Covid fire in Thailand in Samut Sakhon province causes authorities to test thousands

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The outbreak began at a shrimp market in Samut Sakhon, a province southwest of Bangkok and a center of the seafood industry, home to thousands of migrant workers.

Four cases were reported there on Friday and that number rose to 689 by Sunday, the public health ministry said. Thailand had previously kept the epidemic under control, with about 5,000 Covid-19 cases.

“Today is just the first step,” Kiattiphum Wongrajit, the ministry’s permanent secretary, told a news conference. “Other results will show many more infections.”

He said up to 40,000 people would be tested in Samut Sakhon and nearby provinces, with more than 10,000 tests to be done by Wednesday.

Migrant workers, mostly from Myanmar, lined up for tests on Sunday, along with some Thais. Most of the cases identified so far have been asymptomatic, health officials said.

Barbed wire surrounded the market on Sunday, while Bangkok authorities ordered the closure of all schools in three districts of the capital that border Samut Sakhon, 45 kilometers (30 miles) away, by January 4th.

The province is to remain under blockade at night until January 3, and Kiattiphum said the ministry expects to control the situation in two to four weeks.

People are lining up to get the Covid-19 tests in Samut Sakhon, Thailand, on Sunday, December 20, 2020.

“We need to reduce the epidemic cycle”

Thailand, the first non-Chinese country to report Covid-19 cases, has so far reported only 60 coronavirus deaths among its 70 million inhabitants. This means that Thailand has one of the lowest per capita coronavirus mortality rates in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University.
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Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha posted on his Facebook account: “We will have to quickly reduce the epidemic cycle. We already have experience in managing it.”

Bangkok authorities have also called on people to step up preventive measures by avoiding rallies, while entertainment venues and restaurants must respect social distance.

New Year’s holiday organizers were asked to obtain official permission to move on, while companies were urged to make staff work from home, if possible.

Meanwhile, neighboring Cambodia has tightened requirements for people entering the country from Thailand.

Somsak Paneetatyasai, president of the Thai Shrimp Association, said the outbreak was bad news for shrimp exports, of which up to 30% came from Samut Sakhon. Thailand is one of the 10 largest shrimp exporters in the world.

An increase in the number of coronavirus cases is occurring as Thailand tries to revive a pandemic-ravaged tourism industry. On Thursday, Thailand eased restrictions to allow more foreign tourists to return.

At the end of March, when its number of cases rose to nearly 1,000, the Thai government declared a state of emergency and banned access to all non-resident aliens. The closure of the border has helped protect the country, but has also dealt a huge blow to its tourism sector, which, according to the World Bank, normally contributes almost 15% of Thailand’s GDP.

Additional reports by CNC Kocha Olarn and Nectar Gan.

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