Officer caught Covid-19 ‘elsewhere’: police
Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) chief Pakkapong Pongpetra yesterday denied reports that one of his officers contracted Covid-19 while manning a checkpoint set up to screen passengers for symptoms of the disease.
Pol Lt Gen Pakkapong said that the infected officer, who is based at Taling Chan police station, didn’t catch Covid19 while on duty — insisting that the officer caught the virus elsewhere.
He stopped short of saying where exactly the officer contracted the virus, although the MPB chief said the individual had “atrisk” colleagues who were quarantined.
He said his officers are fully aware of the required sanitisation protocols, and all of their equipment and work surfaces are frequently disinfected.
MPB officers were catapulted onto the front lines in the battle against Covid-19 after Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced the Emergency Decree on Thursday. The decree places restrictions on travel and public gatherings.
Since then, 27 officers have been infected, while another 326 have been ordered to observe self-quarantine.
Meanwhile, the government moved to allay fears of Covid-19 transmission among personnel at the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), based at Government House, after one official tested positive for the virus.
The infected person does not work at Government House but is attached to the Public Health Ministry and is a coordinator with the CCSA, Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin, the Public Health Ministry’s spokesperson, told the media yesterday.
“There is a risk, but it’s low,” Dr Taweesin said, responding to worries about transmission among CCSA staff.
Up to 30 people who came in contact with the infected officer have been quarantined.
According to Dr Taweesin, the infected official, 46, had a runny nose without a fever on Thursday. A hospital confirmed he tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday.