Bangkok bans alcohol for 10 days

This photo taken early on April 8, 2020 shows empty highways in Bangkok, amid a national curfew imposed to halt the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. (AFP photo)
This photo taken early on April 8, 2020 shows empty highways in Bangkok, amid a national curfew imposed to halt the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. (AFP photo)

Authorities in Bangkok have banned alcohol sales for a week and a half to help prevent social gatherings that could spread the virus that causes Covid-19.

The ban will be in effect from April 10 to April 20 and is the metropolitan region’s latest effort to contain a surge in infections since early March. The country as a whole is under a state of emergency and partial lockdown, including alcohol restrictions in other provinces.

“We ask that all of you cooperate,” Pongsakorn Kwanmuang, a spokesman for the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, said in a briefing Thursday. “We’re about to gain control over the spread of the virus.”

Thailand reported 54 additional novel coronavirus infections Thursday, among the smallest daily increases in recent weeks, taking the total to 2,423. Just over half the cases are in the capital.

The government postponed Songkran, the traditional New Year holiday due April 13 to April 15, until later in the year, but some people may still seek to celebrate.

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Vocabulary

  • ban: an official statement ordering people not to do, sell or use something - การห้าม
  • briefing: a meeting in which people receive information or instruction - การสรุปแบบสั้นๆ
  • celebrate: to do something enjoyable in order to show that an occasion or event is special - ฉลอง
  • cooperate: to work with other people to achieve a result that is good for everyone involved - ร่วมมือกัน
  • metropolitan: relating to a large city - เกี่ยวกับเมืองใหญ่
  • partial: in part, but not complete - บางส่วน
  • state of emergency: a dangerous situation in which the government takes on special powers and the rights of the people are often limited in some way - ภาวะฉุกเฉิน   
  • surge: a sudden increase in something - การเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างรวดเร็ว

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