- Economy News
“Thai Airways will survive”. Emergency meeting next Wednesday.
“Thai Airways will not collapse. The fact that Deputy PM Somkid stepped in to handle the issue means the government will rescue it.” It’s no secret that Thailand’s national carrier has been a financial basket case for over a decade, bleeding money and marketshare as the years pass. The top-heavy Thai company is bailed out by the Thai government each…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket adds 4 Covid-19 cases, 3 in Bang Tao (Saturday)
4 new Covid-19 cases have been confirmed in the southern island province of Phuket today. The island has the highest rate of infection and the second highest number of cases, after Bangkok. A single new case was reported this morning, bringing the total there to 202: a 60 year old Thai woman who lives in Witchit, Phuket Town. She fell…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand reports 53 new cases today, 1 more death (Saturday)
A spokesman for the government’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today announced 53 new Covid-19 cases confirmed over a 24 hour period, and 1 additional death. Most of today’s new cases are imported from outside the country. 42 of the new cases are illegal migrant workers currently at the detention centre at the Sadao checkpoint bordering Malaysia, another 7 in Yala,…
- Crime News
Knicker-sniffing panty thief arrested in Chiang Mai – VIDEO
After receiving complaints, police in Chiang Mai have arrested a food delivery driver for stealing women’s knickers (panties) while making deliveries throughout the city. 27 year old Nontawat Intanachan was arrested after at least one woman reported to police that her knickers had frequently been stolen while hanging out to dry. When police examined the surveillance footage, they saw a…
- Covid-19 News
Public health must take priority – Thai PM
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has stressed that public health will take priority when the government makes a decision on Tuesday whether to ease restriction imposed by the Emergency Decree to fight the spread of Covid-19. At a press briefing at Government House yesterday, Prayut said that although Thailand has, up to now, managed to flatten the infection curve, the nation “cannot…
- Crime News
Attempted murder charge for hit-and-run Mitsubishi driver
In a follow-up to a story previously reported in The Thaiger, police in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat are charging the driver of a Mitsubishi Mirage with attempted murder after he ran into a policeman, then sped off with the officer still clinging to the hood of his car. The officer held on for dear life as the…
- Covid-19 News
Health officials announce colour-coding for provinces based on virus risk
Officials at the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today announced a colour coding system for Thailand’s 77 provinces, based on the number of Covid-19 cases in each province or how long the province has gone without a new case being reported According to The Nation Thailand, green provinces, those where no Covid-19 cases have been found, include: Nan, Kamphaeng Phet,…
- Covid-19 News
“Healthy stickers” to be required of all Buriram residents starting May 1
Buriram, one of Thailand’s major provinces in the lower northeastern region know as Issan, will soon require residents to carry a “healthy sticker” whenever they go outside. The provincial governor made the announcement yesterday and said the measure will come into effect on May 1. The sticker, to be attached to residents’ ID cards, will be required as a proof…
- Covid-19 News
Experimental antiviral drug Remdesivir fails first clinical trial
Reports are emerging that the experimental antiviral drug Remdesivir, developed by the American pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, has failed in its first randomised clinical trial to treat Covid-19, according to draft documents accidentally published by the World Health Organization and seen by the Financial Times. Gilead disputed how the now deleted post characterised the findings, saying the data showed a…
- Covid-19 News
15 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand (Friday), no new deaths
At this morning’s daily press briefing from the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration, Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin, announced somewhat of a stabilising of cases. 15 new confirmed Covid-19 cases were announced. This brings the total since the start of the outbreak to 2,854. 60 more people recovered and were released in the same 24 hour period. The total number of patients…
- Covid-19 News
4 new Covid-19 cases in Phuket, all in Bang Tao
Phuket has reported 4 new Covid-19 cases today, up from just 1 yesterday, all in the Cherngtalay sub-district of Bang Tao on the island’s west coast. A 2 year old boy was among 4 new cases. Phuket has the highest rate of Covid-19 cases per capita in Thailand, and the highest number outside of Bangkok (201 as of today), but numbers…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand’s Security Council eyes extending state of emergency, easing some restrictions
Next Monday, the day before the weekly Cabinet meeting, Thailand’s National Security Council will present a proposal to extend the national state of emergency to PM Prayut Chan-o- cha, recommending the relaxation of some current restrictions to allow some businesses and daily activities to resume amid the Covid-19 crisis. The NSC met with other security agencies to evaluate the current state…
- World News
China opens 2 more border points to allow transport of Thai fruits
The director-general of the Department of Agriculture announced today that China has opened two more points at its Vietnam border to allow the transportation of Thai fruits during the Covid-19 crisis. The move comes after the existing Youyi Guan checkpoint was overwhelmed with 15 kilometre queues of Thai and Vietnamese goods vehicles. The Department of Agriculture together with National Bureau of…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Thursday, April 23
Thousands of tourists stranded on a trio of Gulf islands An estimated 10,000 foreign tourists are stranded on three islands in the Gulf of Thailand – Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao. More than half of them, around 5,700 are on Koh Samui, another 3,300 foreign tourists on Koh Phangan and about 1,000 on Koh Tao, after passenger flights…
- World News
Thailand names 5 more ASEAN countries as ‘high risk’, 4 are border nations
A Ministry of Public Health announcement yesterday, signed by Deputy PM and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, and published in the Royal Gazette, claims the Covid-19 situation in 5 nearby countries is escalating. Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia and Myanmar have now been added to the list of countries and territories considered as high risk areas for infection. On March 6,…
- South Thailand News
Police officer clings to hit-and-run car for 2 kilometres – VIDEO
A policeman in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat was taken on an unplanned car ride yesterday when a Mitsubishi Mirage tried to run him down, forcing him to jump onto the front of the car and hold on for about 2 kilometres. The incident was caught on security cameras. Officer Montri Nitichai of Tha Sala police station says…
- Covid-19 News
New Covid-19 cases drop to 13, lowest in weeks, with 1 new death
Health officials reported just 13 new Covid-19 patients nationwide today, down from yesterday’s 15 and marking the fifth consecutive day of declining new cases. The total is now 2,839 since the outbreak began in Thailand. There was 1 more death, bringing the cumulative toll to 50. 13 more cases have recovered and were sent home from hospital in the past…
- Covid-19 News
March tourist arrival numbers worse than predicted
It’s no secret that the Covid-19 outbreak has been disastrous for Thailand’s tourism sector, long considered a vital lifeline of the nation’s already battered economy. Data released by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports today showed foreign tourist arrivals in Thailand slumped 76.4% in March compared to a year earlier. This follows a 42.8% drop the previous month, as the…
- Covid-19 News
Baby becomes youngest Covid-19 patient to recover in Thailand
As of 10.45am today, Thailand has a reported 2,826 Covid-19 cases. 2,352, or 83% of those have recovered and been discharged from hospital. Today we can add one more to that list – a 1 month old boy has become Thailand’s youngest coronavirus patient to successfully make a full recovery from Covid-19, after a team of medics used of a…
- Covid-19 News
Thousands of tourists stranded on a trio of Gulf islands
An estimated 10,000 foreign tourists are stranded on three islands in the Gulf of Thailand, more than half of them, around 5,700 on Koh Samui, after passenger flights were suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Surat Thani province’s tourism and sports chief Tikamporn Sutti-udomrat, said yesterday that apart from the 5,700 visitors on Koh Samui, there are another 3,300 foreign…
- Covid-19 News
Bangkok to cut checkpoints from 89 to 52
Bangkok’s Metropolitan Police Bureau announced yesterday it will reduce the number of checkpoints from 89 to 52 during the night curfew, effective until further notice. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a nationwide curfew from 10pm to 4am starting April 3, in a bid to curb new Covid-19 infections. Police checkpoints have been set up since then throughout Bangkok to enforce the…
- Covid-19 News
Second visa amnesty approved, will be automatic, free
The government has announced a second automatic visa extension for foreigners who are stranded in the country by the Covid-19 pandemic. A spokesman at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Cabinet approved the automatic visa extension today. Natapanu Nopakun, deputy spokesman at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said. Foreigners whose visa expired after March 26 will be permitted to…
- Covid-19 News
Study finds no benefit from hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19 treatment
“The experiments and report has limitations, but adds to growing doubt over the efficacy of the drug.” There was plenty of hype, even shared by the US President. But a study published yesterday, the biggest of its kind to date, found no benefit from a malaria drug earlier touted as a potential treatment for Covid-19. It ended up being associated with…
- Covid-19 News
2 Songkhla immigration officers infected with Covid-19, 70 at risk
2 immigration officials from the southern province of Songkhla are reported to be infected with Covid-19, putting about 70 others at risk after close contact with the officials. The provincial communicable disease committee made the announcement today. The new cases, both officers working at the Sadao border checkpoint, brings the tally in the province to 39 after 2 weeks with…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket new Covid-19 cases up to 3 (Wednesday)
In a small jump, the southern island province of Phuket today confirmed 3 new Covid-19 infections, bringing the total to 5 since last Thursday. 1 case was reported yesterday and 1 on Friday. Previous to yesterday there had been 3 consecutive days without any infections. The announcement will likely prevent Phuket from being part of a wide-scale lifting of nationwide…
- Crime News
Car thief rammed as the owners take matters into their own hands
A car thief has been apprehended by the owner of the car he stole. Police in the central Samut Sakhon province, just west of Bangkok, arrested 32 year old Not Jeankow on Monday. The theft took place at around half past midnight at a used car lot. ‘Not’ already had a warrant out for motor vehicle theft and broke the…
- World News
At least 18 dead in Canada’s worst-ever mass shooting
It is the deadliest mass shooting in Canadian history. Royal Canadian Mounted Police rushed to more than a dozen crime scenes yesterday after a shooting rampage by a gunman disguised as a police officer left at least 18 dead and homes in smoldering ruins in rural Nova Scotia. Officials say the suspect, 51 year old Gabriel Wortman, died in the…
- Politics News
An English translation of the PM’s letter to Thailand’s 20 richest
Much has been written and said about PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s letter to Thailand’s 20 richest people, requesting their “input and ideas,” with even Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam stepping in to clarify that the letter is “not begging for money.” Here is an English translation of the PM’s letter, which he announced following a nationally televised 10-minute speech on Friday. The…
- Covid-19 News
27 new virus cases, no deaths for third straight day, recovery rate passes 70%
Thailand reported 27 new cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours but no additional deaths today. The new figure is 5 fewer than the 32 cases reported yesterday, and the lowest number of daily cases recorded since March 14. The highest daily number was the 188 logged on March 22. There have now been 2,792 confirmed cases across the…
- Environment News
Chiang Mai still struggling for some fresh air
Chiang Mai is suffering yet another day of poor air quality index, according to aqicn.org. And whilst the air quality is bad, it’s still a lot better than it was a month or so ago when the readings zoomed up to 300-400, and somedays, even higher. aqicn.org data reports that Chiang Mai’s air quality index had a PM2.5 level of…
