BANGKOK (Xinhua) — Two schools in the border area of Hua Hin tourist district in western Thailand have been temporarily closed amid fear of a possible spread of COVID-19 from inside Myanmar, said a senior government official on Tuesday.
The public schools, namely Anant School in Huay Sat Yai subdistrict and Baan Huay Khrai School in Bueng Nakhon subdistrict of Hua Hin district of Prachuap Khiri Khan province, which share border with Myanmar, have been closed from Sept. 1 until Sept. 7, according to provincial governor Panlop Singhaseni.
The temporary closure of the schools has followed confirmed reports that the parents of some of those schoolchildren had recently crossed natural borderlines to get inside Myanmar and then returned home in those subdistricts of Hua Hin, Panlop said.
Anant School currently has 576 students, about 300 of whom are of Myanmar descents while Baan Huay Khrai School currently has 310 students, 45 of whom are of Myanmar descents, according to the provincial governor.
Panlop assured that all students and their parents, who were considered as “risky” to possible infection, are being quarantined at home and tested for the coronavirus with results to know within one day.
Anti-pandemic measures have been stepped up by Thai authorities along the border with Myanmar, where the number of COVID-19 infections has reportedly risen. Prachuap Khiri Khan is one of Thailand’s 10 provinces that share the border with the neighboring country.