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BANGKOK: Thailand confirmed 110 new COVID-19 infections on Saturday (December 26), of which 64 were local infections, related to an outbreak in the southwestern province of Samut Sakhon, the country’s worst coronavirus outbreak to date.
Of the new infections, 30 were among migrant workers and 16 were imported cases, Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesperson for the country’s COVID-19 task force, said in a briefing.
Thailand has a total of 6,020 confirmed cases and 60 deaths.
COVID-19 cases have risen significantly since an outbreak was detected last week among migrants from Myanmar working at a seafood market in Samut Sakhon, a province near the capital Bangkok. Millions of low-wage jobs in Thailand are filled by workers from less wealthy neighboring countries, especially Myanmar.
READ: Thailand’s government is confident that the COVID-19 outbreak is ‘controllable’
Since last Sunday, more than 1,000 migrant workers have tested positive for the virus, along with Thais who work or live near the seafood market, which supplies much of the country.
Contact trackers tracked potential cases by identifying the providers’ top customers, and some 10,000 people at risk were tested. Cases traced to the Samut Sakhon market have been found in 27 provinces, the government said.
The government said Thursday that it is confident it can contain a major resurgence of COVID-19 without a national lockdown, and instead relies on provincial controls as the outbreak, primarily among migrant workers, continues to spread.
“I can assure you that the government will do everything possible,” Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said in a live televised speech after a meeting of the government COVID-19 focal point.
“The Ministry of Public Health confirms that it is controllable if everyone cooperates.”
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