Thai officials debunk netizens' claims of coronavirus deaths
Amid widespread concern over the coronavirus spreading, netizens are trying to raise awareness of the situation but some are causing panic by peddling false information, senior officials said.
Wing Commander Suthirawat Suwanawat, general manager of Suvarnabhumi Airport, referred to a recent photo that was widely shared online, showing an unconscious Chinese man who had dropped to the ground from his chair at the airport. The man, according to social media posts, is believed to have died of infection by the new coronavirus and that was the reason ground officers were not allowing people to take a photo of the incident.
Suthirawat explained that the incident had occurred on January 27. The airport officer who responded to the incident took the unconscious Chinese man to hospital where they found high alcohol levels in his blood. Other officers had stopped people from taking photos of the man because of the airport’s regulations.
Meanwhile, in another case in Chiang Mai, a female Chinese tourist was found dead in her hotel room (January 29). Initially, it was reported that her death was not linked to the coronavirus.
Thongchai Lertwilairatanapong, Inspector General Region 1 of the Public Health Ministry, said a special medical crew was sent to take custody of her body. The 32-year-old woman had come from Guangdong province of China. She had taken a direct flight to Chiang Mai with her friends. The four witnesses [her friends] said that she had not shown any signs of sickness but revealed that she had been drinking since the previous evening. All her friends were examined and they tested negative for the new coronavirus. The body of the deceased woman will go through autopsy while the four people who were close to her will be closely monitored until the real cause of the death is found.