BANGKOK: Thailand witnessed a new record in daily COVID-19 cases and deaths over the last 24 hours, with the number of new cases breaching the 10,000 mark with 141 deaths in a single day.
Thailand recorded 10,082 cases, bringing the total infections to 391,989 cases and 3,240 fatalities.
Looking at the numbers, the kingdom imposed a nationwide ban on public gatherings, a day before anti-government protesters set to gather in the capital to repeat their demand for a change in leadership and better management of the COVID-19 crisis.
Published in Royal Gazette, effective today those who flout the ban will be slapped with maximum penalty of a two-year jail term or a fine of up to 40,000 baht or both.
However, gatherings limited to five persons only still allowed in Bangkok and five surrounding provinces - Nakhon Pathom, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan and Samut Sakhon,.
Fueled by the highly contagious Alpha and Delta variants since early April, Thailand is battling its worst COVID-19 outbreak yet.
Starting July 12, Thailand imposed stringent measures in Bangkok and nine provinces including curfews between 9 pm to 4 am, closure of malls and some businesses to curb the rapid surge of COVID-19 infections. However, the number of COVID-19 daily cases and fatalities remain high.
Meanwhile, police and armed forces have joined hands with Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to step up active case detection in the capital city.
A total of 200 teams will be conducting door-to-door COVID-19 test in the worst-hit parts of the city.
Following the rapid surge of COVID-19 cases, members of public have been rushing to COVID-19 testing centres in Bangkok and nearby provinces creating long queues and compromising on personal safety measures, sparking fears of new clusters breaking out.
Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) said of the 10,082 new cases, a total of 10,040 were local transmissions and 42 imported cases.
It said the new fatalities involved 73 men, 68 women aged between 24 and 96 years old.
Bangkok, the epicentre of the latest outbreak, topped the list with the highest number of cases at 2,302 new cases and 71 fatalities.
-- BERNAMA
Bernama
Sat Jul 17 2021
Locals waiting for COVID-19 vaccine at Wat Khlong Toei School in Bangkok. Bangkok Metropolitan Administration aims to vaccinate 50,000 people in the Khlong Toei district after health authorities detected a new cluster in the area. - BERNAMA filepic
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