JAKARTA - Thailand has recorded nine new local infection cases of COVID-19 related to the shrimp market. Local officials said the local transmission rate was the highest in the last seven months.
All nine cases relate to a shrimp market in Samut Sakhon province, near the capital Bangkok, with four infections reported on Friday, December 18.
The case started with a 67-year-old woman selling shrimp in the market who was confirmed to have been infected with COVID-19 before three of her family members also tested positive.
Regarding the number of local infection cases, Thai COVID-19 Task Force spokesperson Taweesin Wisanuyothin said that there is no need for regional quarantine regulations, but government steps will be increased if the number of new cases continues to rise.
"If the number of cases does not decrease tomorrow or after and becomes a cluster with no known origins, we will choose steps ranging from mild to strict to handle it," Taweesin said as quoted by Antara, Saturday, December 19.
Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the situation was not a cause for concern and as many as 2,000 people in the area had already undergone COVID-19 detection tests, and more tests would be carried out.
Local cases are mostly found in people who are undergoing quarantine after coming into close contact with patients infected with the corona virus. Today, most cases of COVID-19 in Thailand are imported cases.
The number of infections in Thailand stands at 4,331 cases alone, along with 60 deaths, but economic activity leaning on the tourism sector has been hit hard by the travel ban in effect since April.
On Thursday, December 16, Thailand began easing restrictions to allow more tourists to enter the country. The government predicts that around eight million foreign tourists will visit Thailand in 2021, after the 6.7 million tourists are expected to arrive this year. Meanwhile, in 2019, the record number of foreign tourists in Thailand reached 40 million people.
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