Zero cases reported in Phuket today (Wednesday)

Phuket has recorded no new cases of Covid-19 infections in the past 24 hours. That’s great news after a number of new cases kept popping up in a cluster in the island’s Bang Tao community.

The outgoing Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana announced yesterday afternoon that island officials would start opening up the island’s sub-districts with most travel restrictions between tambons to be lifted, excepting five areas on the island which were considered ‘at risk’ (below).

Travel between Phuket’s 17 tambons was introduced back on April 13. Checkpoints were set up restricting non-essential travel, confining residents to the borders of their sub-district.

But even within the ‘at risk’ tambons, the provincial authorities say they may focus on the smaller communities where the infections have been concentrated, rather than maintaining the lockdown on the entire sub-district. They say they could lift restrictions again if ‘at risk’ communities have been without new infections for 14 days.

For example, Patong’s last infection was reported on April 21, so the restrictions could be lifted from May 5.

The meeting the Phuket Communicable Disease Committee considered opening the boundaries between every sub-district except for 5 locations…

• Bangla Road, in Patong Subdistrict

• Village Moo 2, 3 and 5, Bang Tao Village, in the Cherngtalay Subdistrict

(Here is a more detailed list for the Cherngtalay Sub-district…

Village No. (moo) 1, Cherngtalay Village
Village No. (moo) 2, Bang Tao Nai Village
Village No. (moo) 3 of Surin Beach
Village No. (moo) 4, Pasak Village
Village No. (moo) 4 in Ban Nai Thon
Village No. (moo) 5 in Bang Tao Nok Village
Village No. (moo) 6 in Ban Khok Tanot)

• Routes in and out of Prachasamakhee Village on Thepkasatree Road, Moo 2, in the Koh Kaew Subdistrict

• Moo 2, Soi Bangchee, in the Ratsada Subdistrict

• Chao Fa Garden Village, in the Wichit Subdistrict

Phuketians will still be required to wear a face mask in public at all times, maintain high personal hygiene and maintain ‘social distance’ protocols. The lifting of travel restrictions between tambons on the island is believed to apply after midnight on April 30.