Higher, faster, deadlier: Third wave of COVID triggers growing fear in Thailand

[Danderman123]

5 minutes ago, eeworldwide said:

They're doing a grand job of manipulating these falling figures, arent they?

Good grief - "Thailand expereinces SHORTEST 3rd wave of covid in the ENTIRE WORLD.

 

Even with the deadlier UK variant, somehowe, Thailand managed to contain the third wave with infection rates not even reaching 3000 per week."

Oh  how I long for transparency and for real testing! I guess we will never truly know the extent of Covid's presence here.

If the current numbers are not real, there will soon be signs of it in the Real World, all field hospitals filled, as well as all ICU Beds. 

 

But here is the key question : even if the national numbers are fake, what about the provincial and city numbers, are those fake, too? 

[herfiehandbag]

19 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Why would I need another mask, I've been using the same one for over a year.

It's still got plenty of use left in it.

I should imagine practically nothing can get through the fibres now!

[Brierley]

2 minutes ago, eeworldwide said:

They're doing a grand job of manipulating these falling figures, arent they?

Good grief - "Thailand expereinces SHORTEST 3rd wave of covid in the ENTIRE WORLD.

 

Even with the deadlier UK variant, somehowe, Thailand managed to contain the third wave with infection rates not even reaching 3000 per week."

Oh  how I long for transparency and for real testing! I guess we will never truly know the extent of Covid's presence here.

I don't know where you live in Thailand, if indeed you do live here, but I'm in Chiang Mai and we've just returned from a short visit outside, in the car. Looking out the window there were a few notable differences between here and the UK for example, including:

 

- there was hardly any foot traffic, anywhere, roads and streets are very very quiet.

- the few people we did see, all wore masks and all were in cars or on bikes.

- we didn't see large groups of people protesting about their civil rights to gather in groups and be outside, not one.

- we didn't see high streets teeming with shoppers, that's because we don't have high street shops per se. Ditto people congregating in pubs etc.

 

I'm not certain but I do suspect those things may have been influencing factors as to why the third wave here is not the same as back there.

[Danderman123]

3 hours ago, Lacessit said:

You are making the assumption the data we are getting is accurate. Given what I see happening in my GF's village, which is only one of thousands in Thailand, permit me to doubt that it is.

Listing a comorbidity such as a heart attack, brought on by being unable to breathe, is one way of concealing the true situation. Remember Thailand's road toll is minimized artificially by only recording deaths occurring at the scene of an accident.

The problem with that conspiracy theory is that if someone in the Village dies of Covid, their family members, medical personnel, temple workers, etc will likely be infected. That would be hard to cover up. 

 

Realistically, in the village, if someone coughs, rumors about their having Covid start. 

[ThailandRyan]

14 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

If the current numbers are not real, there will soon be signs of it in the Real World, all field hospitals filled, as well as all ICU Beds. 

 

But here is the key question : even if the national numbers are fake, what about the provincial and city numbers, are those fake, too? 

Tell that to the news who keep reporting on deaths occurring at home because they were not transported to a hospital and had been waiting days.

[Danderman123]

2 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Tell that to the news who keep reporting on deaths occurring at home because they were not transported to a hospital and had been waiting days.

I am aware of the handful of such anecdotes. 

[brewsterbudgen]

17 minutes ago, Brierley said:

I don't know where you live in Thailand, if indeed you do live here, but I'm in Chiang Mai and we've just returned from a short visit outside, in the car. Looking out the window there were a few notable differences between here and the UK for example, including:

 

- there was hardly any foot traffic, anywhere, roads and streets are very very quiet.

- the few people we did see, all wore masks and all were in cars or on bikes.

- we didn't see large groups of people protesting about their civil rights to gather in groups and be outside, not one.

- we didn't see high streets teeming with shoppers, that's because we don't have high street shops per se. Ditto people congregating in pubs etc.

 

I'm not certain but I do suspect those things may have been influencing factors as to why the third wave here is not the same as back there.

Interesting to read that about Chiang Mai.  Here in Bangkok most people still seem to be going to work, with the BTS/MRT only a little less busy than usual.  Shopping malls are definitely quieter but plenty of people still using foodcourts.  Most "restaurants" are open and "special" coffee being openly served!

[ThailandRyan]

4 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

I am aware of the handful of such anecdotes. 

So the news, reported by Thai stations is now anecdotal, really.  That's a real laugher. If it was fake news then Prawits group of fake news hunters would be shutting them down.  Now who is sounding like a conspiracy theorist, not I but you. Anecdotal...yeah right.

Edited April 29, 2021 by ThailandRyan

[Brierley]

Just now, brewsterbudgen said:

Interesting to read that about Chiang Mai.  Here in Bangkok most people still seem to be going to work, with the BTS/MRT only a little less busy than usual.  Shopping malls are definitely quieter but plenty of people still using foodcourts.  Most "restaurants" are open and "special" coffee being openly served!

I have my suspicions that may be why Bangkok is the covid capital of Thailand.

[Brierley]

2 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

So the news, reported by Thai stations is now anecdotal, really.  That's a real laugher. If it was fake news then Prawits group of fake news hunters would be shutting them down.  Now who is sounding like a conspiracy theorist, not I but you. Anecdotal...yeah right.

Anecdotal does not mean fake, it means not reliable, small narrative incidents.

[Danderman123]

4 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

So the news, reported by Thai stations is now anecdotal, really.  That's a real laugher. If it was fake news then Prawits group of fake news hunters would be shutting them down.  Now who is sounding like a conspiracy theorist, not I but you. Anecdotal...yeah right.

An anecdote is not necessarily false.

[NoshowJones]

21 hours ago, sambum said:

 

What I find tragic is that people who are asymptematic/positive showing no symptoms are hospitalised, yet someone like the young man mentioned in another post died because he couldn't be admitted due to all the beds being taken!

 

Could they not be quarantined in their own homes, thereby freeing up beds for more needy cases??

That would be too simple for this unelected "PM" to understand.

[zhounan]

More Vaccination = More Circulation

More Circulation = More Fear

More Fear = More Vaccination

 

It's a dog biting its own tail

[Mr Derek]

This is really just the first wave. They did too good a job of keeping it out. They should have bitten the bullet and let it seep through the population at a manageable rate and they would be nearly out of it by now, as in Europe. Instead, it's only just beginning and there will be another 18 months of closed-border agony for Thailand while Europe resumes their holidaying.

[RocketDog]

On 4/28/2021 at 2:29 PM, eeworldwide said:

 

 

Really? How did you arrive at that conclusion specifically?

 

Speculation. But no better or worse than all the jaw-flapping from the gov and others on TVF and nearly every other country on the planet. Personally I agree with him. 

 

Nobody knows much but everybody has an opinion. Why not? Nothing better to do and it's either harmless, useless, or both. 

 

Join the game or ignore it. 

[brewsterbudgen]

8 hours ago, Brierley said:

I have my suspicions that may be why Bangkok is the covid capital of Thailand.

Quite possibly, although as by far the biggest city in Thailand it's not really surprising.

[Lacessit]

9 hours ago, Danderman123 said:

The problem with that conspiracy theory is that if someone in the Village dies of Covid, their family members, medical personnel, temple workers, etc will likely be infected. That would be hard to cover up. 

 

Realistically, in the village, if someone coughs, rumors about their having Covid start. 

This is quite novel, being called a conspiracy theorist.

 

I was told by a Thai guy who sells me chicken biryani the government hospital in Chiang Rai has 200 COVID patients in quarantine. At the same point in time, the official number for the whole of Chiang Rai province was 53 people. So who would you believe? Especially when my GF's village alone had 10 COVID patients taken to hospital as of yesterday.

As for the cremation conspiracy theory, to me it makes perfect sense a patient dying of COVID would be cremated where they died, and not returned to their home village. That's not conspiracy, that's basic epidemiology, and would no doubt be explained to grieving relatives as such.

[Lacessit]

9 hours ago, Brierley said:

Anecdotal does not mean fake, it means not reliable, small narrative incidents.

Anecdotal is usually criticized on the basis it is a statistical sample of one. The information imparted by the anecdote may be quite reliable.

Example: I hit a target bullseye with a single shot from 500 metres. It may be a complete fluke, or I may be a world-class sniper.

[CG1 Blue]

13 hours ago, Jeffr2 said:

The more deadly Indian variant is now in at least 20 countries.  Scary.

 

As far as I'm aware these 'variants of concern' spread faster, but are not "more deadly". Typically viruses become less deadly as they evolve (apparently), because killing the host means less hosts to use. 

 

If you can show some evidence that the Indian variant has a higher infection to death rate I'll slope off back under my rock

 

[Patong2021]

21 hours ago, cncltd1973 said:

 

i have to think the gov't doesn't trust it's citizens to self quarantine if people are held against their will

 

How can people quarantine when they live 3-4, 5-10 to a room?  Have you seen how the low wage workers live with their communal  toilets and shared washing bowls?  The  lodging is the only  option available for some and to  ensure that someone can respond if the person is sick.

[The Hammer2021]

On 4/28/2021 at 4:19 PM, Cake Monster said:

You must be walking around wearing your rose tinted glasses still.

It is not Racist my friend, just factual.

No generalizations are factual. Your statement is not factual.

[The Hammer2021]

On 4/29/2021 at 6:41 PM, RocketDog said:

Speculation. But no better or worse than all the jaw-flapping from the gov and others on TVF and nearly every other country on the planet. Personally I agree with him. 

 

Nobody knows much but everybody has an opinion. Why not? Nothing better to do and it's either harmless, useless, or both. 

 

Join the game or ignore it. 

Careless  talk costs lives.

[salavan]

Wait until the 4th wave comes from India 

[maddox41]

On 4/28/2021 at 2:56 PM, wensiensheng said:

I just tried to mail an envelope to Singapore. Was told by the PO that I could not because the Suvarnabhumi sorting office has been closed because of Covid cases. Was told to come back on 5th May.

 

The game of whackamole continues.....

Same for me  posting to OZ come back later mate 

[Kenneth White]

On 4/28/2021 at 8:07 PM, ThailandRyan said:

That's only if you have been vaccinated that Mask wearing has been reduced, well at least in California that is. I just had this conversation with my sister and mother.  They still need to wear them into stores as there is no way to tell who has been vaccinated, but wearing them outside and around town is now not required, as long as your vaccinated. 

I came from South Florida where Governor Santos has lifted most COVID restrictions. If not waring a mask only applies to someone that has had the vaccine how would you know that?