a rather colourful past is now in police custody in the Bang Lamung district of Chon Buri province. The suspect, a former US gangster, who speaks five languages, allegedly robbed a 7-eleven shop of 5000 baht using a BB gun last week. 37 year old “Roger” Phayungsak Wasuwat, was taken by police to the convenience store branch…
- Covid-19 News
Pattaya all but deserted due to virus, travel restrictions
For years, Pattaya has struggled to shed its seedy image as a haven of sex tourism, which started in the 1970s when it became a rest and relaxation spot for US soldiers during the Vietnam War. It’s continued to develop into a much more diverse city with world standard attractions offsetting the seedier bars and walking streets. Now it faces…
- World News
Chiang Mai chokes as fires rage in the north of Thailand
Northern Thailand is choking under a toxic shroud and it’s not getting any better. Air pollution across the upper North remains “at critical levels,” in many areas, including some of the main population centres. Authorities are monitoring almost 400 active hotspots in Chiang Mai alone yesterday. The air quality didn’t improve this morning, with IQAir recording “very unhealthy” air quality…
- Covid-19 News
Coronavirus UPDATE – first deaths in New Zealand, Sri Lanka. Singapore cancels citizen’s passport.
Covid-19 cases around the world have now reached 723,732. A week ago (March 23) there was 378,000 cases in the world. There have been exactly 34,000 deaths recorded globally (as of 2.30pm Monday Thai time) with over 151,000 people recovered. The USA leads the world count with 142,735 cases followed by Italy with 97,689 cases and 10,799 deaths. Here are…
- Covid-19 News
Red hazardous waste bins spring up in Bangkok for used masks, tissue
Used face masks and tissue paper are now classified as hazardous waste during this Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, at least in Bangkok. The city’s governor Aswin Kwanmuang is urging people to dispose of used face masks properly, using the new red bins which are designated for hazardous waste. “Used face masks must be put in a plastic bag fastened with a string…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket airport to ban flights April 10-30 over virus fears
The southern island province of Phuket has sealed its borders by land and sea, and yesterday provincial governor Phakkhaphong Thawiphat announced that air transport to Phuket will also shut down beginning April 10 until at least April 30 in order to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. “Shutting down the air transport route requires seven days notification in advance…
- Covid-19 News
136 more virus cases confirmed in Thailand as outbreak spreads out of Bangkok
A spokesman for the country’s newly formed Covid-19 Situation Administration Thailand confirmed 136 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases today, raising the total number of infections to 1,524. Deaths in the Kingdom remain at 7. Infections in Thailand are likely to keep rising, and in a reversal of the earlier trend, recent new cases have been reported more in the countryside than…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket reports 9 new coronavirus cases
9 new cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus have been reported in the southern island province of Phuket, bringing the total to 62 cases. Most of the new cases originated in the Patong district, again, and many in the area of the Bangla Road red light district. Details of the new cases… Case 54: A 35 year old Canadian man working at…
- Covid-19 News
Coronavirus infections rise among Thai health workers
Infections of the Covid-19 coronavirus among doctors, nurses and other staff on the front-line of the battle against the disease are causing concerns. Yesterday the Thai Health Department announced 143 new infections bringing the total in Thailand to 1,388 since the outbreak began in January. The number of newly infected health department personnel was 8. Doctors, nurses and other staff…
- Covid-19 News
Coronavirus rumour prompts prison riot, some prisoners escape
Rumours of a Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak in a prison in the lower northeastern province of Buri Ram sparked a riot. The riot erupted at the central prison after about 100 determined prisoners broke furniture and smashed windows and set a fire over rumours of a Covid-19 outbreak in the prison yesterday. A number of prisoners escaped but 7 have been…
