Bangkokians rush to stores at 4am for face masks amid fears of shortage

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Bangkokians rush to stores at 4am for face masks amid fears of shortage

By The Nation

 

 

Bangkok residents queued up to buy face masks from the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation’s drug store from 4am on Wednesday (March 4) amid fears of a shortage.

 

Numerous Thai people panicked because of the return of Thai workers from South Korea, as the government has not announced any quarantine measure for those labourers.

 

The pharmacist of the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation’s drug store near Government Complex said that only 100 persons were allowed to buy face masks and the count started at 7.45am. Each person could purchase only 10 face masks.

 

A cleaning staffer at Government Complex explained that shortage of face masks in the market had forced her to queue up at the drugstore at 4am or she would not get them.

 

She also said that the return of Thai labourers who worked illegally in South Korea have raised concerns that the Covid-19 outbreak might be more serious.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30383333

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-03-04

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[spiekerjozef]

4am? Really?

[BigBadGeordie]

[CLW]

When do people understand that those masks are rather useless and only effective to some point if you use them correctly.

 

When I see people wearing masks and then touching their face without cleaning their hands or putting the mask temporarily under their chin and then up again, waste of money and resources.

 

Several news outlets already announced that due to worldwide shortage those masks should be reserved for medical personnel. 

The normal citizen doesn't need them.

[Nakmuay887]

Why bother going to the store when you can just draw your own? 

[Stargeezr]

Yes, those who do not take this seriously, keep on kidding until you lose a friend, a relative

or someone you know.  Yup this whole situation is just another joke, Not!

Geezer

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, CLW said:

Several news outlets already announced that due to worldwide shortage those masks should be reserved for medical personnel. 

The normal citizen doesn't need them.

 

N95 masks are just as effective for the general public as they are for medical personnel -- provided that either group follows the proper protocols for wearing/using them.

 

"Need" is a relative term. If I'm living alone in some area of the U.S. not impacted by the virus as yet, I don't need a mask. But if I'm living in downtown BKK, am age 60+, and constantly surrounded by tourists from China, Japan, Korea, etc., then IMHO, yes, I do NEED to wear one.

 

If I'm one less person that falls ill and requires hospitalization because I've been wearing a mask and following the other hygiene protocols, then I call that a day's work well done.

 

Edited March 4, 2020 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[jaiyen]

Go to a Food Hall and watch the Thai girls take off their mask and put it on the table or maybe in their handbag. Then they eat their food, without having washed their hands, put the mask back on and leave ! They have spread germs everywhere doing this but they think they are doing the right thing ! Thai people as a race are not very clever (thats being polite !) but they are really showing of their lack of understanding.  Wait and see what happens when it takes hold in India !

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 minute ago, jaiyen said:

Go to a Food Hall and watch the Thai girls take off their mask and put it on the table or maybe in their handbag. Then they eat their food, without having washed their hands, put the mask back on and leave ! They have spread germs everywhere doing this but they think they are doing the right thing ! Thai people as a race are not very clever (thats being polite !) but they are really showing of their lack of understanding.  Wait and see what happens when it takes hold in India !

 

I was riding on BTS earlier today, and there were a couple of Thai teen-age girls in school uniforms chatting in a group.

 

For the whole time I was riding/standing nearby them, all three had the light blue color drugstore type face masks "on", but pointlessly... Two had them for some reason hanging down below their exposed mouths, and the other one had the mask down below her exposed nose.

 

I was standing there looking and thinking, "Wonder how they scored on the Thai IQ test?"

 

[GreasyFingers]

1 hour ago, Stargrazer9889 said:

Yes, those who do not take this seriously, keep on kidding until you lose a friend, a relative

or someone you know.  Yup this whole situation is just another joke, Not!

Geezer

Face masks?. Just been talking to a friend on NSW north coast and they are stocking up on toilet paper at special drops in the super markets, 36 rolls at a time. The normal shelves are empty. Do they know something that Thailand doesn't.

 

[Bangkok Barry]

2 hours ago, Stargrazer9889 said:

Yes, those who do not take this seriously, keep on kidding until you lose a friend, a relative

or someone you know.  Yup this whole situation is just another joke, Not!

Geezer

Yep, one dead in Thailand out of 68 million. And he had dengue fever anyway.

[300sd]

14 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Yep, one dead in Thailand out of 68 million. And he had dengue fever anyway.

Not sure I would believe what any gov't is saying, never mind this one. If an N95 is good enough for the medical profession, it's good enough for me.

[Denim]

 

It has to be considered that a lot of people are wearing masks only to save themselves from being upbraided by their fellow citizens rather than to protect themselves from any virus.

 

Saves a lot of arguments.

 

Very few people wearing them out here in the boonies because no peer pressure.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

16 hours ago, GreasyFingers said:

Face masks?. Just been talking to a friend on NSW north coast and they are stocking up on toilet paper at special drops in the super markets, 36 rolls at a time. The normal shelves are empty. Do they know something that Thailand doesn't.

 

 

I noticed this in some Thai stores when doing shopping yesterday. The list of things going missing on the shelves has expanded beyond just the expected cleaning/disinfecting products, and is now including things like toilet paper and instant noodles. Not all gone, but larger bulk/packages of TP and some of the more popular noodle types were wiped clean. Same kind of thing happening in the U.S. now as well in terms of people buying up staples.

 

[Bangkok Barry]

3 hours ago, 300sd said:

Not sure I would believe what any gov't is saying, never mind this one. If an N95 is good enough for the medical profession, it's good enough for me.

If there were loads of people dying in Thailand I think social media might have made us aware of that, despite what the government is or isn't saying. The world has changed. Keep up. One dead of the virus in Thailand in how many weeks? And around 50 a day dead in Thailand on the roads.

[300sd]

3 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

If there were loads of people dying in Thailand I think social media might have made us aware of that, despite what the government is or isn't saying. The world has changed. Keep up. One dead of the virus in Thailand in how many weeks? And around 50 a day dead in Thailand on the roads.

Yes social media may have made us aware of that...but I'm sticking with my instincts. Guess we'll know for sure when the hospitals are full and people are dropping on the streets.

 

For now I think I'll use a mask and practice good habits. The only way there would not be a great number of people infected in this country is if this virus does not spread too well in the heat. Otherwise a huge problem may be brewing.

[3NUMBAS]

this is what you need seen in congress

[toolpush]

On 3/4/2020 at 7:22 PM, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I was riding on BTS earlier today, and there were a couple of Thai teen-age girls in school uniforms chatting in a group.

 

For the whole time I was riding/standing nearby them, all three had the light blue color drugstore type face masks "on", but pointlessly... Two had them for some reason hanging down below their exposed mouths, and the other one had the mask down below her exposed nose.

 

I was standing there looking and thinking, "Wonder how they scored on the Thai IQ test?"

 

They probably did very well on a Thai IQ test. A real IQ test though, not so good.