Phuket: Record 4 Covid-19 deaths in 1 day, hospitals nearly full

A record number of Covid-19 fatalities in Phuket today as last night’s Phuket Provincial Public Health Office report confirmed 4 deaths in 1 day. That marks 17 deaths in one week in Phuket, nearly doubling the total of deaths since the third wave of Covid-19 took hold at the beginning of April.

In the 5 months since the start of the third wave, Phuket had seen a total of 20 deaths from Covid-19, but the 17 deaths in the past 7 days bring the total to 37 fatalities in the province.

The 238 new infections today mark Phuket’s 12th day in a row with infections above 200. Hospital beds also continued to fill without any new beds added, bringing the occupancy rate to over 83%, where 80% was the threshold that was originally considered a high danger to the Phuket Sandbox. In the days before the Sandbox kicked off on July 1, Phuket officials announced that one of the thresholds for reviewing the Sandbox would be a total of 90 new infections over a week period. The last few weeks have seen 7-day totals well in excess of 1,400.

Today marks the second day of less than 20% of all hospital beds currently available for Covid-19 patients.

Meanwhile, a meeting yesterday called for easing of Sandbox Covid-19 testing and restrictions on drinks and entertainment venues.

Breakdowns of Phuket data from the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office report late last night, all collected since the start of the third wave of Covid-19 on April 3, are included below by the numbers.

TOTALS

ANTIGEN TEST KITS

People test with antigen test kits when they are at risk, but the results are not considered 100% conclusive. If someone tests positive, they will undergo an RT-PCR test to confirm the result. The case will only be added to the official numbers after that RT-PCR test is returned positive. Those in Phuket with a positive result from an ATK are moved to a Covid-19 Care Centre for safety as they await the results of an RT-PCR test.

HOSPITALS & SUPERVISION

• 3,109: People currently under medical care or supervision for Covid-19 in Phuket, up 145 from yesterday
• 3,796: Total number of people released from medical care, up 205 from yesterday

ADDITIONAL COVID-19 INFECTIONS IN PHUKET

The official totals announced each day do not include several demographics:

• 89: Phuket Sandbox travellers who tested positive for Covid-19 sometime after landing in Phuket, up 1 from yesterday
• 42: Phuket natives infected in other provinces but moved for treatment under the “Bring Phuket People Home” programme, unchanged from yesterday
• 23: Travellers returning home from other countries and found to be infected, unchanged from yesterday
• 10: people in Phuket who were infected in other provinces, unchanged from yesterday

DAILY CASES THIS MONTH

COVID-19 INFECTIONS BY PHUKET REGION

Last night’s update didn’t include regional data for Covid-19 by Phuket districts, so this is the latest information as of September 8. The data will be updated when the PPHO releases more information.

SOURCE: The Phuket News