WOW what a year! Thailand’s top news stories for 2020 as voted by YOU.

ThaigerPublished: 08:30, 31 December 2020| Updated: 09:15, 31 December 2020

272 6 minutes read

WOW what a year! Thailand’s top news stories for 2020 as voted by YOU.

TOP 10 (non Covid) THAIGER STORIES FOR 2020

The Thaiger started 2020, as we all did, with high hopes and few clues that we were heading into a profound disruption for almost the entire year. Even as we were tapping away at the keyboards on January 1, 2020, there were stories emerging in Wuhan, China about a mysterious new respiratory disease that was starting to pop up at the provincial hospitals.

But, although Covid consumed much of our top stories in 2020, there were other stories of course as life continued to stumble along in Thailand. Here are the stories, from 1 – 10, and the number of people that read each story on thethaiger.com. We’ve also added the Top 10 Covid stories for the year as well, as voted by YOU, our readers.

Thai Army sniper goes on shooting rampage in Korat – up to 20 shot and killed – 124,342

February 8

“A police and army detachment is currently searching for an army sniper in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Korat city centre. The solider has shot dead at least 12 people late this afternoon. The city is in virtual lockdown as security officials are trying to clear the areas around the crime scene. The gunman was live-streaming the entire incident and taking selfies in front of the crime scene.

A police spokesman is advising the public to move away from the area, “stay indoor, and obey instructions from security officers”.

Thai PM announces Emergency Decree, comes into effect on March 26 – 72,587

March 25

Although Covid-related, it was also the most impactful story here in Thailand which would lead to the lockdowns, economic impact, border closures and, possibly, contributed to the protests as well. It was big news.

Thailand loses US free trade benefits worth billions of baht – 66,267

April 26

“Thailand loses duty free access for 42.2 billion baht in exports to the US market from today, 6 months after Washington warned it would pull back on trade privileges unless the kingdom committed to labour rights reforms. Once trade preferences for Thai products are removed they are subject to tax of between 4% and 5%, making them more expensive in the lucrative US market.”

30 horses die in one day in Thailand’s Northeast – 58,853

March 27

“30 horses have mysteriously died in Thailand’s Northeast yesterday. The Thailand Equestrian Federation is urging horse fanciers not to transport any animals until a cause can be identified. It’s unlikely the situation has anything to do with the Covid-19 outbreak.

10 of the horses had sudden severe seizures before dying and the other 20 repeatedly bucked and jumped before collapsing, dead.”

Cambodia burns, Bangkok chokes, schools closed – 56,560

February 26

“Bangkok mums and dads will need to sort out what to do with the kids for the rest of the week after the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration closed public schools from today because of the excessive air pollution. Most of the smoke and haze is blowing in from Cambodia with light easterly winds.

All schools under the supervision of the BMA will close until Friday. Air quality in the capital has worsened over the past two days with Bangkok recurring the world’s 5th worst air pollution yesterday (today it is 10th). The forecast today is for light winds and poor air circulation which will compound the accumulation of PM2.5 dust and smoke particles.”

Man comes face to face with 5-metre king cobra while in bed – 52,003

February 22

“A man in the southern province of Trang got a shock when he lay down for a nap and found he was being watched by a 5-metre king cobra staring at him from the ceiling. The man’s home is on a rubber farm, where cobras and other venomous snakes are often found. The local rescue team, who reportedly specialise in capturing king cobras, received notification of an extremely long one at the man’s home.”

Waitress has double lottery win – 50,489

March 19

“A waitress from Ban Sabah Village in Lampang rovince won 12 million baht in yesterday’s national lottery by pure luck, after she couldn’t a ticket with her license plate number. The woman says she initially knew the exact number that she wanted to buy, but as there were no tickets with the number, the vendor gave her two random tickets. She was shocked when she realised the big win, but insists she’ll continue living a normal lifestyle.”

Hungarian overstayer dies in Suvarnabhumi detention cell – 48,739

January 27

“A 60 year old Hungarian man has died in detention at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport. Lazlo Balogh was awaiting deportation for overstaying his visa. Laszlo was handed over to the Suvarnabhumi airport police for repatriation on Saturday, January 25. He showed no unusual signs after being put in the detention cell and was sleeping normally on Saturday night, according to police.”

Thai man strikes it rich after finding whale vomit – 48,465

December 13

“A Thai man in Nakhon Si Thammarat is striking it rich after finding whale vomit on the local beach. Narit Suwansang thought his discovery was just a large rock, but had an inkling that it could be something more. US$4.2 million more, that is!”

Top 5 places to celebrate New Years Eve in Bangkok (2020) – 46,300

“It’s hard to imagine a more vibrant city anywhere in the world, with warm weather and an entire population ready to party, to celebrate your New Year on December 31. Bangkok will host New Years Eve parties on almost every corner but we’ve listed the Top 5 locations for you to see in 2020.”

Thailand Coronavirus (Covid-19) News Stories, Headlines and Breaking Articles – 278,000

This was our landing page where we collated, and still do, all the Covid-related content throughout the year, providing a valuable and accurate resource about this year’s major disruption. Hardly surprising that it was the most landed-0n page on thethaiger.com this year.