Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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Starting a new life abroad is exciting—new culture, new lifestyle, and new chances to grow. But living far from home also means taking steps to protect your health in unfamiliar surroundings. Without the right coverage, even small health issues can...
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Off to a field hospital? Here’s what to pack
A Thai netizen has posted a useful list of “must pack” items for anyone being admitted to a field hospital for Covid-19 treatment. As concerns rise that the rapid rise in infections may lead to a shortage of hospital beds, officials are planning a number of field hospitals, some of which have already opened. A total of 10 field hospitals…
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Thailand News Today | Covid surge continues, possible changes to 90 day reporting | April 12, 2021
Thailand’s CCSA has announced 985 new Covid-19 infections today – a rise in new case numbers but not as drastic as in the past week when there has been a steady climb. In the past 4 days there has been an increase of more than 100 new infections. Out of the 980 local infections announced today, most were in the…
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28,000 daily Covid-19 infections possible without “decisive action”
Without swift and decisive action, Covid-19 infections could surge to 28,000 people per day within the next month . This according to expert warnings and computer predictive modelling. The Department of Disease Control warns that the current spike is more infectious and deadly than the previous 2 waves and extreme action is needed. 967 new infections were reported by the…
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Songkran safety campaign Day 2: 357 road accidents, 30 deaths
On the second day of the Songkran road safety campaign, officials report 30 deaths, 374 injuries and 357 road accidents, up slightly from yesterday. The week of Songkran is infamous for increased traffic incidents and is often referred to as “7 dangerous days”, prompting government officials to push a campaign to raise awareness and safety this holiday. This year the…
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Covid UPDATE: 985 new infections in Thailand, a small rise since yesterday
The CCSA has announced 985 new Covid-19 infections today – a rise in new case numbers but not as drastic as in the past week when there has been a steady climb… April 12 – 6 new infections April 2 – 58 new infections April 3 – 84 new infections April 4 – 96 new infections April 5 – 194…
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Understanding Covid-19 UK variant as it hits Thailand
The so-called UK variant of Covid-19, a strain that is 1.7 times more contagious and deadly, has arrived in Thailand, present in the cluster in Bangkok’s upscale Thong Lor area that has spawned the pandemic third wave. Here’s why you should care. Referred to as the B117 variant, it first emerged in the UK county of Kent, though new research…
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Officials say no plan to change mandatory hospitalisation for Covid patients
Health officials insist that, despite rising infection rates, there is no plan to allow people who test positive for Covid-19 to self-isolate at home. Currently, everyone found to be infected is admitted for hospital treatment, even if asymptomatic. Opas Karnkawinpong from the Department of Disease Control says the policy limits the number of patients who go on to transmit the…
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Top virologist warns of vaccine limitations against South African, Brazilian variants
A prominent Thai virologist says Thailand must prevent the arrival of the South African (also known as 20H/501Y.V2, B.1.351 lineage) or Brazilian Covid-19 (B.1.1.248) variants, warning that vaccines are not fully effective against those strains, or at least there is not enough conclusive information about their efficacy against the new variants at this stage. Yong Poovorawan from Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University…
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Thai businesses frustrated over limited choice of vaccines, slow pace of rollout
Business and tourism representatives are expressing growing anger over the slow pace of Thailand’s vaccine rollout and the limited number of vaccines on offer. Their frustration comes as other countries around the world begin to see encouraging results from their vaccination efforts. And, while the latest rise in Covid-19 infections can be partly attributed to the presence of the so-called…
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1st day of Songkran road safety campaign – 356 injuries, 25 deaths
The Songkran road safety campaign is off to a moderate start with a reported 25 deaths and 356 injuries across Thailand on Saturday. The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department director-general reports that there were 348 road accidents in the country on the first day of the campaign. Though the figures don’t sound like an achievement, they are actually a fair…
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Thailand road accidents cost 500 billion baht per year
Thailand is notorious for its road and driving conditions, and a disproportionate number of driving accidents. The World Health Organisation now reports that road accidents cost an estimated 500 billion baht in 2019 alone. The WHO report placed Thailand as the number one country in ASEAN with a 32.7 per cent death rate, the highest in Southeast Asia. The Road…
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Songkran activities cancelled in Ayutthaya due to Covid-19
After the recent outbreak of Covid-19 across Thailand, in a large part due to entertainment activities, Thailand’s former capital city of Ayutthaya has now officially cancelled all Songkran festival activities for the upcoming holiday. All events previously planned to mark the Thai New Year’s holiday between April 13 and 15 have now been called off. An urgent declaration by the…
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Many Thais ‘skipping’ Songkran due to the recent clusters
It’s Songkran, but not as we know it. This weekend Thais start to head back home for this year’s extended national holiday. Last year the celebrations were cancelled altogether, amid Thailand’s initial lockdowns. So this year, partly aided by the mid week dates of Songkran, the government added extra days, that are topped and tailed by weekends. So, many Thais…
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Thailand’s King and PM send condolences to Queen Elizabeth | PHOTOS
Thailand’s King HM Maha Vajiralongkorn has sent a message of condolences to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II following the death of her consort and husband, His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. “We all in Thailand join the people of Great Britain in mourning this great loss, a sense of loss being shared by peoples aroundthe world, whose…
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7 Thai dogs find a new home in California
7 stray dogs from Thailand have immigrated to the United States as one California woman attempts to rescue as many Thai dogs as possible. Melissa Bacelar is the owner of The Wagmor Luxury Pet Hotel and Spa, along with its offshoot pet adoption service, Wagmore Pets. Located in Studio City, a neighbourhood in Los Angeles bordering Hollywood, the pet hotel…
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Nightlife continues to play a major role in Thailand’s Covid-19 third wave
The current surge in Covid-19 infections now looks to be spread in large part by Thailand’s colourful nightlife, with more than 500 people contracting the more contagious UK variant (B117) of the Coronavirus. The government responded by closing all bars and entertainment venues in 41 provinces, but it may be too late to prevent a third wave of the pandemic.…
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Big Covid-19 numbers today: 789 new infections, 1 death
789 new Covid-19 infections and 1 death were reported today by the CCSA. The death, a 68 year old Thai man from Nakhon Pathom, had died April 4 but was yesterday confirmed as dying from complications from Coronavirus. Only 8 infections were international arrivals, with 522 local infections and 259 diagnosed today through contact tracing. The international infections were Thai…
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Thai Airways cuts another 4,250 staff, offering them early retirement
4,250 Thai Airways employees have been pushed into an early retirement after failing a screening process for remaining employees. The process was a necessary result of the national airlines’ dire financial situation and current debt restructuring program. Remaining staff are being forced into new, leaner contacts. The 13,554 remaining Thai Airways staff went through the screening program. 9,304 passed, according…
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Privatising Covid vaccines – Thai government gives private hospitals the go-ahead to buy vaccines
“About 10,000 people are being vaccinated around Thailand, on average, with 14,000 people being vaccinated each day in Phuket.” Private hospitals and institutions have been given the official go-ahead to purchase up to 10 million doses of approved Covid-19 vaccines. The purchases will be in addition to what the Thai government is also doing. The major sticking point, despite the…
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Thailand News Today | Bars closed for 2 weeks start tonight, monitor lizard in 7-11 | April 9, 2021
559 new Covid-19 cases and 1 death have were reported yesterday in the CCSA daily briefing. Many cases were related to bar hopping and partying focussed around clusters in Bangkok’s Thong Lor and Ekkamai nightlife district. The clusters have now spread to many provinces outside of Bangkok. The majority of the new infections today are mostly young adults who…
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CCSA Update: 559 new Covid-19 cases, 1 death. FULL CHART.
559 new Covid-19 cases and 1 death were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. Many cases are related to bar hopping and partying and the outbreak, concentrated in Bangkok’s Thong Lor nightlife district, has spread to many provinces. There are now 2,645 active Covid-19 cases in Thailand. There are several clusters of infections throughout Thailand,…
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Transport Ministry: refunds to cancel travel for Covid-19
The Transport Ministry is launching plans to deal with forced cancellations of travel plans due to the most recent Covid-19 outbreak. With recent restrictions on entertainment venues, Songkran festivities, and some areas implementing quarantines for domestic travel, many holiday travellers will likely have no choice but to cancel their plans. The Transport Ministry has declared that all passengers by bus…
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Airlines and hotels try to cope with cancellations for Songkran
Press Release Airlines and hotels are reporting cancellations from many of their customers as travellers react to the news of the new clusters and infections being detected in the provinces. Bars and entertainment venues close for 2 weeks in 44 provinces from midnight tonight, according to an order from the Thai PM. Entertainment venues in the other 35 provinces will…
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MP claims 2 Cabinet ministers visited Covid-cluster venue in Thong Lor
With a third of the Thai Cabinet in isolation after coming in close contact with Covid-19, a MP claims 2 Cabinet ministers went to a nightlife venue in Bangkok’s Thong Lor where a cluster of Covid-19 infections have been reported. The chair of the House committee on legal affairs, justice and human rights, Sira Jenjaka, says he has photo evidence…
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12 hospitals in Bangkok stop Covid-19 testing due to limited beds for infected patients
So far, around 12 hospitals in Bangkok have stopped Covid-19 testing, due to either a shortage of supplies or not enough beds to admit patients if they test positive for the virus. While media reports say the hospitals have stopped testing due to a lack of supplies, a spokesperson for the CCSA the reason many private hospitals in Thailand are…
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Giant monitor lizard visits Thai 7 Eleven store, video goes viral
A giant, nearly 2 metre long, monitor lizard decided to visit a 7 Eleven store looking for food, with customers and staff wondering what he (or she) was going to do next. The lizard climbed up a fully stacked shelf of dairy products, with apparently no cares in the world, as he clumsily knocked off cartons of milk and other…
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UPDATE: Thai PM orders closure of bars and clubs in 41 provinces
UPDATE: The order to close bars and nightlife venues in 41 provinces will go into effect at midnight, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced this afternoon. Under emergency measures, the local governments in the other 36 provinces have the power to set restrictions and close venues if needed to control the Covid-19 situation. Original story… The order to close…
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Police chief orders staff to work from home after 42 officers test positive
National police chief Suwat Jangyodsuk has ordered half the staff at Royal Thai Police headquarters to work from home, after 42 officers tested positive for Covid-19. The chief has also instructed units nationwide to adopt the same measure where possible. The Bangkok Post reports that at least 42 police officers have tested positive for the virus, according to RTP spokesman,…
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Covid-19 outbreak in Bangkok could take months to control, health official says
It could take more than 2 months to control the recent Covid-19 outbreak in Bangkok which is concentrated around bars and nightclubs in Thong Lor. Health officials suspect the faster-spreading UK variant of the virus has spread at the bars and entertainment venues in Bangkok. The outbreak has reached around 20 provinces. While it may take 1 to 2 months…
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Airlines urge government to shut down Songkran travel to curb virus spread
“Travel restrictions won’t be good for airlines, but in the meantime, we should prioritise long-term benefits instead of short-term revenue.” Thailand’s aviation sector is nervous, amid rising cases of Covid-19 and confirmation that the highly-contagious UK variant has reached the Kingdom. Airlines are calling on the government to introduce travel restrictions now, admitting that while this will hurt in the…
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