A record 75 Covid-19 fatalities and 7,058 new cases were reported on Thursday, as the continuing surge in Covid-19 cases spread to provinces throughout the kingdom.
There were new 6,990 cases in the general population and 68 among prison inmates reported on Wednesday, the Ministry of Public Health said.
Over the past 24 hours, 4,978 Covid-19 patients were diagnosed recovered and were discharged from hospitals.
Since April 1, around when the third wave of Covid-19 began, there have been 279,367 Covid-19 patients, 208,723 of whom have recovered.
Since the pandemic started early last year, there have been 308,230 Covid-19 cases, 236,149 of whom recovered.
The death toll was at 2,368 in the third wave and 2,462 from the beginning of the pandemic early last year.
The previous high of daily Covid-19 fatalities was at 61 last Friday when the country logged 6,087 new infections.
Apisamai Srirangson, a spokeswoman for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, said in the afternoon briefing that the 75 new fatalities were aged 33-94 years. One was Chinese and the rest Thais.
Thirty-eight fatalities had hypertension but nine had no chronic illness. Seventeen either lived or visited outbreak areas and 16 caught the virus from other family members.
Bangkok had the most new fatalities at 38. There nine more deaths in Samut Prakan, four each in Narathiwat and Pathum Thani, three each in Nakhon Pathom and Yala, two each in Chaiyaphum, Songkhla and Uthai Thani and one each in Chachoengsao, Saraburi, Nakhon Ratchasima, Pattani, Buri Ram, Samut Songkhram, Suphan Buri and Ayuttyaya.
The 7,058 new cases over the past 24 hours included 6,981 local infections and nine imported cases. Of the local infections, 5,249 were confirmed at hospitals and 1,732 via mass testing.
Bangkok logged 2,212 new cases, followed by 565 in Samut Prakan, 517 in Samut Sakhon, 290 in Chon Buri, 229 in Pathum Thani, 213 in Songkhla, 180 in Nonthaburi, 175 in Pattani, 150 in Prachuap Khiri Khan and 146 in Yala.
Dr Apisamai said that Covid-19 infected people travelling from Greater Bangkok were found in provinces nationwide over the past 24 hours.
Bangkok now had 121 clustersm including 15 where there had not been a new case over the past 14 days. Home isolation and community isolation would be implemented for asymptomatic patients and those with mild symptoms in the capital, Dr Apisamai said.
Phetchaburi had a new cluster of 15 cases at an auto parts company in Khao Yoi district and Lop Buri had a new cluster of 14 cases at a wholesale market in Kaeng Khoi district. The nine imported cases were from Malaysia (4), Myanmar (2), Indonesia, Bahrain and Cambodia.
On Wednesday, 69,619 people received Covid-19 treatment at hospitals. They included 2,564 people with lung inflammation and 698 of them (27%) were dependent on ventilators, including 313 in Bangkok, Dr Apisamai said.
Global Covid-19 cases rose by 454,244 in 24 hours to 185.84 million. The worldwide death toll went up by 8,269 to 4.02 million. The United States had the most cases at 34.64 million, up 16,429, and the most deaths at 621,873, up 244.
Dr Apisamai said the numbers of new cases were rising quickly in Thailand and nearby countries due to Covid-19 variants.
