COVID-19 SATURDAY UPDATE: Provincial Totals By Neill FrondeSaturday, November 6, 2021 15:25. The Thaiger

COVID-19 SATURDAY UPDATE: Provincial Totals

By 

Neill Fronde

Saturday, November 6, 2021 15:25

Today, the CCSA reported 8,467 new Covid-19 infections, up 317 since yesterday, and 69 Coronavirus-related deaths, down 11 from yesterday. Since April 1, in the latest wave of the virus in Thailand, a total of 1,931,166 confirmed Covid-19 infections have been reported.

In the 24 hour period since the last count, the CCSA has reported 8,288 recoveries, up 50 from yesterday. There are now 97,410 people currently receiving treatment for Covid-19, down 60 from yesterday, including 2,054 in the ICU and 447 on ventilators.

Of the new Covid-19 infections, 880 were found in correctional facilities, 189 were identified by community testing, and 7,385 were uncovered by walk-in testing. 3,300 antigen test kits were used, though their results are officially considered inconclusive.

COVID-19 VACCINATIONS

While the official figures from the Department of Disease Control have been changed and revised frequently, with daily figures sometimes being changed by hundreds of thousands of vaccines, the below represents the most current information on Covid-19 vaccinations the DDC has released, however accurate it may be.

Yesterday surpassed 79 million total vaccines administered in Thailand, with 33.1 million people fully vaccinated and 43.38 million receiving their first dose only, while nearly 2.56 million people have received Covid-19 booster shots so far.

OTHER COVID-19 NEWS

• Paxlovid by Pfizer reduces Covid-19 hospitalisation, death by 89%
• Thailand now equipped to perform 120,000 RT-PCR tests daily
• Covid-19 subsiding in Philippines drops capital region to Alert Level 2
• UPDATED: 40 Covid-19 infections prompt closure of Mukdahan school
• Workers returning from provinces can get second, third vaccine doses in Bangkok
• Government approves budget of over 3.6 billion baht for Thai vaccine development

COVID-19 PROVINCIAL TOTALS

As Thailand's reopening gets underway, the country focuses on Covid-19 infections in tourist provinces. Phuket saw no new deaths and 62 new infections in the last 24 hours, with one new Sandbox infection and 2 new Test & Go cases, but none in other entry schemes. A total of 15,542 total infections and 123 deaths (included 55 in September and 44 in October) have been recorded in the provinces since the start of the third wave in April. Hospitalisations have dropped to 651 people, steadily declining.

Chon Buri has seen falling numbers as well, down for the 1,000 range last month to just 294 in the last 24 hours, though there were 3 new deaths, all between 65 and 92 years old. 1,227 people were released from medical care with 5,116 still remaining. 730 people total have died in the third wave of Covid-19 with 102,993 total infections. Some key tourist provincial totals over the past week:

With a surge in Covid-19 infections in the correctional facilities throughout Thailand, the prison system that is calculated separately from other infections is the most infected "province" in today's update, surpassing Bangkok.

Nong Bua Lamphu was the only province without any new Covid-19 in today's report, and of note, Mae Hong Son, the province with the least Covid-19 in Thailand with an average of 21 infections per day in the last 2 months, has seen a spike this week with 2 days in the 100 range. The provinces with the highest number of new Covid-19 infections over the last 24 hours are as follows:

	PROVINCE	TODAY	FROM YESTERDAY	TOTAL
5	Prisons	880	▲	77,056
1	Bangkok	809	▲	403,955
28	Chiang Mai	487	▲	18,807
7	Songkhla	462	▼	49,972
16	Nakhon Si Thammarat	449	▲	32,051
10	Pattani	437	▲	39,621
8	Yala	321	▼	42,711
3	Chonburi	294	▼	103,000
12	Narathiwat	218	▲	37,624
2	Samut Prakan	197	▼	123,810

Full provincial Covid-19 figures are below:

RANK	CENTRAL PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
1	Bangkok	809	▲	403,955
2	Samut Prakan	197	▼	123,810
4	Samut Sakhon	48	▼	92,768
6	Nonthaburi	110	▲	57,493
11	Pathum Thani	68	▲	38,562
14	Nakhon Pathom	34	▼	33,754
17	Saraburi	84	▲	30,266
18	Ayutthaya	98	▲	29,855
32	Lopburi	53	▼	16,573
37	Nakhon Sawan	87	▲	14,722
38	Suphan Buri	35	▲	13,305
43	Ang Thong	11	▲	10,672
44	Samut Songkhram	31	▲	10,442
45	Nakhon Nayok	18	▲	10,389
46	Phetchabun	35	▲	10,096
52	Kamphaeng Phet	8	▲	7,769
55	Phitsanulok	81	▼	6,409
56	Sukhothai	18	▲	5,849
60	Phichit	28	▲	4,911
67	Uthai Thani	3	▲	3,126
68	Sing Buri	15	▼	2,988
72	Chai Nat	15	▼	2,521
RANK	EASTERN PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
3	Chonburi	294	▼	103,000
9	Rayong	148	▲	42,110
15	Chachoengsao	87	▼	33,004
20	Prachinburi	137	▼	23,036
26	Chanthaburi	122	▼	19,396
36	Sa Kaeo	95	▲	14,762
53	Trat	54	▲	7,728
RANK	NORTHERN PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
28	Chiang Mai	487	▲	18,807
62	Chiang Rai	47	▲	4,488
63	Uttaradit	8	▲	4,287
70	Lamphun	10	▼	2,815
71	Lampang	25	▲	2,732
73	Nan	2	▼	2,465
75	Phayao	7	▼	2,116
77	Phrae	8	▲	1,831
78	Mae Hong Son	40	▼	1,798
RANK	NORTHEASTERN PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
19	Nakhon Ratchasima	80	▲	29,658
25	Khon Kaen	191	▲	19,462
27	Ubon Ratchathani	71	▲	19,268
29	Udon Thani	132	▲	18,352
30	Buriram	73	▲	16,912
31	Surin	31	▲	16,884
33	Sisaket	21	▼	16,270
40	Roi Et	14	▲	12,659
42	Maha Sarakham	27	▲	10,921
47	Chaiyaphum	21	▼	10,015
50	Kalasin	31	▲	9,161
54	Sakon Nakhon	18	▲	7,706
57	Yasothon	2	▼	5,330
61	Nakhon Phanom	3	▲	4,885
64	Nong Bua Lamphu	0	▼	4,242
65	Nong Khai	33	▼	3,990
66	Loei	31	▲	3,892
69	Amnat Charoen	4	▲	2,935
74	Mukdahan	15	▲	2,335
76	Bueng Kan	9	▼	2,058
RANK	SOUTHERN PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
7	Songkhla	462	▼	49,972
8	Yala	321	▼	42,711
10	Pattani	437	▲	39,621
12	Narathiwat	218	▲	37,624
16	Nakhon Si Thammarat	449	▲	32,051
24	Surat Thani	151	▼	19,883
35	Phuket	62	▲	15,185
39	Chumphon	66	▼	12,986
41	Trang	185	▼	12,419
48	Ranong	7	•	9,450
49	Phatthalung	116	▼	9,250
51	Krabi	94	▲	8,167
58	Satun	96	▼	5,253
59	Phang Nga	90	•	5,103
RANK	WESTERN PROVINCES	TODAY		TOTAL
13	Ratchaburi	170	▲	37,670
21	Phetchaburi	84	▼	22,538
22	Tak	123	▼	21,929
23	Kanchanaburi	97	▲	21,305
34	Prachuap Khiri Khan	82	▼	16,031
RANK	PRISONS	TODAY		TOTAL
5	Prisons	880	▲	77,056

SOURCE: CCSA

Asia tourism reopens with big-spending Chinese citizens stuck at home. The pandemic has cost Thailand an estimated US$50 billion a year in tourism revenue and Chinese were above-average spenders based on tourism ministry data. Thailand hopes to receive 180,000 foreign tourists this year, a fraction of around 40 million it received in 2019, as it opened places beyond Phuket to tourists on Monday. channelnewsasia.com



Asia tourism reopens with big-spending Chinese citizens stuck at home

Asia's gradual easing of international travel curbs is proving a welcome relief for the region's hard-hit tourism operators slowly opening up to visitors from around the world - with one giant exception.

China, previously the world's largest outbound tourism market, is keeping international air capacity at just 2 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and has yet to relax tight travel restrictions as it sticks to zero tolerance for COVID-19.

That has left a US$255 billion annual spending hole in the global tourism market for operators such as Thailand's Laguna Phuket to try and fill.

Managing director Ravi Chandran says Laguna Phuket's five resorts have shifted their marketing focus to Europe, the United States and United Arab Emirates to make up for the loss of Chinese visitors, who accounted for 25-30 per cent of its pre-COVID business.

"Up to today, we have not done significant marketing or promotion in China ... because we don't feel anything coming our way," Chandran said.

The pandemic has cost Thailand an estimated US$50 billion a year in tourism revenue and Chinese were above-average spenders based on tourism ministry data. Thailand hopes to receive 180,000 foreign tourists this year, a fraction of around 40 million it received in 2019, as it opened places beyond Phuket to tourists on Monday.

Related:

Many experts expect China to keep such stringent measures such as up to a three-week quarantine for those returning home until at least the second quarter of next year and possibly then open gradually on a country-by-country basis.

"Destinations have to identify new source markets and learn how to market and cater to different cultures," Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Chief Executive Liz Ortiguera said, citing the Maldives as a rare example of a successful pivot during the pandemic.

The string of islands in the Indian Ocean promoted itself heavily at trade shows and attracted more Russian and Indian visitors to its luxury resorts and sparkling waters.

China had been its greatest source of tourists before the pandemic but the Maldives saw overall arrivals in the first nine months of 2021 fall just 12 per cent versus the same period of 2019.

CHINA TOURISM EVOLVES

Travel data firm ForwardKeys estimates it will take until 2025 for Chinese outbound travel to recover to pre-pandemic levels. That will also force airlines to re-evaluate their routes given its data shows 38 per cent of Chinese tourists took foreign carriers in 2019.

Even as Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia's Bali gradually open up for international travellers, Thai Airways and Garuda Indonesia are drastically shrinking their fleets as part of restructuring plans amid the absence of Chinese tourists.

Related:

When China does open its borders, industry surveys show a reluctance by many to travel internationally due to COVID-19 fears.

There has also been a boom in domestic holidays to Hainan Island which now offers duty-free shopping in a threat to future visits to nearby destinations such as Hong Kong and South Korea.

"I honestly do not have much enthusiasm for international travel," said Kat Qi, 29, a researcher in Beijing who travelled to Southeast Asia and Britain before the pandemic. "A lot of places that I wanted to visit are in less developed countries with gorgeous natural scenery and they tend to be the least vaccinated countries."

Her preference for natural scenery is also a trend emerging in surveys of Chinese travellers. Many are focused on the outdoors at a time when domestic camping holidays have become popular and tourism operators will need to adapt accordingly, experts say.

"The market will have changed so the Chinese people travelling in 2022 will be different from the Chinese travelling in 2019," said Wolfgang Georg Arlt, CEO of the China Outbound Tourism Research Institute. "I think the trends will go away from this shopping and rushing around."

Large group tours that have also fallen out of favour on domestic trips could also be a thing of the past, to be replaced by independent travel and smaller customised tours with family and friends, said Sienna Parulis-Cook, director of marketing and communications at advisory firm Dragon Tail International.

"You might have organised travel and everything but it would be with a small group of people that you know, rather than 50 strangers on a tour bus," she said.

Source: Reuters/gs

Vaccination update November 6th



TOPIC: Is it still mandatory to wear a mask when outside? https://bit.ly/3wkhzzJ



The Chonburi Department of Public Health announced 294 new and confirmedcases of Covid-19 today with 3 new deaths, November 6th. Pattaya News

Chonburi announces 294 new and confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 3 new deaths

Saturday, 6 November 2021, 11:02

PHOTO: Post Today

Highlights:

• 294 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Chonburi today

• 1,227 people recovered and were released from medical care

• 3 new deaths

The Chonburi Department of Public Health announced 294 new and confirmedcases of Covid-19 today with 3 new deaths, November 6th.

This makes a total of 102,993 cases of Covid-19 in the current round of infections, with 5,116 people still under medical care/supervision, and with a total of 730 recorded deaths in Chonburi since the start of this recent round of infections in early April.

Additionally, 1,227 people were also released and recovered yesterday in Chonburi. 98,083 people in total have now been released from medical care and recovered in Chonburi since this current wave of Covid-19 began.

As for the three new deaths yesterday, they were elders aged between 65 to 92. They were close contacts from previously confirmed cases in families according to the Chonburi Department of Public Health. They all had chronic health problems and were not vaccinated.

The district-level new cases were as follows today:

Mueang Chonburi 86, Si Racha 78, Banglamung (Pattaya) 51, Panat Nikhom 15, Sattahip 17, Ban Bueang 4, Phan Thong 8, Bor Thong 5, Ko Chan 2, and 28 people transferred from other provinces for medical care

The details on the cases are as follows:

1. Work and stayed in Rayong, transferred from other provinces for medical care, 28 cases
2. Cluster, Giantlok (Thailand) company in Si Racha, 12 cases
3. Cluster, Buathong Concrete company in Si Racha, 5 cases
4. Cluster, Canadian Solar Manufacturing Company in Si Racha, 5 cases
5. Cluster Denzo group company in Phan Thong, 8 cases
6. Risky occupations meet with many people, 7 cases
7. 2 medical personal
8. Risky occupations meet with many people, Chachoensao – 3 cases, Bangkok – 1 case and Samut Sakorn – 1 case
9. Close contacts from previous confirmed cases in families – 87 cases, in workplaces – 68 cases, close friends – 10 cases and joined party – 1 case
10. Close contact of a confirmed patient (under investigation), 10 cases
11. 47 cases in general are under investigation as to how they contracted Covid-19

AZ tops list of 78m jabs given Some 78 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered to the public and the number will hit 80 million within a few days, according to the Public Health Ministry. Bangkok Post





AZ tops list of 78m jabs given

Some 78 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered to the public and the number will hit 80 million within a few days, according to the Public Health Ministry.

Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, director-general of the Disease Control Department (DCD), said yesterday that 43.4 million doses were administered as the first jab, accounting for 60% of the population, 35.4% for the second dose and 3.5% for the third.

"We expect the accumulated number will reach 80 million doses in one or two days," he said.

Of all the shots administered so far, 34.4 million doses were AstraZeneca, 24.5 million were Sinovac, 12.7 million were Sinopharm and 6.5 million were Pfizer.

Dr Opas said 77% of the high-risk group -- people aged 60 years or more and those with a chronic illness -- have received their first jab and 64% have had two shots.

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) designated seven provinces as maximum control and strict zones (dark-red) on Oct 29, with 38 provinces named maximum control zones (red), 23 named control zones (orange), five as high surveillance zones (yellow) and four as surveillance and tourist-oriented zones (blue).

Dr Opas said the infection rate in Bangkok and southern provinces has been reduced, notably in Yala and Narathiwat. But people in Songkhla and Pattani must stay vigilant.

Six provinces -- Nakhon Si Thammarat, Chiang Mai, Rayong, Chanthaburi, Tak, and Khon Kaen -- need close monitoring because of a rising number of Covid-19 infections, Dr Opas said.

Dr Sumanee Wacharasint, director of the DCD's Risk Communication and Health Behavioral Development Bureau, said the country logged 8,148 new Covid-19 cases yesterday with 80 new deaths.

Bangkok had the most infections with 721 cases, followed by Songkhla (498), Pattani (427), Chiang Mai (403), Yala (375), Chon Buri (348), Nakhon Si Thammarat (294), Samut Prakan (244), Narathiwat (213) and Trang (205), Dr Sumanee said.

The CCSA has lifted the curfew and allowed dine-in services with the sale of alcoholic drinks at restaurants passed by the Safety & Health Administration until 9pm in the blue zones -- Bangkok, Krabi, Phangnga and Phuket. 

Bangkok Post highlights 6/11



Visitors Top 10 November 1st - 4th.



Covid19 update November 6th



Vaccination update November 5th

 

The movement of people within Thailand will be a major problem for the government and its Covid measures as the country slowly opens up, a source in the health ministry told Thai Enquirer on Friday. “It is true that 70 per cent of Bangkok has at least one shot of the vaccine but that is not true for the rest of the country,” said a senior official at the Ministry of Public health on condition of anonymity. “You have areas inside the country that haven’t even reached 50 per cent in terms of having a first shot”. Thai Enquirer



Internal migration will be a major hurdle in Covid fight

November 5, 2021

The movement of people within Thailand will be a major problem for the government and its Covid measures as the country slowly opens up, a source in the health ministry told Thai Enquirer on Friday.

Thailand has opened its doors to vaccinated tourists since November 1 in a bid to kickstart the economy and save the troubled hospitality sector.

And even though no incoming tourist has tested positive for Covid-19 year, the major hurdle will be the internal movement taking place inside the country to support the country's reopening.

"It is true that 70 per cent of Bangkok has at least one shot of the vaccine but that is not true for the rest of the country," said a senior official at the Ministry of Public health on condition of anonymity.

"You have areas inside the country that haven't even reached 50 per cent in terms of having a first shot," the source told Thai Enquirer by phone. "And there are internal migrants who went back home after their jobs were lost during the pandemic."

"Once things open up again, these workers will return to the capital and other urban areas to find work and that could become a major source of the outbreak."

On Friday, Thailand saw 8,148 new cases and 80 deaths. According to the source at the ministry, that number is likely to increase unless the government strictly enforces the "sandbox zones" and steps up its vaccination program.

"I am not worried at all about the incoming tourists. They are vaccinated, they will be okay. What worries me is that these sandbox zones were suppose to be exclusive but so far there has been free travel throughout the country," the source said.

"That means the disease is going to spread and fast unless we step up vaccination and strictly quarantine those province whose vaccination rates have lagged behind."