- Covid-19 News
UPDATE: 91 new coronavirus cases, 1 more death in Thailand (Friday March 27)
Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health and Department of Disease Control and confirmed a 91 new cases of the the Covid19 coronavirus at their daily press briefing this morning (March 27). There was also an additional death reported. The new numbers bring the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 1136 and deaths to 5. Two Thais have also…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket reports 7 new coronvirus cases (Friday March 27)
7 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Phuket, bringing the total confirmed cases on the southern resort island to 41. All appear to originate from the Soi Bangla walking street entertainment area of Patong district. None of the cases is considered critical at this stage. The new cases comprise… • Case 35: A 22 year old Thai woman…
- Covid-19 News
Human Rights Watch blasts the arrest of Phuket artist over online comments
A local artist and art gallery owner in Phuket, Danai Ussama, better known as “Mr Zen”, was arrested at his home on the island this week, on the day before Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha announced a state of emergency would soon go into effect (which happened on Thursday, March 26). The 42 year old street artist was arrested Monday afternoon and…
- Covid-19 News
US surpasses China with most coronavirus cases
The United States has overtaken China and now has the highest number of cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus in the world, with 85,505 at 9:10am (Thai time). That number is expected to spike. China has 81,782 cases, and Italy 80,589. But the death toll in the US lags behind China’s 3,291 and Italy’s 8,215. The turning point comes as US…
- Covid-19 News
Defence chief: Stay home for the sake of the nation, or curfew is inevitable
“We should control ourselves instead of being forced to by the state.” Under the state of emergency that went into effect yesterday, the head of Thailand’s defence forces Pornpipat Benyasri has urged people to stay in their homes today and the weekend or face an enforced curfew to fight the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. Pornpipat, who under the emergency…
- Covid-19 News
Blue Flag grocery vehicles deployed in greater Bangkok to encourage staying home
With the state of emergency requiring people to stay home as much as possible and keeping their ‘social distance’ in public to fight the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, the Ministry of Commerce has launched a fleet of Blue Flag vehicles to sell and deliver groceries and other consumer goods at affordable prices, right to people’s homes. Starting yesterday, mobile…
- Covid-19 News
‘Boxing Stadium Cluster’ investigation over banned March 6 event
The head of the Royal Thai Army, General Apirat Kongsompong today ordered the creation of a committee to track down those responsible for holding a competition in Lumphini Boxing Stadium on March 6, days after it was ordered closed. The stadium, which is under the management of the army, has been a major hotzone for the spread of the Covid-19…
- Covid-19 News
5 new coronavirus cases reported in Phuket, first in Koh Samui
Phuket Newshawk reports 5 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases on the southern island of Phuket. The details of the new cases are… A 64 year old Swiss businessman A British man, aged 20, who is a caretaker of yachts A 43 year old Thai woman, a masseuse in Patong A 41 year old Thai man, concierge in a Patong hotel A…
- Crime News
“Comply or I’ll tear it down myself” Pattaya mayor tells encroaching resort
Pattaya’s mayor Sontaya Khunpluem yesterday ordered his staff to post notices at Ban Sukhawadee, or “Sukhawadee House” as it’s known in English, a luxury beachfront property and tourist attraction on a total of 80 rai in the Bang Lamung district, that encompasses Pattaya. The company that runs the resort, HealthFood International, has two weeks to comply with a judgment relating…
- Covid-19 News
No public transport bus tickets until at least April 30
“We cannot provide additional buses and all available buses have been used. Complying with the social distancing policy halves the number of passengers per bus.” Due to the state of emergency declared by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha to fight the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, the president of state enterprise Transport Company, Jirasak Yaovatsakul, announced today that ticket sales for all…
- Covid-19 News
Escaped coronavirus patient nabbed in Krabi, faces charges
A patient who fled isolation and treatment for the Covid-19 coronavirus in the southern province of Krabi has been nabbed at a checkpoint last night and returned to hospital. The 25 year old faces criminal charges for violating the Communicable Disease Act. The director of Krabi Hospital says the patient had been at the hospital since Saturday but escaped on…
- Covid-19 News
Immigration Bureau asks people to file reports online, avoid their offices
A spokesman for the Immigration Bureau says that foreigners living in Thailand are now requested to process their 90 day residence reports via an online platform or by post only. Applicants are usually required to report in person to complete the procedure. The change comes as one metre social distancing has been virtually impossible at immigration offices. One IB office…
- Covid-19 News
Thai government reassures public: No food shortages
“There will be no shortage of food and goods for domestic consumption, even if a lockdown is implemented, be it for three months, six months or a year.” The Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has prompted some outbreaks of panic buying for staple items, but the Thai government is assuring the public there will be no shortages of food. The Office of…
- Northern Thailand News
1000 kilograms of marijuana seized in northeastern Thailand
More than a tonne of marijuana has been been recovered in Thailand’s Bung Kan province, in the far north east on the Laos border. The stash was discovered in fertiliser sacks by a security patrol boat along the Mekong river. Authorities say a longtail boat with 4 to 5 men on board was spotted pulling up to the river bank,…
- Covid-19 News
Fortress Thailand – Thai PM asks for co-operation
The Kingdom has raised the drawbridge and hunkers down for weeks, or months, of self-isolation and a roll-out of measures to control the spread of Covid-19. Foreign nationals may no longer enter Thailand and the government has not ruled out a 24 hour curfew under the state of emergency declared by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, which went into effect at midnight,…
- Covid-19 News
Hundreds of Thais stranded in New Zealand, denied boarding without documentation
A Facebook post from a Thai Airways aircrew says hundreds of desperate Thais are trapped in New Zealand, denied boarding on a Bangkok-bound flight as they couldn’t provide the mandatory “fit-to-fly” letter now required of Thai nationals, and proof of residency once in Thailand. Aaron Puranasamriddhi (known online as Krissanarat) called on the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand to sort…
- Covid-19 News
Wuhan, original epicentre of coronavirus outbreak, will lift outgoing travel ban
Wuhan, the likely origin of the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, and the city hardest hit by it, plans to remove outbound travel restrictions from April 8 after over two months of lockdown. People in Hubei province and its capital, Wuhan, will be allowed to leave if they hold a ‘green health code’, meaning no contact with any infected or suspected virus…
- Covid-19 News
Thai PM: State of emergency begins at midnight
“I am in charge of this mission.” In a nationally televised address, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha told the public today that Thailand has reached a turning point in its fight against the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic and he is now “in charge of every aspect” of the government’s efforts to combat the disease. An emergency decree, announced yesterday, will be enforced across…
- Thailand Weather Updates
Hot with showers in the North, cloudy in the South
Thailand’s Meteorological Department said today is a “hot to a very hot day for the North and the Northeast” as a thermal low covers upper Thailand. A combination of southerly and southeasterly winds prevails over the Northeast, the East, the Central and the lower North regions. Thundershowers with gusty winds are forecast in some areas of the upper country (hey,…
- Covid-19 News
Bank employee tests positive for coronavirus
“The employee is now in hospital and his last day at work was March 23.” Siam Commerial Bank has announced that one of its temporary employees tested positive for Covid-19 coronavirus. A spokesman says that the employee worked on the 20th floor of Ari Hill Building on Phaholyothin Road in Bangkok. After notifying the Ministry of Public Health and the…
- Covid-19 News
Thai Airways suspends all flights, some from today
The Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has claimed another victim: Thai Airways, the national carrier, has announced the suspension of all operations until May 31. The struggling carrier, once considered one of Asia’s most luxurious airlines, said yesterday that the suspension is necessary “because the global pandemic has prompted many countries to impose border closures and lockdowns, forcing many Thai offices abroad…
- Covid-19 News
107 new coronavirus cases confirmed, total now 934 (Wednesday)
Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health and the Department of Disease Control announced 107 new confirmed cases of the Covid-19 Coronavirus in their daily press briefing this morning. This makes the total number of cases found in Thailand since the outbreak began in January 934, with 4 total deaths. Yesterday 106 confirmed cases were announced. 52 patients have so far recovered.…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket reports 3 new coronavirus cases (Wednesday)
Newshawk Phuket reports 3 new cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus on the southern Thai island of Phuket. 2 Chinese patients have recovered and been discharged, bringing the total remaining cases to 27. 98 people are still in hospital in Phuket, with 71 awaiting test results. The new cases are… An English traveller who arrived in Phuket on March 19 via…
- Covid-19 News
Foreigners without health certificates, insurance being turned away at Thai airports
No health certificate and travel insurance: “No Entry” Nearly 100 foreign travellers have been denied entry into Thailand for failing to have the mandatory documents to meet immigration standards to fight the Covid-19 coronavirus. Of these, 73 are being deported back to their country of departure. The passengers were among 4,533 passengers, both Thai and foreigners who landed in Thailand…
- Covid-19 News
5000 baht per month for “informal” Thai workers
Informal workers, meaning temporary workers, contractors and the self-employed will be able to claim 5000 baht in government assistance per month during the Covid-19 Coronavirus crisis, which has already closed untold thousands of businesses, even before yesterday’s announcement of a state of emergency. The program and payments begin on April 1. Workers must be Thai nationals and register with either The…
- Covid-19 News
5 people who were bloody amazing during “self-quarantine”
Life in Thailand has changed rapidly since the WHO declared the Covid-19 coronavirus a pandemic on March 11. Offices have closed, public spaces have emptied, and the nation is in a state of national emergency, effective tomorrow. People are urged to to stay home and “self-isoltate” to the extent possible. Many have suddenly found themselves, to put it charitably, “with…
- Economy News
The almighty baht set to fall further despite rate cuts, stimulus
A lot has changed for the baht. It was only months ago that The Bank of Thailand considered drastic measures to rein in the rambunctious baht, whose massive gains in currency markets made it the darling of speculators. In December Kasikorn Bank released a report outlining reasons the baht “will remain strong into 2020.” The bank’s research arm forecast the…
- Covid-19 News
Border closures hurting provincial economies
“If the closure continues beyond April, they will be heavily indebted and small businesses will collapse, worsening the situation.” The spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus has meant the closure of Thailand’s borders with neighbouring countries, and people in border provinces are paying a heavy toll. The communities around border crossing areas have been traditionally busy centres for local economies. Now,…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand under a State of emergency – Prime Minister
Thai PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha told a news conference today that Thailand will be under emergency decree from this Thursday (March 26) until the end of April, 2020 to deal with the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak in the Kingdom. The decree means the PM will have the executive power to declare further measures to contain the virus, including giving extra authority to…
- Covid-19 News
Professor says social distancing, self-isolation are crucial to control infection
“People must stay home and not socialise, or Thailand will become like Italy with coronavirus patients overwhelming health resources and medical personnel having to decide which patients to treat, or not.” Dr Prasit Watanapa, dean of the faculty of medicine Siriraj Hospital of Mahidol University, yesterday emphasised the need for strict social distancing on the university’s online TV channel, saying…
