The news follows the Bangkok office of the Public Relations Department (PR Bangkok) posting a timeline of the man’s movements while on holiday in the country, showing that he stayed three days in Phuket, staying at the Sri Panwa resort on Cape Panwa.
Although the man exited Thailand on Mar 4, PR Bangkok posted the timeline of his movements within the country – and confirmation that he was now considered as COVID-positive when he left the country – only yesterday (Mar 11).
The man was identified only as Case 951, reported PR Bangkok, citing that the information of the man’s movements were provided by the Health Department of Bangkok
The man was cleared to travel freely within the country after he tested negative for the virus on Jan 26, the last day of his mandatory quarantine, said the report.
From Jan 26 to Feb 16, the man stayed in the Silom area of Bangkok and sometimes went shopping at a nearby convenience store.
On Feb 17, he took a morning flight with AirAsia to Phuket and was taken to the Sri Panwa resort located on Cape Panwa by taxi, the report added.
On Feb 18, the man stayed in the resort all day, and on Feb 19 he returned to Bangkok on an afternoon flight with AirAsia. After landing in Bangkok, he drove by himself back to his accommodation.
From Feb 20 to 28, the man was back staying in Silom, stepping out only to do some shopping at a nearby convenience store, the report said.
On Mar 1, the man went to a hospital to be tested for COVID-19 again, as part of his requirements for re-entering the United States, the report noted.
On Mar 2, the test result was deemed inconclusive and the hospital staff called him to be tested again. This time the test was deemed to be negative, and the man returned to his place of accommodation in Silom, the report explained.
The next day, Mar 3, the man boarded a flight back to the US.
However, on Mar 4, officers from the Department of Medical Sciences reviewed the results of the man’s second test and have now recorded the test result as positive, PR Bangkok reported.
The report did not indicate whether the Department of Medical Sciences believed the man had contracted the virus in Phuket or during the week that followed while the man was in Bangkok, or whether the revised test result was to be treated as absolutely conclusive.