Jaruwat Kliangkao the governor of Songkhla Province has ordered a canned fish factory to shutdown after 65 employees have been confirmed positive for Covid-19. The province is proceeding with proactive Covid-19 prevalence testing amongst both Thai and foreign employees at the factory. The factory also produces many seafood products. The governor and related officials reported on 17 May 2021 at the Songkhla City Hall. The officials joined in a meeting to plan the vaccination program for the province. They also needed to put in place safety precautions concerning the canned fish factory in Jana District, Songkhla Province.
The factory has been ordered to temporarily shutdown until the situation improves. The order is effective immediately and comes after 65 employees have been confirmed positive for the virus. The governor reported the reason that the factory was not shut down immediately following heavy criticism from the public is because not all 65 were confirmed positive at once. The cases started showing up with 1 employee, then 2, and then 4. The safety precautions had to follow steps laid out. If the factory was ordered to shut down after 1-2 cases, then it would heavily affect the business. This includes effecting the employees. The local health office will be testing the employees for Covid-19.
This includes testing 1,500 Thai employees. The governor stated “If a Thai employee is tested positive then they would be sent to the hospital. If the test comes out negative, then the employee will have to quarantine at home. There will be officials making sure that they are in strict quarantine. The employees will then receive another test after 7 and 14 days. As for foreign workers they will quarantine in a camp and a field hospital will be placed in front of the camp”.
FB Caption: The governor provided a reason to why the factory did not close down right away.
Source: Khaosod
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