Thailand News Today – Thursday, March 26

New cases in Thailand – 111, pushes total over 1,000

Thursday’s total for new cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus is out as announced today by the Public Health Department.

The number of newly confirmed Covid-19 cases in Thailand is now over 1,000. 111 new cases were announced to the media today by spokesperson from the Ministry of Public Health. At the time of publication the total number of cases is 1,045. The ministry speculates that there is likely to be an exponential rise in new infections across Thailand in the near future.

“Comply or I’ll tear it down myself” Pattaya mayor tells encroaching resort

Pattaya’s mayor has ordered his staff to post notices at Ban Sukhawadee, or “Sukhawadee House” as it’s known in English, a luxury beachfront property.

The property is set on a total of 80 rai near Pattaya.

The company that runs the resort, HealthFood International, has two weeks to comply with a judgment relating to encroachment on 11 rai of public land. If the company doesn’t comply within 15 days, the authorities will tear down the property themselves. The legal wrangling has been going on for years.

No public transport bus tickets until at least April 30

The president of state enterprise Transport Company has announced today that ticket sales for all public transport buses are suspended until April 30.

He says the company will also enforce social distancing by leaving empty alternate seats on remaining bus services and require a distance of at least one metre between people at all bus terminals. He says that all tickets have been sold out well beyond April 30.

Immigration Bureau asks people to file reports online, avoid their offices

A spokesman for the Immigration Bureau says that foreigners living in Thailand are now requested to process their 90 day residence reports online or by post only.

Applicants usually required report in person to complete the procedure. The change comes as any sort of social distancing has been virtually impossible at crowded immigration offices. We have links to the online reporting website at our website thethaiger.com

Phuket, special restrictions for locals (Thursday)

Additional measures are being rolled out in Phuket as the Provincial Office refines the local needs to restrict the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Some public offices are being closed, or services restricted, including at the Land Transport Office.

Dental clinics will be closed but dental clinics within hospitals will remain open.

Finally, the notice lists a number of public spaces which will now be closed, including running areas around dams on the island and the Saphan Hin sports centre.

1000 kilograms of marijuana seized in northeastern Thailand

More than a tonne of marijuana has been been seized in Thailand’s Bung Kan province, in the far north east on the Laos border. The stash was discovered in fertiliser sacks by a security patrol boat along the Mekong river. A longtail boat with 4 to 5 men on board was spotted pulling up to the river bank, where the men began unloading sacks. When approached by police, the men fled, leaving 25 sacks behind. The sacks contained a total of 1,000 one kilo bricks of dried, compressed marijuana.