Bangkok News
Dive into the latest happenings in Bangkok with The Thaiger. Our team delivers up-to-date news, insightful analysis, and exclusive stories from the heart of Thailand’s dynamic capital. Keep your finger on the pulse of Bangkok’s ever-evolving political, economic, and cultural scene, as well as its thriving entertainment and nightlife. Stay informed about local events, transportation updates, and expat experiences in this vibrant metropolis.
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BMA admits Covid virus spreading fast in Bangkok, speeds up testing and jabs
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration says it is speeding up mass Covid-19 testing and inoculations in communities hit strongly by the virus, after admitting the virus is spreading fast in Thailand’s capital. The city clerk says the administration, along with the Public Health Ministry and other agencies, are speeding up the collection of nasal swabs for Covid-19 tests, with a plan…
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Friday Covid UPDATE: 27 more deaths, 2,044 new infections
The Friday report, compiling the regional totals from Thursday, indicates that has been 27 new Covid-related deaths and 2,044 new Covid-19 infections in the past 24 hours. The numbers continue a statistically consistent rise in the number of Covid infections over the past 2 weeks. The CCSA yesterday declared that is is focusing on containing major Covid clusters in 3…
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Activist Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul granted bail
Jailed student activist leader Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul has been granted bail of 200,000 baht today after repeated denials of bail requests over the last 2 months. Rung was detained on charges using Thailand’s strict lese majeste laws that carry a 15-year maximum sentence for insulting the royal monarchy and has been held without bail since March 8. She joined her…
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160 infected in Bangkok’s Bang Kae Covid-19 cluster
An outbreak of about 160 new Covid-19 infections was identified today in Bangkok’s Bang Kae district, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. 1,413 people were tested by health workers in a Bang Kae department store on three dates – April 28, April 30, and May 1 – after 9 Cambodian employees in the store were confirmed to have…
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Activist lawyer contracts Covid-19 in prison
Arnon Nampa, an activist lawyer in jail without bail since February on lese majeste charges has been infected with Covid-19, according to his Facebook page. An anonymous source at the Corrections Department confirmed with Reuters that Arnon had tested positive yesterday and has been sent to the prison hospital for treatment. The department later released a press statement confirming the…
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Phuket struggles towards herd immunity, vaccine rollout slow in other provinces
So far, 22% of the population in Phuket is fully vaccinated against Covid-19 while the majority of provinces in Thailand have not vaccinated any of the residents, according to data compiled by researcher Peter Scully. Bangkok, the epicentre of recent infections with more than 15,000 confirmed cases since April 1, has only fully vaccinated 1% of the population. Around 10…
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Thursday Covid UPDATE: 18 deaths and 1,911 new infections
The Thai ministry of health has announced the Wednesday tally from Bangkok and the provinces. There has been 18 new Covid-related deaths and 1,911 new infections in the past 24 hours. The oddly consistent daily tally suggests that the infection rate is steady and not running “out of control”. (The Thaiger is not suggesting anything ‘sinister’ about the numbers but…
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Covid outbreak in Bangkok’s Klong Toey area is a major setback
The recent Covid-19 outbreak in Bangkok’s largest slum of Klong Toey, is a major setback for the Thai government’s efforts in controlling the virus’ third wave in the capital. In the overcrowded community, more than 300 infections were discovered just last month. Now, after recently testing, 1,336 Klong Toey residents over a period of 3 days, results showed 1 in…
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Covid UPDATE: 2,112 new infections and 15 deaths, provincial totals
2,112 new Covid-19 cases and 15 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. Since April 1, there have been 46,037 confirmed Covid-19 infections in Thailand, making up more than half of Thailand’s cumulative count of 74,900 infections since the start of the pandemic last year. There are 30,222 active Covid-19 cases in Thailand.…
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Bangkok opening first ICU field hospital for Covid-19 patients with severe symptoms
With the rising number of Covid-19 cases and deaths in Bangkok, the epicentre of the new wave of infections, pushing hospitals to their limits, an ICU field hospital is opening in Bangkok. Field hospitals have been used for Covid-19 patients who are asymptomatic, or who have mild symptoms. Those with more severe symptoms have been treated at hospitals. Since the…
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Immigration police in Bangkok arrest 2 people on fraud charges
Immigration police in Bangkok arrested a Japanese man and a Chinese man on fraud charges in separate cases. One suspect arrested for allegedly scamming people out of millions of baht and the other arrested for allegedly making fake electronic cards to make purchases online. The Japanese man, identified as ‘Yamada’, allegedly scammed 3 people by claiming he knew many influential…
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Renowned Thai monk investigated for criticising government’s handling of pandemic
One of Thailand’s most prominent Buddhist monks has been accused of meddling in politics after he criticised the government’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis. Thai PBS World reports that the Sangha Supreme Council has found Phra Maha Sompong Talaputto guilty of expressing political views, which is considered inappropriate. The monk and popular preacher from Bangkok’s Soi Thong Temple is renowned…
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Vaccination ramped up in Klong Toey, PM wants outbreak curbed in 2 weeks
Officials are accelerating vaccination efforts in the Klong Toey district of Bangkok, along with proactive mass testing in an effort to curb transmission of Covid-19. Posting on his Facebook page, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says the aim is to inoculate at least 50,000 of the approximately 90,000 residents, stemming the tide of infections within 2 weeks. The Bangkok Post reports that…
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Vaccination to be accelerated following outbreak in Bangkok’s Klong Toey district
The government is accelerating vaccine administration among shantytown dwellers in Bangkok’s Klong Toey district following an outbreak of Covid-19. Thousands of people live in very close quarters within the slums and travel across the city and to neighbouring provinces for work. The cluster of infections has sparked fear the virus could spread further and overwhelm the healthcare system. Bangkok governor…
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Flying rules tightened after Covid-19 infections found on Phuket flights
Disease prevention measures are being tightened for air passengers after several cases of Covid-19 were found on flights from Bangkok to Phuket. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand has issued new guidance for airlines and passengers, after passengers on 7 flights, operated by 3 different airlines, subsequently tested positive for the virus. Phuket’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has ordered…
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Protesters rally at Criminal Court after detainees’ bail request denied again
Angry supporters of the pro-democracy movement gathered outside Bangkok’s Criminal Court yesterday, after bail requests for detained activists were rejected for the ninth time. Those who had their bail applications refused include Parit Chiwarak, aka, “Penguin”, who has been transferred to Ramathibodi Hospital due to his weakened condition. Parit has been on hunger strike for nearly 50 days. The Bangkok…
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Activist Penguin transferred to hospital due to hunger strike
On the 46th day of his hunger strike in jail, activist student Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak has been checked into Ramathibodi Hospital to treat his weakening body. He was transferred from Bangkok Remand Prison after signs that his body was having trouble recovering from the food deprivation. After dropping 12.5 kilogrammes from 107 to 94.5 kg due to his hunger strike,…
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Bangkok sets goal to vaccinate 70% of population by the end of the year
With Bangkok as the epicentre of the recent Covid-19 outbreak, infecting over 10,000 people in the capital since April 1, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration says they now aim to vaccinate 70% of Bangkok residents by the end of the year. Since Thailand started its national Covid-19 vaccination plan in late-February, just 1.4 million doses have been inoculated. Priority was initially…
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New Covid-19 zoning with tightened restrictions starts tomorrow
Starting midnight Saturday, tightened disease control measures will take effect, including restrictions set nationwide as well as restrictions based on the recent colour-coded zoning by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The restrictions will be in place for at least 14 days. Nationwide restrictions Alcohol sales at restaurants will be prohibited nationwide in an effort to prevent gathering and slow…
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Cluster of 50 Covid-19 cases detected in Bangkok’s Klong Toey district
At least 50 new cases of Covid-19 have been detected in the Klong Toey area of Bangkok, which is sandwiched between the trendy areas of Sukhumvit and the Chao Phraya river. The infections have been confirmed in a Facebook post from Bangkok governor Aswin Kwanmuang. The infections were found when the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and Institute for Urban Disease Control…
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Restrictions tighten nationwide, Bangkok and 5 other provinces now “dark red” zones
Disease control restrictions are tightening nationwide. Bangkok and 5 other provinces with a high number of Covid-19 infections are now classified as “dark red” zones under the highest control to combat the spread of the coronavirus, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Under the new zoning measures, the dark red provinces include Bangkok, Chon Buri, Chiang Mai, Nonthaburi,…
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Health declining for jailed protestors on hunger strike
Continuing their hunger strike, 2 leaders in the pro-democracy demonstrations that were jailed for speaking out against the king’s power are experiencing declining health. Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak and Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul stopped eating over the last few weeks in protest against the denial of bail as they sit in jail waiting to be tried using Thailand’s harsh lese majeste laws…
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Thai sweet shop gets mixed reviews over Buddhist amulet candies
A Thai sweet shop is facing criticism from many locals and praises from others for making candy Buddhist amulets, which are usually worn around the neck as ‘protection’ from evil spirits. Madam Choops candy shop in Samut Songkhram, just southwest of Bangkok, says the edible amulets made from Thai sugar candy can protect your inner organs (but probably less successful…
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‘One Night In Bangkok’, an unlikely hit about a bygone era in Thailand
“One night in Bangkok and the world’s your oyster The bars are temples but the pearls ain’t free” When ‘One Night In Bangkok’ was released in 1984 it was an unlikely hit. It was the opening song from a (at the time) little-known stage pop-opera called ‘Chess’. The song made Number 1 in South Africa, West Germany, Switzerland and Australia,…
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MRT train station employee diagnosed with Covid-19
Despite strict adherence to Covid-19 safety measures, a staff member of the Metropolitan Rapid Transit Authority in Bangkok has tested positive for the virus. The MRT made an announcement today about the employee, whose gender was not revealed. They confirmed that the Covid-19 infected staff member worked on the MRT Chalong Ratchadham line – the purple line – at the…
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BTS Skytrain to take Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to court over 30 billion baht debt
With the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration unable to pay its 30 billion baht debt for the BTS Skytrain’s Green Line extension, the Bangkok Mass Transit System is preparing to take the issue to court. The 30 billion baht owed to the Skytrain operator includes costs incurred while operating the Green Line as well as other related expenses dating back to 2018,…
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Covid-19 patients in Bangkok sent to other provinces due to overcrowded hospitals
To help ease overcrowding at hospitals in Bangkok, where more than 10,000 people have tested positive for Covid-19 since April 1, some coronavirus patients are now being sent to the neighbouring provinces Samut Prakan and Samut Sakhon, just south of the capital, for treatment. Field hospitals are reopening in Samut Sakhon, the epicentre of the last wave of infections in…
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Check-in counters at Bangkok airport now used for Covid-19 vaccine screening
Following the drastic slowdown of air travel due to the pandemic, empty check-in counters at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport are now being used to service those registering for a Covid-19 vaccine including frontline workers, Airports of Thailand employees, and staff at the airport. On the airport’s fourth floor for departures, 42 of the check-in desks are now run by local healthcare…
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Lockdown decision expected tomorrow for Bangkok
A full lockdown decision is expected tomorrow for Thailand’s capital of Bangkok after record daily Covid-19 infections have sent the city into a frenzy trying to stop the spread of the virus. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration is expected to make the recommendation which will be forwarded to the full committee chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. The CCSA will…
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Entertainment venues linked to majority of Covid-19 cases in Bangkok
Bars and nightclubs are linked to the majority of Covid-19 cases reported in Bangkok over the past month. Data from Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration show that nearly two-thirds of the recent wave of Covid-19 infections in Bangkok traced back to entertainment venues. In late February, Bangkok was reclassified from a “red” zone to an “orange” zone, allowing alcohol…
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