The Covid-19 death toll rose by 39 to 1,146 while 3,886 new cases were added, bringing the total to 169,348 cases, the Public Health Ministry reported on Thursday morning.
Of the new cases, 2,656 were among the general public and 1,230 were found in prisons.
Over the past 24 hours, 3,626 Covid-19 patients recovered and were discharged from hospitals.
From April 1, the third wave of Covid-19 claimed 1,052 lives and 140,485 people were infected, 90,778 of whom recovered.
Taweesilp Visanuyothin, spokesman for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, said later in the afternoon that of the 39 new fatalities, 24 were in Bangkok, two each in Nonthaburi and Phuket and one each in Chon Buri, Chaiyaphum, Chiang Rai, Tak, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Bung Kan, Pattani, Samut Sakon, Sa Kaeo, Suphan Buri and Ang Thong.
They were 36-89 years old and 20 of them were men. Twenty-two of them had hypertension, 13 contracted Covid-19 from relatives and 10 had been to outbreak areas.
Of the 3,886 new Covid-19 cases over the past 24 hours, 2,607 were local infections in 53 provinces and 49 were imported cases.
Of the local infections, 1,362 were confirmed at hospitals and 1,245 via mass testing.
Bangkok logged 995 new cases, followed by 380 in Phetchaburi province, 336 in Nonthaburi, 232 in Samut Prakan, 92 in Trang, 76 in Samut Sakhon, 60 in Pathum Thani, 46 in Chon Buri, 40 in Chachoengsao and 31 each in Nakhon Pathom and Saraburi.
Dr Taweesilp said Bangkok had 50 active Covid-19 clusters in 33 districts, including two new clusters — JWS construction workers’ camp in Bang Sue district and Unicorn construction workers’ camp in Ratchathewi.
Phetchaburi province had a new cluster of 20 cases at a shoe factory in Khao Yoi district and Samut Prakan also had a new cluster of 64 cases at an aluminium factory in Phra Samut Chedi district.
Chachoengsao had a new cluster of six cases at dental-instrument factories in Muang and Bang Nam Prieo districts.
Provincial communicable disease committees were ordered to closely supervise disease-control measures at factories, especially those producing medical supplies, which were instrumental to disease control, Dr Taweesilp said.
“Closures are not an answer. Factories can continue with their operations in a bubble-and-seal manner. Though infected, workers can work and factories can continue running. Their symptoms are like those of a cold and those with severe symptoms can be excluded,” he said.
“This practice is possible as proven in Samut Sakhon province… We must continue to drive the economy.”
The 49 imported cases were arrivals from Africa (1), Russia (1), Kuwait (1), the United States (1), Myanmar (2), and Cambodia (43, including four illegal arrivals).
Global Covid-19 cases rose by 489,890 in 24 hours to 172.42 million. The worldwide death toll went up by 10,952 to 3.71 million.
India had 28.44 million cases, up 134,105, and 338,013, up 2,899. Brazil had 94,509 new cases for a total of 16.72 million and 2,394 new deaths for a toll of 467,706.
