Phuket Sandbox woes: 2 foreign Covid-19 cases, Delta variant

[PapayaBokBok]

31 minutes ago, Somchai said:

It is stupid to let in unvaccinated children without quarantine !  Kids can spread the virus as much of adults!

This! Hey Honey Ive got an idea lets take our unvaccinated kids on a holiday to a country that is exploding with covid!  Great I'll start packing! 

And the award for parents of the year goes to........well at least they now have some time to reflect on it....

Besides we all know how clean kids are when it comes to carrying germs--like a tiny walking virus.....smh

[Bangkok_Gary]

"Unlike international flight passengers, those coming by land are not quarantined on arrival  .... " Rolling on the floor laughing my @ss off.

Edited July 10, 2021 by Bangkok_Gary

[LaughingOutLoud]

The whole "Sandbox" scheme will fail.  This is just the start.  By end of August expect it to be cancelled.  10s of thousands of Covid cases, THOUSANDS of deaths.  And for what, to enrich the ultra rich?  The ones who own pharmaceutical companies and 5 star sea view resorts?

Been here 23 years.  Thais cannot get themselves out of a wet paper bag without foreign assistance because ALL the institutions in Thailand are greedy, corrupt and self serving.

But hey, makes for great news!  

 

 

[English]

After struggling to get all the documentation sorted to come to the Sandbox, I finally got my CofE approved. But now I am having second thoughts. Forcing you to quarantine and pay for an ALQ hotel for 14 days even when testing negative. This is the whole point of the vaccine. It drastically lowers your chance of catching COVID. So even if you are in the same vicinity as someone with COVID, you probably won’t catch it !! It would make more sense and be much fairer to stay in your original hotel for two or three days maximum, and then take a further test to be sure. Thai officials are treating fully vaccinated tourists as if they weren’t vaccinated at all! What was the point of only allowing vaccinated tourists in if they are going to treat us in this way without a need to! I’m due to fly direct from London with Thai Airways, who emailed me today to say because of COVID restrictions there will be no in flight entertainment. Come on, really !! Why not just say that the airline is skint and cannot afford the entertainment licence. I will continue to watch the sandbox this week before I commit. 

[JohninDublin]

7 hours ago, TiT said:

Who in their right mind would want to put up with this?  Not only are you subject to the potential for cases to exist on your flight, but also on the ground in shops, restaurants, or otherwise - with your draconian tracking app and wristband.  Decide to go out for a morning coffee?  Uh oh, looks like the positive guy did too, straight to quarantine for you and your family!

Don't panic just like Prayuth and Anutin said, right?  It's all under control, right?  RIP Sandtrap.

I understand the average monthly salary is in the region of 10k THB. I am just wondering how a local can afford to be off work for two weeks and pay 4 months salary to go into an enforced ALQ?

There is a real problem with the reporting of these stories in that the info is being received piecemeal. This is the first time I've actually read that the round-ups are including Thais. But why not the aircrew too? Were these 15 internees from the Emirates flight the entire passenger manifest of that flight? Or were there those in Biz/1sr Class who were deemed safe? Why on a plane with about 300+ economy seats were all these people seated so closely together? I understand that 13 or 14 were in a family group, but did the German lady asked to be seated next to others for the company? How did these two new Farang infections arrive? Have all their close contacts been traced and rounded up?

I can understand a lot of the strategy behind the Thai need to isolate suspects, but surely these cases can be adequately by additional tests on say day's 4 and seven. I understand that currently, all sandbox entrants are required to retest on day 7.If day 7 is good enough to absolutely clear these people, why is it not good enough to clear the other 14 close contacts?

Ireland is starting to show signs of a new wave, Today there was a new infection rate of about 1 per 8k. By comparison, Phuket looks very good at 1 per 44k today as compared to the Thai overall total of about 1 per 7500. Even that is far better than the UK at about 1 per 2100.But the overall look of Thailand in general reminds me of watching a disaster movie where a dam is showing cracks and is about to burst, and the greatest stress fracture appears to be above Phuket.

I have a flight booked to arrive on Aug 5th, Right now, I am 90% certain to cancel this. Fortunately, I don't need to make a decision now as I can cancel up to three hours prior to take off and get a full cash refund. But if I knew then, what I know now, I would not have been so swift to get the CC out.

Edit: It might also be a good idea for TH to assess whether Sinovax offers any greater protection than a chocolate fireguard and act accordingly?

Edited July 10, 2021 by JohninDubin

[AussieBob]

5 hours ago, Stonker said:

Exactly.

It was a disaster waiting to happen, and the only surprise is that it happened so soon.

Mate - it was a total copulate upwards since they started talking about it - and all the wealthy and politicians talked about was:-  money, money, money, we do this for poor Thais, money, money, 1500 on day one, money, money, 1 million by end September, come for the poor Thais, money and money.

And then on day 1 ................................. less than a handful of 'real' tourists arrive and ....................... the PM goes into isolation after being next to a local Thai businessman at the official opening who tested positive (after going to one of 'those' places in Bangkok?). 

Phuketatraz - Sandpit - The Island (movie) - Shutter Island.   As predictable as a movie written and directed and starring a narcissistic feminazi or an egotistical transgender (or both).  The Junta and many Thai businessmen involved in the tourism industry couldn't organise .. a piss-up in a brewery;   a two-car funeral ;   a lunch box;   a rock to fall off a cliff;   an argument in a chicken coop;  their way out of a wet paper bag without instructions.   Any others??

[AussieBob]

41 minutes ago, English said:

After struggling to get all the documentation sorted to come to the Sandbox, I finally got my CofE approved. But now I am having second thoughts. Forcing you to quarantine and pay for an ALQ hotel for 14 days even when testing negative. This is the whole point of the vaccine. It drastically lowers your chance of catching COVID. So even if you are in the same vicinity as someone with COVID, you probably won’t catch it !! It would make more sense and be much fairer to stay in your original hotel for two or three days maximum, and then take a further test to be sure. Thai officials are treating fully vaccinated tourists as if they weren’t vaccinated at all! What was the point of only allowing vaccinated tourists in if they are going to treat us in this way without a need to! I’m due to fly direct from London with Thai Airways, who emailed me today to say because of COVID restrictions there will be no in flight entertainment. Come on, really !! Why not just say that the airline is skint and cannot afford the entertainment licence. I will continue to watch the sandbox this week before I commit. 

Quit now while they may still give a refund.  When the wave of cancellations hit, they will shut down automatic refunds.

By the way - vaccinations do not stop you getting Covid. What they do is reduce the chance you will get it and become infectious, and if you do get Covid you will have a better chance of getting over it without severe medical problems. Think of the annual flu vaccinations - same thing - they are not a cure.

 

[AussieBob]

32 minutes ago, JohninDubin said:

I understand the average monthly salary is in the region of 10k THB. I am just wondering how a local can afford to be off work for two weeks and pay 4 months salary to go into an enforced ALQ?

There is a real problem with the reporting of these stories in that the info is being received piecemeal. This is the first time I've actually read that the round-ups are including Thais. But why not the aircrew too? Were these 15 internees from the Emirates flight the entire passenger manifest of that flight? Or were there those in Biz/1sr Class who were deemed safe? Why on a plane with about 300+ economy seats were all these people seated so closely together? I understand that 13 or 14 were in a family group, but did the German lady asked to be seated next to others for the company? How did these two new Farang infections arrive? Have all their close contacts been traced and rounded up?

I can understand a lot of the strategy behind the Thai need to isolate suspects, but surely these cases can be adequately by additional tests on say day's 4 and seven. I understand that currently, all sandbox entrants are required to retest on day 7.If day 7 is good enough to absolutely clear these people, why is it not good enough to clear the other 14 close contacts?

Ireland is starting to show signs of a new wave, Today there was a new infection rate of about 1 per 8k. By comparison, Phuket looks very good at 1 per 44k today as compared to the Thai overall total of about 1 per 7500. Even that is far better than the UK at about 1 per 2100.But the overall look of Thailand in general reminds me of watching a disaster movie where a dam is showing cracks and is about to burst, and the greatest stress fracture appears to be above Phuket.

I have a flight booked to arrive on Aug 5th, Right now, I am 90% certain to cancel this. Fortunately, I don't need to make a decision now as I can cancel up to three hours prior to take off and get a full cash refund. But if I knew then, what I know now, I would not have been so swift to get the CC out.

Edit: It might also be a good idea for TH to assess whether Sinovax offers any greater protection than a chocolate fireguard and act accordingly?

The best way to think of Thailand is to think of it like the Titanic - but unlike the Titanic the Captain and all the crew are untrained uneducated idiots who will never say anything negative about anything or anyone.

Like the Titanic, Thailand takes a long time to 'turn' and there is a huge long chain of command before any decision is ever reached. This whole Phuket scam/scheme was started when daily infections were very few and deaths totalled under a few hundred.  The decision to 'turn' was made a long time ago, and not one crew member was willing to criticise the idea or point out the obvious potential problems. Any passengers making complaints were ridiculed or sued, and labelled as farangs who do not understand Titanic.  

Like the Titanic, the Captain and all the crew think they indestructible and unsinkable and that they can go anywhere they like at full speed.  And like the Titanic there are not enough lifeboats for all the passengers. But unlike the Titanic it is the wealthy and rich that have first access to the lifeboats.

It is a fantastic place and truly magical. But you really need to plan and look ahead at all times - and when it starts to get foggy and the Captain has decided to go full steam ahead anyway, that is the time to leave or to stay away.  Right now - stay away mate.

[AussieBob]

56 minutes ago, English said:

After struggling to get all the documentation sorted to come to the Sandbox, I finally got my CofE approved. But now I am having second thoughts. Forcing you to quarantine and pay for an ALQ hotel for 14 days even when testing negative. This is the whole point of the vaccine. It drastically lowers your chance of catching COVID. So even if you are in the same vicinity as someone with COVID, you probably won’t catch it !! It would make more sense and be much fairer to stay in your original hotel for two or three days maximum, and then take a further test to be sure. Thai officials are treating fully vaccinated tourists as if they weren’t vaccinated at all! What was the point of only allowing vaccinated tourists in if they are going to treat us in this way without a need to! I’m due to fly direct from London with Thai Airways, who emailed me today to say because of COVID restrictions there will be no in flight entertainment. Come on, really !! Why not just say that the airline is skint and cannot afford the entertainment licence. I will continue to watch the sandbox this week before I commit. 

Be afraid - be very afraid.  See my last few posts mate.

And like the Thais say ..... "up to you" 

[ozz1]

wheres tat promoting this litter box and how wondeful it is and the millions coming  after this i cant see many people coming unless they have family here or really have to

[AussieBob]

41 minutes ago, ozz1 said:

wheres tat promoting this litter box and how wondeful it is and the millions coming  after this i cant see many people coming unless they have family here or really have to

That is who is mainly coming to Phuket.  Over 1000 people a week enter Thailand now - they do so for business, family and personal reasons. Up until Phuket opened they had no choice but to spend 2 weeks in a room in isolation at a Bangkok ASQ Hotel.  So, now they can choose 2 weeks in a Hotel in Phuket with the ability to move around the island in the daytime, or the ASQ Hotel room in Bangkok.  If Phuket 'survives' and stays open, it will only be as an alternative to ASQ Hotel in Bangkok.  Any real tourists arriving now or in the future (if it stays open) are either very naïve or desperate (or both), and are taking a huge financial risk.  

[Does]

If the children tested positive on the 6th or 7th day of arrival, the were contagious at up to 48 hours hours prior to the test.   If they were too young to get the vaccine, they may have been too young to wear a mask.   If so, contact with these children can cause the virus to spread rapidly.  Remember, wearing a surgical mask prevents you from spreading the virus, not fool proof from catching the virus. You know how friendly Thais greet and interact with children.  How many hotel staff came in contact with these children?  Since the children tested negative on the first day and could travel around Phuket, what other places did the families visit 48 hours prior to the positive test? If these children were young, there exists a good possibility they touched common public surfaces after touching their nose or mouth.  Why weren’t these questions asked or published?  If the children have the delta variant, then the sandbox is game over. 

[pascal]

i knew the coming stories will be interesting ........... this is what i call a real asian drama tv show. such a bunch of dumb bunnies ......... Phuket choice was logical , it s an island, i guess they wanted to do as NZ and OZ did ....be in control of the spread but to be in control peoples must be restraint to move. these dumbs open the gate , what did they expect for god sake?

[Does]

Something doesn’t add up here.  If Covid 19 incubation period after exposure is 2-14 days, and these children tested positive after the 6th or 7th day after arriving in Phuket, there is a good chance the children caught the virus in Phuket and not brought the virus from abroad.  With Phuket announcing the closure of schools for 14 days due to fears of the delta variant, what is not being said here?  Is there more to this story?  Is the virus more prevalent and present in Phuket, then we are meant to believe? Is Phuket destained to be a red zone?

[gummy]

4 minutes ago, Does said:

Something doesn’t add up here.  If Covid 19 incubation period after exposure is 2-14 days, and these children tested positive after the 6th or 7th day after arriving in Phuket, there is a good chance the children caught the virus in Phuket and not brought the virus from abroad.  With Phuket announcing the closure of schools for 14 days due to fears of the delta variant, what is not being said here?  Is there more to this story?  Is the virus more prevalent and present in Phuket, then we are meant to believe? Is Phuket destained to be a red zone?

You are spot on I suspect. These poor kids now forcibly separated from their parents by Thai government officials, in a country that supposedly adore and love their kids,  no doubt did catch it whilst in Phuket. Let's see if the Phuket lies about vaccinations etc finally come out or will the truth be suppressed until these visitors, if that what the children's family really were , go home and then speak out publicly.

[DCB]

You only need one infected kid with D variant to destroy the plan from within.

Either stop ALL kids coming into Phuket and stop land entry by Thais & Farangs OR shut the project down.

Then send the Astra Zeneca where it is needed as per declared latest policy 60+ & high risk groups.

[AussieBob]

16 minutes ago, DCB said:

You only need one infected kid with D variant to destroy the plan from within.

Either stop ALL kids coming into Phuket and stop land entry by Thais & Farangs OR shut the project down.

Then send the Astra Zeneca where it is needed as per declared latest policy 60+ & high risk groups.

Agree.  And it amazes me how worldwide they are reluctant to exclude children from the various control methods. Sure they are too young for vaccines and to wear a mask - but then keep them home.  When we did have a period here when masks were mandatory, there was children everywhere without masks. Children are highly infectious to each other, and to their parents, and to others.  

[Shark]

26 minutes ago, DCB said:

You only need one infected kid with D variant to destroy the plan from within.

Now your assuming people have common sense... well.... i think to have to disappoint you.

in my opinion Thailand will not cancel Sandbox/Sandcastle:

- Money is money and even more if people need to goto ALQ/ASQ's.
- Don't get me wrong, I'm all for not making it a family destination for now, Just do it for 18+ and fully vaccinated the only way one can contain whatever is happening.

With numbers going bad in the SB/SC one can only assume they will either cancel or adjust rules further in more 'flexibility' line, which is.... not good too.

[Stardust]

4 hours ago, English said:

After struggling to get all the documentation sorted to come to the Sandbox, I finally got my CofE approved. But now I am having second thoughts. Forcing you to quarantine and pay for an ALQ hotel for 14 days even when testing negative. This is the whole point of the vaccine. It drastically lowers your chance of catching COVID. So even if you are in the same vicinity as someone with COVID, you probably won’t catch it !! It would make more sense and be much fairer to stay in your original hotel for two or three days maximum, and then take a further test to be sure. Thai officials are treating fully vaccinated tourists as if they weren’t vaccinated at all! What was the point of only allowing vaccinated tourists in if they are going to treat us in this way without a need to! I’m due to fly direct from London with Thai Airways, who emailed me today to say because of COVID restrictions there will be no in flight entertainment. Come on, really !! Why not just say that the airline is skint and cannot afford the entertainment licence. I will continue to watch the sandbox this week before I commit. 

Yes Thai airways is bankrupt. I hope they can afford maintanace and real pilots and with some english skills to inform the tower that he is landing now.

[BlueSphinx]

28 minutes ago, AussieBob said:

Agree.  And it amazes me how worldwide they are reluctant to exclude children from the various control methods. Sure they are too young for vaccines and to wear a mask - but then keep them home.  When we did have a period here when masks were mandatory, there was children everywhere without masks. Children are highly infectious to each other, and to their parents, and to others.  

"Children are highly infectious to each other, and to their parents, and to others."  Really? The approach in Sweden provided real-life data that school-teachers being constantly in contact with non mask-wearing children (no mask mandates) were NOT showing higher infection/hospitalization rates than other professions. 

[gummy]

4 hours ago, English said:

After struggling to get all the documentation sorted to come to the Sandbox, I finally got my CofE approved. But now I am having second thoughts. Forcing you to quarantine and pay for an ALQ hotel for 14 days even when testing negative. This is the whole point of the vaccine. It drastically lowers your chance of catching COVID. So even if you are in the same vicinity as someone with COVID, you probably won’t catch it !! It would make more sense and be much fairer to stay in your original hotel for two or three days maximum, and then take a further test to be sure. Thai officials are treating fully vaccinated tourists as if they weren’t vaccinated at all! What was the point of only allowing vaccinated tourists in if they are going to treat us in this way without a need to! I’m due to fly direct from London with Thai Airways, who emailed me today to say because of COVID restrictions there will be no in flight entertainment. Come on, really !! Why not just say that the airline is skint and cannot afford the entertainment licence. I will continue to watch the sandbox this week before I commit. 

Well, if you were serious about going to the sandtrap then apart from any covid certs you need perhaps could I suggest you undergo psychological evaluation prior to booking your flights.  Anybody who did even consider it, and more so now those whom are still considering must be in dire need of  support 

[Jayce]

39 minutes ago, AussieBob said:

Agree.  And it amazes me how worldwide they are reluctant to exclude children from the various control methods. Sure they are too young for vaccines and to wear a mask - but then keep them home.  When we did have a period here when masks were mandatory, there was children everywhere without masks. Children are highly infectious to each other, and to their parents, and to others.  

100% agreed!

I also don't get the insistence that they need to be able to go to school physically almost regardless of the circumstances.

I get that it's tough for parents to be locked up with their kids (although if you feel that way then why have kids at all one might say) but putting them in schools or daycares, which are the perfect breeding ground, is just moronic in my book. May as well rub their faces in petri dishes full of Covid.

I mean, during a pandemic, kids were still coming home with the common cold. It was mindblowingly ignorant or arrogant for some to think that they would be exempt from catching and spreading Covid. Both the common cold as well as Covid are Corona viruses for crying out loud! Why would there be any difference?

Result is that people who worked from home were still getting infected as soon as their kids stepped through the door.

[Jayce]

36 minutes ago, BlueSphinx said:

"Children are highly infectious to each other, and to their parents, and to others."  Really? The approach in Sweden provided real-life data that school-teachers being constantly in contact with non mask-wearing children (no mask mandates) were NOT showing higher infection/hospitalization rates than other professions. 

You mean long since superseded real life data from 2020 that doesn't factor in the increased level of contagion from strains like the Delta variant?

 

And did that study also look at infection rates between kids? Or did it focus solely on the infection of the teacher at the front of the classroom who was trying to stay away as much as possible from the kids?

Edited July 11, 2021 by Jayce

[thai3]

52 minutes ago, Zool said:

Stop all lockdowns. Stop all "vaccinations"(they aren't vaccines). Open up the world. If you are afraid to go out then stay home and hide under the covers but don't force other people to join your death cult. A year and a half of this nonsense is enough.

4 million dead is a tragedy, not nonsense

[THETRUTH]

3 hours ago, Does said:

If the children tested positive on the 6th or 7th day of arrival, the were contagious at up to 48 hours hours prior to the test.   If they were too young to get the vaccine, they may have been too young to wear a mask.

Phuket sandbox requirements are aligned with the global WHO recommendation which state that "children" under the age of 18 years should not be vaccinated. Face masks, however, are required for kids above the age of 2. But face masks don't really matter when they're going out and about. Phuket stands for a beach holiday, and I don't think people are wearing masks at the beach or pool section anyway.