Thai dudes busted ironing used face masks for resale

Police oversee a “re-enactment” of the recycled mask cottage industry going on north of Bangkok in Saraburi province.
Police oversee a “re-enactment” of the recycled mask cottage industry going on north of Bangkok in Saraburi province.

We know Thailand is all about sustainable trends now, but maybe we should draw the line at reusing face masks during the current coronavirus outbreak.

Acting on a tip, police raided a house yesterday in Saraburi province where they found six men recycling surgical masks by putting them in a washing machine and ironing them flat to resell on the high-demand market.

One of the men told police he got the used face masks from an unidentified dealer. He and his friends got THB1 (US$.03) per mask and could work their good-as-new magic on 300 to 400 masks daily, according to Col. Pairot Trisophon of Viharn Daeng Police. 

Pairot said police are seeking the whereabouts of the homeowner, identified as 47-year-old Jintana Namwichai.

The masks – thousands of them – were seized by authorities and sent to a local health department for further investigation.

Related:

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COVID-19: Thai man is 43rd case; Indonesia (finally) admits infections; markets rebound



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