Covid cluster spreads from Yala to other southern provinces

A Covid cluster in Thailand’s southern province Yala has widened to 190 infections in multiple provinces, says the Disease Control Department. The cluster started at a madrasa, an Islamic boarding school.

The majority of the infections (69) were discovered in Yala. Some of the infections by province are as follows:

• Satun: 37
• Songkhla: 17
• Pattani: 14
• Krabi:14
• Narathiwat: 13
• Surat Than: 8
• Phang Na: 5
• Phuket: 3
• Trang: 3
• Nakhon Si Thammarat: 3

Last week, Yala entered a lockdown.

The school was also ordered to closed after several students, and worshippers from the Dawah Centre of Thailand tested positive for Covid-19.

The provincial health official for Yala, Dr Songkran, asked the school’s director to let student’s families know who came into contact with their students. He warns that lying by Commission could violate the Communicable Diseases Act.

Health officials took samples of the cluster and sent them to the Department of Medical Sciences in Bangkok. There, the sample will be tested to see if they are the Beta variant (AKA the “South African” variant). The Beta variant has been detected in the area as well as nearby Malaysia.

Most schools in Thailand reopened earlier this month. However, schools up north in Chiang Rai and Phitsanulok reclosed soon after as a student, parents and a cable technician tested positive for Covid-19 in various regions.

SOURCE: Thai PBS