Phuket sandbox, Samui foreign tourists projects to continue despite increase in Covid cases
Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha is closely monitoring the Phuket sandbox and Samui Plus Model and ensuring that both projects continue despite rising new coronavirus cases in Phuket, Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, aecretary to the Prime Ministers Office, said.
Most of Covid-19 cases are of local people, workers at construction sites or those travelling across the province, he said. The new cases are not of foreign tourists travelling under this project, he added. Only 30 of the 13,281 foreign tourists who have come as part of the sandbox project were infected, he said.
However, Phuket province has increased screening measures for travel into Phuket, effective from August 3-16. The measure effectively limits travel in and out of the province for effective disease control and for the safety of all tourists and Phuket people, but does not close the sandbox project.
Surat Thani province found 54 cases of Covid-19 on Koh Samui, at a cluster of restaurants, which the province was able to control. He confirmed that the Samui Plus Model could continue as the infected group was not from the Samui Plus Model foreign tourists or from the sandbox foreign tourists who had travelled from Phuket.