CHIANG RAI: Three more Thai returnees from entertainment places in Myanmar's border town of Tachilek were confirmed infected with the novel coronavirus on Thursday, raising the total number of Covid-19 cases in the northernmost province to 37.
Chiang Rai governor Prachon Pratsakul said two were women, aged 28 an 29, and one was a man, aged 33 .
The women entered quarantine last Friday, and the man on Sunday.
The governor said nobody had been in close contact with them. They were admitted to Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital.
Of the 37 Covid-19 cases in Chiang Rai, two had recovered and were discharged from hospital. Two more patients were expected to be released on Friday, Mr Prachon said.
As of Wednesday, the number of Covid-19 cases coming from or related to Tachilek stood at 46. The new cases raised the number to 49.
Health authorities said the 1G1-7 hotel and entertainment complex in Tachilek, a hotspot of infection, was closed on Nov 24 and hundreds of Thais who worked there had to return home.
Many of them sneaked back across the border to Chiang Rai, dodging quarantine, and some of them travelled to other provinces.
The health minister has condemned them as being irresponsible and causing a public scare, frightening off tourists who had planned to visit the upper North during the high season.
Health authorities have been at pains to explain the huge effort being put into detecting infected returnees and people who have been in close contact with them, and to fully contain the outbeak from Tachilek.