Covid-19 News & Updates (Thailand and Southeast Asia only)

[joelle]

Each province's daily domestic COVID-19 cases update in Thailand on  Friday 14th May
FB link for reference: https://www.facebook.com/nbtworld

[joelle]

Ranking of 10 provinces with highest COVID-19 transmission, as of 14th May 2021

[PeteC]

Thailand reports 30 deaths, 2,256 new Covid cases

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40000880

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on Thursday reported 30 deaths and 2,256 new cases, including five returnees.

Of the deaths, 11 were in Bangkok, four in Ratchaburi, two each in Pathum Thani and Sa Kaew, and one each in Samut Prakan, Chachoengsao, Chonburi, Sukhothai, Maha Sarakham, Chiang Rai, Suphan Buri, Nonthaburi, Roi-Et, Phattalung and Surat Thani.

The ages of those who succumbed to the virus ranged from 15 to 85, and they all reportedly suffered from chronic conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, etc.

Meanwhile, the returnees were five Thais, two each from Malaysia and Cambodia, and one from the United Arab Emirates.

In terms of new infections, Bangkok again topped the list with 1,087 new cases, followed by 157 in Pathum Thani, 131 in Nonthaburi and 121 in Samut Prakan.

Over the last 24 hours, 1,702 patients have recovered and been discharged.

As of Friday, the number of confirmed cases in Thailand had risen to 96,050. Of these, 89,595 infections had been contracted locally, 3,437 were returnees, while 3,018 were detainees.

So far, 62,316 have recovered and been discharged, 33,186 are still in hospitals, and 548 have died.

Meanwhile, another 21,302 people were given their first Covid-19 shot in the last 24 hours, while 63,067 were given their second shot, bringing the total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in Thailand to 2,124,732.

Separately, according to Worldometer as of 11am on Friday, the number of confirmed cases globally had risen to 161.82 million (up by 743,191), 139.62 million of whom have recovered, 18.85 million are active cases (104,224 in severe condition) and 3.35 million have died (up by 13,398).

Thailand ranks 94th on the global list of most cases, which is topped by the US with 33.62 million, followed by India 24.04 million, Brazil 15.43 million, France 5.84 million, and Turkey 5.08 million.

Published : May 14, 2021

By : The Nation

[PeteC]

Bangkok Post version for today.

30 new Covid deaths, 2,256 new cases

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... -new-cases

[Big Boy]

Today's Brief:

[HHTel]

"the vaccine roll-out on a voluntary basis"

That raises the question whether the governor of Chiang Mai has the authority to mandate vaccines with the threat of fines and imprisonment for those who refuse.

[Big Boy]

I think you mean Buriram - headless chicken mode.

[Big Boy]

Seriously, it is just another bully boy idle threat. How is he going to manage the issuing and return of the risk assessment forms? My daughter-in-law is from Buriram. How does he know where she is i.e. Buriram or Prachuap, or somewhere in between?

[HHTel]

I think you mean Buriram - headless chicken mode.

Of course I did. Just keeping you on the ball.

Thanks for the correction

[Big Boy]

Today's new cases figure will contain an additional +877 prisons adjustment.

[PeteC]

More details when published.

COVID-19 in Thailand Update (May 15, 2021)
.
As of Saturday, 1,234 (+31) patients are in critical condition, with 415 (+7) of them relying on ventilator. About 1.16 percent of the population is fully vaccinated, with 1,445,428 (+28,996) people received the first dose, while 772,992 (+64,692) received the second dose.

php4RGYE9PM.jpg (63.46 KiB) Viewed 183 times

[joelle]

Each province's daily domestic COVID-19 cases update in Thailand on  Saturday 15th May
FB link for reference: https://www.facebook.com/nbtworld

[Big Boy]

A rather long Daily Brief today:

[PeteC]

17 new Covid deaths, 3,095 new cases

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... -new-cases

Seventeen Covid-19 deaths and 3,095 new cases were reported on Saturday, bringing the total to 565 fatalities and 99,145 cases.

Of the new cases, 877 were found in prisons, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).

Since the third Covid wave began in early April, total cases have reached 70,282. Of these, 36,241 have recovered, including 1,351 discharged on Friday.

Eight of the 17 people whose deaths were reported were in Bangkok, three in Samut Prakan, two in Samut Sakhon, and one each in Rayong, Chaiyaphum, Pathum Thani and Ratchaburi.

The deceased were aged 41-83, or 62 on average. Nine of them were men, said Taweesilp Visanuyothin, the CCSA spokesman.

Eleven of them had high blood pressure and seven had diabetes. Other existing health conditions were high cholesterol, chronic kidney disease, chronic lung disease and alcoholism. Three had said that to their knowledge they did not have any existing conditions, according to Dr Taweesilp.

Five of those who died are believed to have contracted the infection from family members, and four others from friends. Three had visited crowded places such as markets and hospitals. Two had been to high-risk areas. Another two had high-risk professions — driving taxis and selling goods at a construction camp. The risk could not be identified for the other case.

Of the 3,095 new cases over the past 24 hours, 3,092 were local infections — 1,403 confirmed at hospitals, 812 through active case finding and 877 at prisons. The remaining three cases were overseas arrivals.

The prison outbreaks have been particularly worrisome, given that the Corrections Department had said nothing about them until a pro-democracy activist who was recently freed on bail said she had contracted Covid while behind bars.

The department denied the assertion by Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul, but was forced to concede on Wednesday that it had uncovered a total of 2,835 cases at Bangkok’s two main prisons — Bangkok Remand Prison and the Central Women’s Correctional Institution — since the start of April. The figures had not been reported previously to central authorities tallying the daily figures.

Bangkok on Friday logged the most new cases (1,163), followed by Pathum Thani (222), Samut Prakan (201), Nonthaburi (126), Samut Sakhon (37), Surat Thani (34), Chon Buri (33), Nakhon Pathom (30), Ayutthaya (29) and Nakhon Si Thammarat (24), said Dr Taweesilp.

Sixteen provinces were free of cases in the past 24 hours. They were Lamphun, Maha Sarakham, Surin, Trat, Tak, Kamphaeng Phet, Chumphon, Phayao, Loei, Chai Nat, Mae Hong Son, Mukdahan, Nong Bua Lamphu, Bung Kan, Uthai Thani and Satun.

The three imported cases were Thai returnees from Cambodia — an IT professional, 23, who entered the country via a natural border pass, a restaurant employee (48) and a freelancer (21).

Of the 99,145 Covid cases to date, 63,667 (64.2%) have recovered, including 1,351 who were discharged from hospitals in the past 24 hours.

Of the 34,913 patients in hospitals, 1,234 are in critical condition and 415 are dependent on ventilators.

Global Covid-19 cases rose by 692,023 in the past 24 hours to 162.52 million, as the World Health Organization warned that this year would be “far more deadly” than last year despite good signs of progress in many countries.

The worldwide death toll went up on Friday by 12,537 to 3.37 million. India logged the most daily infections at 326,123 new cases for a total of 24.37 million.

Thailand ranked 93rd globally in the number of total cases, Dr Taweesilp said.

[buksida]

Top researchers are calling for a real investigation into the origin of covid-19
A year ago, the idea that the covid-19 pandemic could have been caused by a laboratory accident was denounced as a conspiracy theory by the world’s leading journals, scientists, and news organizations.

But the origin of the virus that has killed millions remains a mystery, and the chance that it came from a lab has become the theory that cannot be put to rest.

Now, in a letter in the journal Science, 18 prominent biologists—including the world’s foremost coronavirus researcher—are lending their weight to calls for a new investigation of all possible origins of the virus, and calling on China’s laboratories and agencies to “open their records” to independent analysis.

“We must take hypotheses about both natural and laboratory spillovers seriously until we have sufficient data,” the scientists write.

The letter, which was organized by the Stanford University microbiologist David Relman and the University of Washington virologist Jesse Bloom, takes aim at a recent joint study of covid origins undertaken by the World Health Organization and China, which concluded that a bat virus likely reached humans via an intermediate animal and that a lab accident was “extremely unlikely.”

https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/0 ... ts-letter/