FILE PHOTO: Temple workers carry a coffin containing a body of a man who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during his funeral at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand April 24, 2021. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand on Monday reported a new daily record of 31 coronavirus deaths, the health ministry said, as the Southeast Asian country grapples with a third wave of infections.

 

After managing to largely control the virus for around a year through shutdowns and strict border controls, Thailand has faced a spike in cases since early April that is proving harder to control and putting pressure on parts of the medical system.

 

The ministry reported 2,041 new COVID-19 cases, taking the country's total number to 71,025 since the pandemic began last year. The total number of fatalities now stands at 276.

 

The new outbreak, which includes the highly transmissible B.1.1.7 variant first detected in Britain, has accounted for more than half of total cases and deaths since the start of the pandemic.

 

Thailand aims to have 70% of the population vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of the year, though the rollout of vaccines has been slower compared with some neighbouring countries.

 

Registration for vaccinating the general public began on Saturday, with about 16 million people aged over 60 or those with pre-existing medical conditions getting priority.

 

Mass inoculations are set to begin in June, when the first batch of what is targetted to reach 61 million locally manufactured AstraZeneca doses becomes available.

 

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Ed Davies)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-05-03

 

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Just days after publicly declaring Thailand’s latest COVID outbreak had peaked and was stabilizing downward, the country on Monday reported a record 31 new deaths and new cases that rose for the third consecutive day to 2,041, the highest daily total in the past six days.

 

The 31 new deaths reported Monday exceeded Thailand’s prior highest daily deaths toll by 10, eclipsing the 21 deaths that had been reported on each of the past two days, and bringing the country’s cumulative number of COVID deaths to 276.

 

Monday’s update also brought Thailand’s total reported COVID case count since the pandemic began in early 2020 to 71,025. Since declaring last Friday that the country had turned the corner on its latest outbreak, the successive daily COVID new case totals have been 1,583, 1,891, 1,940 and then today’s 2,041 tally.

 

As of Monday, Thailand also had 981 COVID patients hospitalized in critical condition, including 278 of those requiring ventilators in order to breathe. That number has almost doubled over the past eight days and has been climbing higher almost every day, straining the country's health care system.

 

In all, the government said it has 29,765 COVID positive patients hospitalized in various kinds of facilities, including regular hospitals, field hospitals and hotel-hospitals. The government requires anyone testing positive for COVID, regardless of symptoms, to be hospitalized until they recover.

 

https://www.facebook.com/thaimoph/posts/30062847154706

 

Prior:

https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1215540-thailand’s-third-covid-19-wave-has-already-peaked-ccsa/

 

Number is going up again, slowly but going up. I wonder how bad it would have been without the measures in place.

 

Too bad that this happend but letting Songkran happen was not a good idea. Though i doubt it could have been stopped, but the PM actively promoted it.

 

I wonder how long these numbers will stay this high, as i doubt measures will be relaxed unless serious progress has been made.

https://www.facebook.com/NationNews/posts/10157953853456937

 

https://www.facebook.com/informationcovid19/posts/317848213166843

 

Just now, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

Just days after publicly declaring Thailand’s latest COVID outbreak had peaked and was stabilizing downward, the country on Monday reported a record 31 new deaths and new cases that rose for the third consecutive day to 2,041, the highest daily total in the past six days.

 

The 31 new deaths reported Monday exceeded Thailand’s prior highest daily deaths toll by 10, eclipsing the 21 deaths that had been reported on each of the past two days, and bringing the country’s cumulative number of COVID deaths to 276.

 

Monday’s update also brought Thailand’s total reported COVID case count since the pandemic began in early 2020 to 70,425. Since declaring last Friday that the country had turned the corner on its latest outbreak, the successive daily COVID new case totals have been 1,583, 1,891, 1,940 and then today’s 2,041 tally.

 

At last report on Sunday, the country also had 954 COVID patients hospitalized in critical condition, including 270 of those requiring ventilators in order to breathe. That number has almost doubled over the past eight days and has been climbing higher almost every day.

 

 

 

Yes they were wrong about it stabilizing downwards. Still the increase is not that bad yet. But they were wrong for sure. I wonder if it will go down anytime soon. I also wonder how long hospitals can take this. Its not as if the hospitals are flush with cash. Plus the private ones don't want to help too much as it does not make them much money.

 

I wonder how long before healthcare will be in serious problems. Then again after a few weeks of the same amount of people getting in the discharge rate will be the same. Provided we keep these numbers and don't go up too much.

https://www.thaienquirer.com/27079/authorities-warn-that-khlong-toey-could-become-a-disaster-zone/

Authorities warn that Khlong Toey could become a ‘disaster zone'

ByCod Satrusayang

May 3, 2021

 

Thailand’s Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and the Ministry of Public Health are racing against time to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus in the Klong Toey slums, officials in both organizations said Monday.

 

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by onthedarkside
formatting

Deaths lag new infections by up to 3 weeks, so there may still be 20 deaths per day in early June.

The past weekend Thailand overtook the UK on new infections and deaths.

 

The UK have now given at least 1 vaccine shot to over 50% of the population, and are still doing over 1 million tests per day or around 7million tests per week. Thailand are at about 1.5% of the population and doing 10-15,000 tests per day.

 

Given the UK had daily infections of up to 67,000 per day and highest daily deaths of 1,823 on Jan 20th this year, who would had ever have though that Thailand numbers would ever be greater than the UK given the head start they had. Thailand's complacency and basking in early glory will cost this country immeasurably.

 

Source : https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk

 

The new Czar has truly lived up to many peoples expectation. It is one hell of a sit show.

 

When you put a soldier in charge expect the 'charge of the light brigade outcome'.

Repatriate the Thais from India and other places from all over the world for more infections, and vaccinate with a moderate  working vaccine. Prayuth for he happiness of this country and its people

Not long now and Thailand will be in the top 100 covid countries. Can't hear any bragging going on about how well Thailand has done. The Prayut fanboys on this forum have been decidedly quite on this matter.

 

https://www.facebook.com/nbtworld/posts/10157990782977050

 

47 per cent of hotels could stay open for less than three months

 

A survey of the hotel industry found that 47 per cent of hotels have liquidity to keep their business afloat for less than three months.

 

The confidence index of hotel business operators in April 2021, published by the Bank of Thailand, surveyed 188 hotels nationwide from April 12-26. Of the hotels surveyed, 30 are alternative state quarantine (ASQ) facilities.

 

Fifty-six establishments reported more than a 20 per cent decline in liquidity compared to the previous month, due to the latest Covid-19 wave, while 47 per cent said their liquidity situation could keep their hotels open for less than three months.

 

(more)

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40000488

 

https://twitter.com/home?lang=en-gb

 

Matthew Tostevin

 

@TostevinM

·

15m

 

 

Movement in Thailand hit a 4-month peak around the Songkran holiday - near the start of a COVID-19 wave that killed as many people in the last week as in the previous year. Mobility shown by Apple data has now plummeted, but not yet to last year's low.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vaccinations Update --  total doses administered, then the subtotals of numbers of people having received their first and second shot.

 

 

https://www.facebook.com/thaimoph/posts/300604068216170

 

50 minutes ago, webfact said:

FILE PHOTO: Temple workers carry a coffin containing a body of a man who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during his funeral at a temple in Bangkok,

Erm thats an unfortunate choice of words isnt it, dying at your own funeral.

More deaths in the last 30 days then all of the months prior combined.  More cases the past month as well, yet they still drag their feet.  Klong Toei is slowly becoming the Samut Sakhon of this Wave. I can not believe that for one moment they believed that this had peaked and was going away, and it was all under control.  Anutin needs to resign as well as Prayut and Company for complete malfeasance and utter contempt at not taking this more seriously and stopping the travel at Songkran.  Money means everything to them and yet they have now ensured the economy will be submarined and under water.

 

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by onthedarkside
duplicate weblink removed

28 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Not long now and Thailand will be in the top 100 covid countries. Can't hear any bragging going on about how well Thailand has done. The Prayut fanboys on this forum have been decidedly quite on this matter.

 

Well, I am most definitely not a Prayut fanboy, and I can see no reason why you are conflating an unlikeable military government with the handling of the pandemic.

 

As at today, by any objective measure, I have been extremely happy to have been in Thailand for the past 15 months of the pandemic.

 

We have just overtaken the UK, who had more than 2,500 cases per day for an eight month period between September 20 and April 21.

 

However, lock downs are in place, case numbers are stable and deaths will continue to rise for 1-2 weeks due to to delay between infection and severe symptoms.

 

Let’s see what happens from here...

51 minutes ago, robblok said:

Yes they were wrong about it stabilizing downwards. Still the increase is not that bad yet. But they were wrong for sure. I wonder if it will go down anytime soon. I also wonder how long hospitals can take this. Its not as if the hospitals are flush with cash. Plus the private ones don't want to help too much as it does not make them much money.

 

I wonder how long before healthcare will be in serious problems. Then again after a few weeks of the same amount of people getting in the discharge rate will be the same. Provided we keep these numbers and don't go up too much.

The upside, but also a downside, is that as folks die more beds become open, which is a morbid statement.  I feel bad for the families who have lost loved ones.  With the issue in Myanmar and the thousands upon thousands fleeing into Thailand to save their lives, the spread of Covid related variants will now continue since this government has no intention of helping all of those fleeing, testing them all, or treating them in my view as they are far inferior people.  Sad this has become the reality I spoke of with cases of covid throughout the country, one part of me wanted to believe the numbers of low cases were real, but in reality I was fooling myself it seems. Stay safe folks.  I think that Chocolate chip cookies will keep Covid at bay much like Thais believe that certain Thai foods will save them.

51 minutes ago, robblok said:

Though i doubt it could have been stopped, but the PM actively promoted it.

 

Worse than that, he's actively covered up the causes of this new wave and greenlighted the refusal by his cabinet ministers to give timelines. Now his Justice Minister has caused a death and at least 51 others infected. And we have no vaccines because he decided to use it as a PR coup to counter the protests.

Incompetence, corruption and nepotism still define every move this government has made to date dealing with this in the last 6 months. It needs to be handed back to the doctors (but it won't be) instead of this absurd COVID Czar ego thing he's now embarked upon. He couldn't run a 20m race, let alone a country facing a pandemic like this. (Or anything else). 

51 minutes ago, webfact said:

 

After managing to largely control the virus for around a year through shutdowns and strict border controls, 

 

A policy of incredibly minimal testing and the ludicrous facade of a miraculously virtually covid free Thailand...........is not control of the virus, more like extreme negligence and an appalling disregard for the welfare of the general population in favour of a full trough for a select few.

Let this be the last segment of extremely sad news that Big P, ... his bogus Junta and clowns of Ministers be remembered for. They must be so so proud! Very sorry to read of these high numbers today, but maybe it is their plan of collateral damage in order to have a certain Thai vaccine supplier and its share holders capitalize. This could have been greatly avoided.

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by onthedarkside
derogatory name reference removed

9 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

The upside, but also a downside, is that as folks die more beds become open, which is a morbid statement.

 

For whatever it's worth, I've been tracking the government's daily reports of COVID patients in critical condition dating back to mid April.

 

In that entire time, the daily number has only gone down once on May 1, and otherwise has increased each and every other day. One of the largest daily increases came from this past Saturday to Sunday, as the count increased 125 from 829 to 954... And that was even with two consecutive days of 21 new COVID deaths.

 

On April 15, the country reported having 41 COVID patients in critical condition. As of yesterday, the number stood at 954.

 

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by TallGuyJohninBKK

2 minutes ago, realfunster said:

As at today, by any objective measure, I have been extremely happy to have been in Thailand for the past 15 months of the pandemic.

 

That's because the medical establishment were running things. It was taken back from them late last year because Prayut saw PR and political advantages in using it to counter the protests. That, coupled with the fact that the Thong Lor cluster came from people at a level where the rules were no applied (or the law including quarantine measures) and Prayut has actively covered for them. 

We have had good and competent experts running the COVID response. That's no longer the case and the reason we are where we are now.

1 hour ago, realfunster said:

 

Well, I am most definitely not a Prayut fanboy, and I can see no reason why you are conflating an unlikeable military government with the handling of the pandemic.

 

As at today, by any objective measure, I have been extremely happy to have been in Thailand for the past 15 months of the pandemic.

 

We have just overtaken the UK, who had more than 2,500 cases per day for an eight month period between September 20 and April 21.

 

However, lock downs are in place, case numbers are stable and deaths will continue to rise for 1-2 weeks due to to delay between infection and severe symptoms.

 

Let’s see what happens from here...

Conflation? Really? Who do you think is handling or precisely mishandled i.e. let songkran happen and "whatever will be will be" other than the military government. To conflate means to merge two or more sets of information into one. Gov't, pandemic, songkran, rapid rise in numbers of infections, serious and critical patients, hospital bed shortages and deaths. Who is responsible? The Govt.

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by blackcab
Underlining removed. Please do not modify someone else's post in your quoted reply, either with font or color changes or wording

2 minutes ago, sapson said:

 

A policy of incredibly minimal testing and the ludicrous facade of a miraculously virtually covid free Thailand...........is not control of the virus, more like extreme negligence and an appalling disregard for the welfare of the general population in favour of a full trough for a select few.

I beg to differ.

 

Random sampling of 1,000 people will produce a reasonably accurate positivity rate in the area sampled. So far, testing is seeing a positivity rate about 5%, which is consistent with actual case numbers.
 

Probably the reason they are focused on Klang Toey is that they found the cluster during random sampling.

 

 

5 minutes ago, sapson said:

A policy of incredibly minimal testing and the ludicrous facade of a miraculously virtually covid free Thailand...

 

The testing has been contact testing - as used in pretty much every country that has successfully handled this bug. It works and is far more effective than the sort of mass testing the US and Europe relied on - as numbers show. As to numbers of cases? You clearly have access to better data than the WHO and Johns Hopkins both of whom seem to think the numbers are credible. 

Relatively speaking even these elevated numbers are not too bad. I am no more worried about catching covid with the numbers this high than I was when they were in the 100s. I do take it seriously just doesn't change what I'm doing. What worries me is government feeling obligated to engage in more moronic, unhelpful showboating to act like the situation is under control. Who is the new Covid Czar; Trump? What a disaster (but not a crisis IMO)

Edited May 3, 20215 yr by wasabi

6 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Conflation? Really? Who do you think is handling or precisely mishandled i.e. let songkran happen and "whatever will be will be" other than the military government. To conflate means to merge two or more sets of information into one. Gov't, pandemic, songkran, rapid rise in numbers of infections, serious and critical patients, hospital bed shortages and deaths. Who is responsible? The Govt.

Ultimately the responsibility  lies with each and every  Thai  person not to have travelled  during Songkran, its  not  like they didnt  know.