Under pressure from owners and workers, health officials today announced that bars and restaurants can again sell alcohol with an early “last call” time of an hour before midnight, two months after all on-site sales were banned amid a new wave of COVID-19 infections.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the ban would be lifted – government spokesperson Ratchada Thanadirek said late Monday afternoon that it could be as soon as tomorrow.
รอประกาศของแต่ละจับหวัดค่ะ อย่างกทม.คาดว่าจะเป็นพรุ่งนี้
— รัชดา ธนาดิเรก – Rachada Dhnadirek (@Rachadaspoke) February 22, 2021
The banhammer came down in the first days of the year following a surge in cases. While lax policing has seen many venues serving on the down-low to survive, larger venues or those in conspicuous places had to keep the cabinets locked.
The rate of new COVID-19 cases has been declining for the past two weeks with fewer than 100 logged daily since Valentine’s Day. Today, health officials announced 89 new cases, none of which were found in Bangkok. The official death toll stands at 83.
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