The southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat is experiencing a surge in Covid-19 infections, with almost 1,500 new cases logged on Thursday.
According to a report on the number of daily Covid-19 infections released by the Nakhon Si Thammarat Provincial Public Health Office, 750 cases were detected via RT-PCR testing and 686 cases from ATK tests on Thursday, totalling 1,436.
Health officials let those who tested positive but were asymptomatic undergo home isolation while the rest were asked to receive medication at hospitals, the report said.
The bulk of the infections were found in Muang, Thung Song, Tha Sala, Bang Khan, Ron Phibun, Chulabhorn and Sichon districts, it said.
Charasphong Sukkree, chief of the provincial public health office, said 80% of the new infections were identified as the Omicron variant, and it had mostly spread among family members.
"Before that, we were more concerned about it spreading within gambling circles, at ordination ceremonies, funerals and marriage ceremonies," he said.
"But from this January, Omicron has been prevalent and it's hard to trace the origin, especially as many cases are asymptomatic. When people contract the virus, it spreads quickly among their family members."
Over 320 schools in the province had decided to resume onsite studying but many recently decided to close down given spiralling infection rates, Dr Charasphong said.
Meanwhile, in Nakhon Sawan, Sangsawan school in Muang district decided to cancel onsite classes on Thursday after 38 students were found to be infected. The school had to close itself down to quarantine 60 staff and students on its premises.
According to the Sangsawan Foundation, which manages the school, the Covid cases were first detected on Feb 11. It said the students will undergo school isolation, with infected students and staff placed in separate buildings from those who have tested negative.
Local residents responded on Thursday by donating food and other daily essentials outside the school gates.
According to a daily report by the Nakhon Sawan Provincial Public Health Office, 240 Covid-19 cases were detected on Wednesday. The accumulated cases stood at 22,318 with 242 deaths reported.
