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Document confirms Covid-19 case at Vachira Hospital Phuket
A document from the Bangkok Disease Control Department has confirmed that there was a 35 year old Chinese patient at Phuket’s Vachira Hospital with coronavirus last month. The documents were made available at a media conference confirming the latest figures from around Thailand yesterday. One of the listings of confirmed cases was the Phuket patient (below). The patient’s listing was…
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Second Princess cruise ship held over virus “links”
After the nearly month-long ordeal of the Diamond Princess, the cruise ship quarantined off the coast of Japan on which more than 700 Covid-19 coronavius cases were confirmed, now a second Princess Cruises ship, the Grand Princess, is reportedly being held off San Francisco after authorities discovered “links” to the virus onboard. According to the Los Angeles Times the liner…
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Singapore coronavirus patients to have their meals, medicine delivered by robot
Patients at a Singapore hospital suspected or confirmed to be infected with the Covid-19 coronavirus will soon get their meals and medicines from a robot. What’s more, a second robot is being deployed to clean, and will chat with patients in four languages, as well as “Singlish.” Details of the use of the robot technology were outlined in Singapore’s Ministry…
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Thailand now disinfecting overseas parcels: WHO says they’re safe
Despite specific admonitions from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Thai Post (a privately owned company) began disinfecting all overseas parcels today in an effort to stem the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. The WHO has publicly announced that it is safe to receive mail even from badly affected countries, like China, where the outbreak began. Thailand confirmed four new cases…
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Health minister won’t say why quarantine order deleted, Facebook account inactive
Health minister Anutin Charnvirakul yesterday declined to explain why he removed an order requiring people arriving from 9 countries and 2 Chinese territories designated as high risk areas for the Covid-19 virus to be placed in self-quarantine. According to the quickly deleted document posted on his official Facebook page (now inactive), the nine destinations are “disease areas” and people arriving…
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March 2020, the Thai month of cancellations
March will end up as the long month of cancellations. With Songkran looming, one of the busiest times for travel in Thailand, and increasingly one of the biggest annual tourist magnets to the Kingdom, cancelling Songkran would take Thailand into unchartered tourism and economic territory. Fears, real or imagined, are forcing companies and governments to assess their risks associated with…
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Thailand announces 4 new coronavirus cases, all from Italy or Iran
“There is still no sign of true community spread in Thailand.” Thailand has confirmed four new cases of the COVID-19 coronavirus, bringing its total to 47 since January. All were recent arrivals from Italy or Iran. Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoen, director-general of the Department of Disease Control made the announcement in a news conference today. The new cases are: A 29 year…
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Thailand’s Koh Phangan full moon party cancelled
…until further notice. The next Full Moon Party, scheduled for March 8, has been cancelled. The memo from the Mayor of Koh Phangan says that the hugely popular monthly party has been cancelled due to fears associated with the Covid-19 virus. The memo also says that there will no further monthly parties until fears over the outbreak pass. The cancellation…
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Chon Buri’s Bangsaen district cancels all official Songkran activities
Saen Suk Municipality in Chon Buri province, near Pattaya, has cancelled the Wan Lai (Songkran) Festival activities scheduled for April 16-17. Narongchai Khunpluem, President of Saen Suk Municipality, made the announcement today via social media. Khunpluem says the cancellation is due to concern about the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus and the government’s general instruction to avoid mass gatherings. The…
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Thai tourism ministry proposes 5 billion baht in tourist stimulus packages
Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn says he will propose new domestic travel stimulus packages valued at 5 billion baht this Friday. The Minister says the aim is to cushion the impact of the coronavirus for the tourism service sector across the country. The Minister says that domestic tourism is “the priority during this difficult time. The government should implement…
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Vietnamese virus videos go viral
The COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak shaking the region and the world economy is inspiring some “novel” music videos in Vietnam. Homemade videos featuring a hit Vietnamese song and an accompanying dance about the need for hand-washing have racked up more than 2 million views on video app TikTok. Borrowing the tune from the pop song “Jealous” (“Ghen” in Vietnamese) Vietnam’s health…
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Finance ministry announces new stimulus packages and tax breaks
Thailand’s Finance Ministry has announced a raft of new stimulus measures to help prop up parts of the Thai economy suffering under the impact of the coronavirus. They say the measures will assist “all sectors of Thai society currently affected by the Covid-19 situation”, which arrived at the same time as an economic slowdown, an export slump and drought. The…
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Chon Buri man kills neighbour with metal pipe after being refused a cigarette
Police in Chon Buri province, near Pattaya, arrested a 32 year old Thai man on Monday for allegedly beating his 51 year old neighbour to death with a metal pipe, after the neighbor refused to give him a cigarette. Police were informed of an incident at a home in the Map Pong sub district at 9:30pm. Officers arrived along with…
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Woman dead in Krabi climbing fall
A woman is dead after falling some 30 metres to the ground while rock climbing in Ao Nang, Krabi, across Phang Nga bay from Phuket. Krabi police were called to the scene at the base of the 50-metre Khao Toh Luang cliff face, just north of Ao Nang, at 10am yesterday. Once there, they found the body of 55 year…
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Thailand News Today, March 4, 2020
Man arrested with 44 kilograms of marijuana in Phuket A 60 year old man is in custody after he was found collecting 44 kilograms of dried marijuana, valued at about 400,000 baht, from a parcel delivery company in Phuket. Police told a press conference yesterday that officers were tipped off about a large shipment of marijuana arriving in Phuket via…
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“Phuket is still open for business” Phuket Hotels Association
Below is a media release from the Phuket Hotels Association… Dear All There has been a lot of confusion today resulting from the FB page message from a Minister (later removed) saying anybody coming from the designated high-risk countries below must self-quarantine. At this time, there is no indication at any Thai airport of any enforcement and all visitors have normal…
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Soi Dog Foundation official statement on Covid-19 and the risk to animal health
Sent to us from Soi Dog Foundation by Dr.Alicja Izydorczyk MRCVS… There have not been any cases of suspect COVID-19 infection in dogs or cats in Thailand. At present, there is no evidence to show that companion animals such as dogs and cats can be infected with COVID-19. Additionally, there is currently no evidence that companion animals could be a…
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UPDATE: Confusion over Thailand designating 11 destinations as ‘high risk’
Thailand’s Public Health Ministry yesterday designated 9 countries and 2 Chinese territories as high risk areas for the Covid-19 virus. He announced that visitors to Thailand from these destination are now subject to 14 day home quarantine and will have to adhere to strict health-related follow-ups. The official government post, on a Public Health Ministry letterhead, was released to the…
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German tourist in Phuket cleared of COVID-19 infection
A German tourist who arrived from Singapore last Thursday with a fever and a runny nose and put into isolation late last, has now been discharged from hospital after testing negative for the COVID-19 coronavirus. Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) Chief Thanit Sermkaew made the announcement today in response to state news agency MCOT’s report on Sunday night that a…
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Saudi man flees Pattaya hospital after alleged attackers show evidence of his debt
A Saudi Arabian man, who was beaten by assailants in Pattaya claiming to be police, has now fled the hospital where he was being treated for his injuries. A Pattaya police spokesman has denied that any officers were involved in the brawl and says police are seeking the man, thought to be in hiding in Pattaya. The Saudi man was…
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PM announces urgent measures to handle coronavirus
State agencies will seek the cooperation of private companies to avoid or postpone activities that will see a mass gathering of people, which might expose them to the risk of virus infection. Even as the government announces new travel restrictions and struggles to create a plan to deal with thousands of Thai workers returning from South Korea, Prime Minister Prayut…
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2 speedboats destroyed by fire in Phuket – VIDEO
There’s been another speed boat incident in Phuket, south Thailand. This time 2 speed boats have been badly damaged after one of them caught fire while tied up at a pier in Thalang yesterday afternoon. The fire spread to a second boat tied up next to it. No injuries were reported. Phuket’s marine police chief, Pol Col Prasert Srikhunrat, reported…
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Is the “footshake” the new handshake?
People around the world are changing the way they greet each other due to fears of spreading the COVID-19 coronavirus. In Beijing, the capital of the country where the outbreak began, red banners tell people not to shake hands but rather to join their own hands as a sign of greeting. Loudspeakers tell people to make the traditional “gong shou”…
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Urgent meeting on thousands of “little ghosts” returning from South Korea
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has called an urgent meeting today to discuss how to handle thousands – estimates put the number between five and then thousand – of Thai workers preparing to return home from South Korea to escape the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. The announcement comes after the Ministry of Public Health expressed serious concerns about how to handle…
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Thailand News Today, March 3, 2020 – Daily TV News
Thai Airways announces losses over 12 billion baht for 2019 Thai Airways International and its affiliates incurred a net loss of over 12 billion baht last year, that’s 448 million baht more than the year before. The airline has been accumulating losses year on year for over a decade. Speaking about the losses at the announcement yesterday, the vice president…
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Fire in the Fortune Town shopping centre in Din Daeng, Bangkok
It took firefighters 20 minutes to extinguish a blaze that started on the 4th floor of the Fortune Town shopping centre on Ratchadapisek Road in Bangkok’s Din Daeng district. The fire started this morning. There were no reports of injuries or death from the incident. The fire originated in a True Corporation customer service shop and cafe on the 4th…
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Buri Ram MotoGP “postponed indefinitely” over virus fears
In a shocking reversal, the Thai MotoGP 2020, scheduled for March 20-22 in Buri Ram province, has been “postponed indefinitely” due to the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul made the announcement yesterday. Despite earlier reassurances the race would go on, Anutin said the decision to suspend the event was made at…
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Thai social media frenzy as 5000 set to return from South Korea
Thai social media is abuzz with fears that some of the roughly 5000 Thai nationals preparing to return from South Korea may carry the COVID-19 coronavirus, which has now killed 17 people there and 2979 worldwide. Most of the 5,000 are thought to be Thai prostitutes and agricultural workers among the thousands of Thais who work illegally in the country…
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Bangkok motorbike taxi drivers attack Grab driver in broad daylight – VIDEO
Three motorbike taxi drivers (‘win’ drivers) have been fined after attacking a Grab bike driver carrying a passenger in Bangkok’s Khlong Tan district. The Grab driver reported to police that at 8:30am yesterday, he was picking up a customer at a condominium in Phra Khanong. He says a local taxi motorbike driver in front of the condo allegedly stopped him…
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Nong Nong forced to lift weights and perform for tourists at a Phuket zoo – VIDEO
A monkey has been filmed lifting weights and doing other ‘tricks’ for tourists at an unnamed zoo in Phuket. Footage was shot by people recording the video for PETA, the global animal rights group, of the monkey being forced to lift weights and do press-ups as entertainment for the island’s tourists. The monkey is an indigenous Macaque species and named ‘Ning…
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