The number of daily Covid-19 cases in Bangkok has surged from 400 to 700, nearly twice the number of cases reported before the Songkran festival.
Wantanee Watana, deputy City Clerk at the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), says the situation could worsen as some cases in the capital may not have been reported to the authorities or are still being recorded, with the number of daily cases potentially rising to 1,000 per day.
Dr Wantanee has advised people not to worry about the resurgence of infections since most new cases were found to be older sub-variants, not the new Omicron sub-variant XBB.1.16, of which 27 cases have been reported so far. It is not a concern just yet.
Nonetheless, Dr Wantanee recommends senior citizens and those with chronic conditions receive the bivalent vaccines, such as Pfizer, Moderna, or AstraZeneca, as a booster shot or for initial vaccination.
These vaccines are available for free from the BMA, and at Vajira Hospital and 69 other public centres across the city, she said.
Meanwhile, a homeless man who tested positive for the virus was found dead on Saturday in front of a bank in the Tha Phra Chan area of Bangkok, said Pol Lt Yosita Harikul, deputy inspector of Chana Songkhram police station.
Police could not identify the man, who was thought to be in his 50s, as no ID documents were found on him. A preliminary autopsy result showed pneumonia was likely to be the cause of his death.
The body will be sent to Vajira Hospital's forensic department for a further examination, said Pol Lt Yosita.
