Thailand logged 17,669 new cases and 165 deaths over the preceding 24 hours as reported by the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) yesterday.
Bangkok led the new transmissions with 3,963 cases, followed by Samut Sakhon (1,172), Nakhon Pathom (984), Chon Buri (982), Samut Prakan (810) and Nonthaburi (633).
More than half of the fatalities were registered in Bangkok and five neighbouring provinces.
The city reported the highest death toll at 58 followed by Samut Prakan (32), Pathum Thani (17), Nonthaburi (9) and Samut Sakhon (6).
Of the fatalities, 21 people died at home with 12 in Samut Prakan, seven in Pathum Thani and one each in Roi Et and Chachoengsao.
The previous high of daily COVID-19 fatalities was 141, reported on July 17. The previous daily record of 16,533 infections was reported on Wednesday.
Samut Sakhon reported four new factory clusters totalling 64 cases while a factory in Nakhon Pathom’s Sam Phran district recorded 621 cases.
Of the new daily cases, 17 infections were imported: six of them Thai nationals returning from Myanmar and four Thais from Malaysia.
The rest were foreign nationals arriving from Russia, the United States, Columbia, the United Kingdom and Myanmar.
Dr Suksan Kittisupakorn, director of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration’s Medical Office, said the BMA is expanding its capacity to treat moderate COVID-19 cases by having field hospitals receive COVID-19 patients with moderate symptoms.
The BMA-run field hospitals have 1,165 beds and were formerly used to treat asymptomatic COVID-19 patients.
He said more doctors and nurses have been assigned to the facilities and medical equipment for treatment of moderate cases has been provided.