- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Tuesday, April 28
Cabinet disagrees with the cancellation of Thai public holidays in May Yesterday, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha chaired a meeting about the postponement of Thai holidays in May. There were four public holidays coming up next month. The matter was going to be presented to today’s cabinet meeting. The four holidays are… Friday, May 1, Labour Day Monday May 4, Coronation Day…
- Covid-19 News
Bangkok Airways to resume Samui flights
Bangkok Airways is set to head back to the skies starting May 15, resuming their monopoly on the Bangkok-Samui route. There will be two flights a day from the capital to Koh Samui, and back. The airline last year disclosed that the flights into Samui are its most profitable services. The operator says that flights will strictly comply with the…
- Covid-19 News
7 new cases in Phuket today, total 214 (Tuesday)
There has been 7 new cases announced in Phuket today. The island has had the highest, per capita, number of reported cases in Thailand. 5 more people been allowed to return home in the past 24 hours, 39 remain in hospital under treatment with 2 in a critical condition. 127 people remain as ‘high risk personnel’ and are under observation. 6 of…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Monday, April 27
Recommendation for the Emergency Decree to be extended for another month Thailand’s Emergency Decree is now very likely to be extended for another month after it expires this Thursday. The emergency decree gives the Thai PM sweeping powers and is provided for in the Thai Constitution for situations like this. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today decided to extend the…
- Covid-19 News
To wear or not to wear, that is the question. Face masks in a Covid-19 world.
The hot topic du jour is face masks – to wear or not to wear. Are they useful? Do they just make wearers ‘feel’ protected, or can they actually contribute to the prevention of spreading Covid-19, or any other virus for that matter. In Asian countries, generally, it’s become a common look, as people move around and go shopping while…
- Covid-19 News
Phuket’s new Covid-19 cases today (Monday)
There has been one new case announced in the southern island of Phuket today at the daily briefings. Case number 207 is a 66 year old Thai women. Her occupation is a maid and had a history of close contact with workers in the same house as confirmed case number 204. She lives in Bang Tao, Cherngtalay, and is showing…
- Covid-19 News
Suvarnabhumi poised to re-open to limited domestic scheduled flights this Friday
Thailand’s biggest airport is getting ready to re-open this week. Suvarnabhumi International Airport resumes scheduled services this Friday when local airlines restart limited flights following the month of airline groundings due to lack of passengers and restrictions imposed by the Thai Government. But the BKK Airport director, Sutheerawat Suwannawat, says the lack of passengers has allowed some areas of the airport…
- Covid-19 News
UPDATE: Scheduled passenger flight ban extended until end of May
The inbound passenger flight restriction is now going to be extended another 31 days, until the end of May, whilst more repatriation flights for Thai citizens will continue this week. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand says they will extend the ongoing ban, currently scheduled to end on April 30. The first of the temporary closures was announced on April 4. CAAT…
- Covid-19 News
NY Governor offers evidence that the virus entered the US from Europe
China has been in the sites of many as the world tries to apportion blame of the origins of Covid-19, including some world leaders. Now New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has laid out some research showing that the strains of the novel coronavirus arrived in New York from Europe, not China. He also claimed that travel bans enacted by the…
- Covid-19 News
5G, Bill Gates, Chinese Labs and more Covid-19 myths
From Covid-19 (aka. SARS-COV-2) being a ‘man-made virus’ to 5G spreading the virus to coronavirus being ‘no worse than the seasonal flu’. The time spent at home has given crackpots extra time to search the dark corners of the internet to spin crazy theories that defy science or logic, and spreading more misinformation around the web. The impacts from this…
- Phuket News
Ethical sanctuaries looking after over 250 elephants in southern Thailand
The Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, and elsewhere in Thailand, have been forced to close their doors in late March. As people around Thailand been hunkering down in our houses waiting for the virus outbreak to pass, some of the country’s elephants are suffering? As mentioned in the original story, Lek had been in touch with camps from all over…
- Covid-19 News
Colour-coding gives insight to Government’s post-April 30 strategy
The government and the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration is coding the 77 provinces of Thailand into colours. From green, where no Covid-19 cases have been found, up to red, where new, infected patients are discovered in the past 7 days. The National Security Council is expected to present a proposal tomorrow to possibly extend the Emergency Decree, Tourism and Sports Minister…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand reports 53 new virus cases, 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,…
- Bangkok News
3 people jump to their deaths within 24 hours
Unfortunately 3 people are reported to have jumped to their deaths yesterday, 2 in Bangkok and a third in Sara Buri, about 90 kilometres to the northeast. It’s believed the man jumped to his death from his 31st floor condominium in Ramkhamhaeng district at about 8:30 yesterday morning. The body of the man, who was not identified and who appeared…
- Environment News
Thailand’s wildlife is thriving in shutdown, but maybe not for long
by Ben Schaye There have been a lot of viral news stories going around Thailand the last few weeks about the way wildlife is rebounding while humans are all hunkered down at home under Covid-19 lockdown. Dugongs (sea cows) have been seen frolicking off the coast of Trang, a pod of false killer whales appeared near Koh Lanta, and endangered leatherback…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Friday, April 24
15 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand, no new deaths 15 new confirmed Covid-19 cases were announced today. 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 recovered is now 2,490. Only 314 patients remain in hospital undergoing specific Covid-19…
- Covid-19 News
Buriram and Chon Buri get ready for easing of restrictions starting May 1
“Anyone leaving the province will have the stickers removed and, upon their return to the province, will have to enter quarantine..” – Buriram Governor Two of Thailand’s provinces have already declared they will begin relaxing provincial ‘lockdowns’ from May 1. Buri Ram, in the north east, and Chon Buri, south east of Bangkok, have separately announced a progressive relaxing of lockdown…
- Crime News
“It’s all a misunderstanding” – 4 people arrested for trespassing Phuket Zoo
2 foreigners and 2 Thai citizens have been arrested for trespassing private property and violating Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act. Police allege that they climbed over a perimeter wall of the Phuket Zoo in Chalong, southern Phuket. The report alleges that they filmed videos of the crocodiles and tigers and posted an edited version with narration on YouTube. The report also…
- Crime News
Four arrested for shooting videos at Phuket Zoo and soliciting donations
“Their lawyer claims the situation was ‘all a misunderstanding’.” Following last week’s posting of a video taken at the Phuket Zoo ‘whilst on a walk’, 2 foreigners and 2 Thais have now been arrested after allegedly scaling a wall at the Phuket zoo. They shot videos of crocodiles and tigers then edited and posted them online with a narration asking for…
- Pattaya News
Airbus pulls the plug on the joint Thai Airways’ maintenance facility at U-Tapao
Airbus, the European multinational aircraft manufacturer, has pulled the plug on an 11 billion baht joint venture with Thai Airways. The project was to develop a maintenance, repair and overhaul facility at the U-Tapao Airport in Rayong province. The airport also serves the seaside resort of Pattaya. The pull out is a huge blow to the Thai Government’s much hyped…
- Environment News
Bangkok, before and after. A birds-eye view.
Content creator Manit Monsur, a certified drone pilot, has taken to the skies of Bangkok giving us a unique insight into the sights, sounds and daily life of the Big Mango, before and now. Travel restrictions and business closures have severely impacted on the city’s ability to function. One of the biggest changes, he notes, is the clear skies above…
- Northern Thailand News
Tropical storms on the menu today for northeastern, northern and central provinces
Thailand’s northeastern, central and eastern provinces are threatened with tropical storm today. The country is currently in the shoulder season transitioning from the dry season to the wet season. Traditionally, Songkran, on April 13 each year, is the celebration of the coming wet season, coinciding with the Thai New Year. “According to the Thai Meteorological Department, a high-pressure wedge will…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Wednesday, April 22
Thailand confirms 15 new Covid-19 cases, 1 death (Wednesday) Thai health officials have confirmed 15 new cases of Covid-19 and 1 death today. The new cases bring Thailand’s total to 2,826 since the outbreak began, of whom 2,352, or 83% have now been released from hospital and returned home. Today’s new death brings Thailand’s total to 49. 3 of the…
- Crime News
Thai government addresses widespread sexual abuse
“There have been few complaints in the past because the victims are afraid of their harassers who are usually their bosses,” Sexual harassment is a hot-button issue in many countries, today, with awareness rising of a topic which has long been unaddressed and taboo. Yesterday the Thai government pledged to protect victims who come forward and to investigate complaints of…
- Covid-19 News
Thai aviation will take to the skies with strict new anti-virus guidelines
“Little of this, plus the additional hassles at check in and immigration, is going to help entice tourists to return to Thailand in the short-term.” Looking at the new ‘normal’, post April 30 in Thailand, we are now starting to see how commercial aviation may have to function for, at least, the immediate future. Suffice to say, flying around is…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand visa amnesty extended to July 30
Thailand’s cabinet has approved a second automatic visa extension for foreigners for three more months. The extended amnesty is a bid to prevent long queues at immigration centres around the country. Narumon Pinyosinwat, spokeswoman for the Thai government, says they want to stem the spread of the coronavirus and avoid foreigners having to wait in lines and threaten their own health…
- Covid-19 News
What could happen after April 30? Thailand’s new ‘normal’
What could happen after April 30? Will it be the same in all provinces? Will the government prioritise public health, or a return to business? At this stage no final decisions are made. This is a collection of the latest information from various sources which provide a framework for what is likely to be the Thai government’s response to the…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today – Tuesday, April 21
Thailand’s new ‘normal’ – Government charts course post-April 30 The Thai government is trying to find a balance between the public health needs and the imperative to re-boot Thailand’s economy. The Government is rumoured to be mulling another month of the emergency decree. The current emergency decree is set to expire in 9 days, on April 30. This is a…
- Covid-19 News
19 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand, 1 new death (Tuesday)
Health officials today reported 19 new cases of Covid-19, bringing the national total to 2,811 patients. There has also been 1 more death, a 50 year old taxi driver whose passengers included boxing stadium spectators, raises that tally to 48. The number of new cases is fewer than the 27 recorded yesterday, and the lowest since March 14. It marks…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand’s new ‘normal’ – Government charts course post-April 30
“The government will ease restrictions on businesses reopening only when it does not place people at a higher risk of catching the disease.” Trying to find a balance between the public health needs and the imperative to re-boot Thailand’s economy, the Government is rumoured to be mulling another month of the emergency decree. The current emergency decree is set to…
