Thailand News Today – Monday, April 27

Recommendation for the Emergency Decree to be extended for another month

Thailand’s Emergency Decree is now very likely to be extended for another month after it expires this Thursday. The emergency decree gives the Thai PM sweeping powers and is provided for in the Thai Constitution for situations like this.

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today decided to extend the decree until the end of May and has made the recommendation accordingly.

The decision means the night curfew from 10pm-4am will continue, no social gatherings allowed and only limited inter-provincial travel. Some other restrictions will remain although the details have not yet been announced. The Cabinet meets tomorrow to discuss the recommendation. Seeing the Thai PM chairs both, you can probably take it as passed.

3,025 household goods prices will be reduced by 68%

The Commerce Ministry, along with dozens of companies. has announced the reduction of the cost of many household goods. Some discounts up to 68%. We all love a good deal.

The Minister says that “3,025 consumer products have now been discounted by up to 68%.”

“The cheaper goods will be available until June 30.”

Companies who are collaborating in the discounts include 20 consumer product manufacturers around 13 provinces. The companies consist of Big C, Macro, Food Land, CJ express, Swensens, CP All, The Mall, Maxvalue, Tops, Gourment Market, Home Fresh Mart and Family Mart.

April 27 Covid-19 update for Thailand

The CSSA has reported 9 new cases confirmed over the past 24 hour period plus 1 additional death, taking the national total numbers to 2,931.

With one more new fatality, Thailand’s death toll rises to 52. 2,609 patients have recovered and returned home, while 270 are undergoing treatment in hospital. No new case was reported in Bangkok in the past 24 hours.

Phuket is still battling a small cluster in the coastal Bang Tao community – another case has been reported in the same area and one new death.

One of the island’s recoveries was a 97 year old “granny” from Bang Tao. She has been discharged from hospital today, having fully recovered from the virus. The woman’s son, who posted on Facebook, credited excellent medical care coupled with the elderly lady’s will to add some more digits to her great age.

We wish her many more years of health and happiness.

Bangkok authorities under fire for over-zealous tree pruning

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has come in for some flak after some over-enthusiastic pruning of the city’s trees.

Some of the city’s green shade was cut back to bare, ugly stumps. Trees along Witthayu Road, near Lumpini Park, have been chopped down to their lower trucks. A similar fate has befallen the trees in the city’s swish Sathorn district.

A local conservation group has taken to social media to share photos of the botched tree trimming, and the BMA has come in for some harsh criticism from, well, everyone. The trees are the Burma Padauk variety, known as “pradu” in Thai.

Yala clinic at centre of Covid-19 alert

An orthopaedic clinic in the southern border province of Yala is at the centre of a Covid-19 alert after a patient failed to reveal he was infected with the virus.

Health authorities are now scrambling to track down all those who visited the clinic on April 23, urging them to report immediately to their local health office for screening. The clinic says its staff are now in self-quarantine for 14 days. One doctor says he had close contact with the infected patient but is so far not showing any signs of infection.

A viral post reveals a lack of social distancing onboard Nok Air flight

A Nok Air passenger from a flight flying from Nakhon Si Thammarat to Don Meuang in Bangkok last Friday has posted photos that show very poor social distancing both getting on the flight, and during.

The post said…. “The airline notified passengers that it had to make a detour to Trang Airport to pick up additional passengers. The detour not only caused a two-hour delay but social distancing measures and alternate seating to prevent Covid-19 from spreading could not be implemented as the added passengers filled up the plane.”

In response Thailand’s Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand director general says “the mandatory measures only come into effect only from May 1.”

So far, Thai AirAsia and Thai Lion Air say they will resume limited domestic flights starting May 1. Meanwhile, ThaiSmile (the short-haul subsidiary of Thai Airways) has announced that it is ready to resume services for domestic routes on June 1. Limited destinations will be available and likely only be destinations in provinces that have not had reported cases for the past 28 days.

Scheduled international passenger flight ban extended until end of May

The inbound scheduled international flight restriction is now going to be extended another 31 days, until the end of May, whilst more repatriation flights for Thai citizens will continue this week.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand says they will extend the ongoing ban, currently scheduled to end on April 30. The first of the temporary closures was announced on April 4.