Entertainment venues the source of 6,020 Covid-19 infections

As the Covid-19 third wave reaches in Thailand’s provinces, the main culprit in the spread of the infectious new strain is entertainment venues such as bars, clubs and pubs. With around 1,000 – 1,500 new daily infections over the past week, 71 provinces throughout the country have traced Covid-19 infections back to clusters in bars and nightclubs.

The CCSA announced yesterday that in April alone a total of 6,020 Coronavirus infections were connected to evening entertainment venues.

They confirmed that 40% of all people diagnosed with Covid-19 in Bangkok this month could be traced back to nightlife locations, a total of 1,583 infections. In the other provinces, entertainment spots were also the source of a quarter of all Covid-19 infections.

Young people make up over half of these third-wave cases, with 3,432 Covid-infected people 20 to 29 years old according to the CCSA. While all of Thailand’s 77 provinces now have Covid-19 infections, only 6 provinces don’t have any cases traced to these entertainment venues. Just Chai Nat, Narathiwat, Pattani, Ranong, Satun, and Yala are currently free of Coronavirus infections linked to these nightlife clusters.

1,157 patrons along with 364 bar staff and 348 other people thought to be in close proximity to people who were infected with the Coronavirus came forward and were identified and tested from these entertainment venues. But the CCSA says that accounts for only 27% of the infections connected to nightlife locations, while the majority of people did not cooperate and withheld pertinent information, making the identification and containment of the Covid-19 outbreaks from entertainment venues more difficult.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post