Laos has confirmed two new cases of Covid-19 today involving illegal entries from Thailand.
According to a statement issued by the National Taskforce Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control today, a 25-year-old female and a 28-year-old female have been confirmed as the country’s 59th and 60th cases of Covid-19.
Case 59
Case 59 is a 25-year-old female, student, residing in Phonsavang Village, Chanthabouly District, Vientiane Capital.
On 6 April she and a friend met two Thai men in Savannakhet who entered Laos illegally. They stayed at Phair Mai 2 Hotel and visited a karaoke bar. At 8:30pm all three boarded a bus from Savannakhet to Vientiane Capital.
On 7 April the three arrived in Vientiane Capital at 5:40am and went immediately to 8118 Karaoke Bar in Hongkaikeo Village, Chanthabouly District, Vientiane Capital.
On 8 April Case 59 picked up the others and they had lunch at Funny 89 Restaurant in Thasavang Village, Xaythany District.
On 9 April the group visited Simeuang Temple in the evening before Case 59 returned her friends back to the hotel. She then attended an English class at Vientiane College before picking up her friends from the hotel again and eating together at Funny 89 Restaurant.
On 11 April, the woman reported that her friends had visited WhatsClub Nightclub and Karaoke 8118.
On 12 April, the woman (Case 59) and her three friends visited the 111 Massage Parlor in Nongbone Village, Saysettha District, and then ate khao piak noodle soup in Sibounhueng Village. In the evening, she and one of her friends had dinner at a barbecued squid establishment in Thongkhankham Village, Chanthabouly District.
On 13 April the woman’s friends reported feeling feverish and sick and did not meet with her.
From 14-15 April, the woman reported that she felt tired.
Between 16-17 April the other three exited the country illegally by boat, making their way back to Nong Khai, Thailand.
The woman (Case 59) received a call from the others confirming that hey had tested positive for Covid-19 (upon returning to Thailand).
The woman visited Lao-Viet Hospital where she was treated for fever and diarrhea. She was given medicine and reported feeling better after returning home.
On 19 April the woman went to eat at her friend’s house where two others were present. She felt very tired and went to be tested at Mittaphab Hospital and was placed in an isolated area.
On the same day, Case 59 tested positive for Covid-19.
Initial contact tracing revealed 19 people who had had contact with the woman. These have since been isolated and tested for Covid-19.
Case 60
The second case of Covid-19 confirmed in Laos, Case 60, is a 28-year-old female residing in Naxon Village, Naxyathong District, Vientiane Capital.
The woman had been in Thailand for cosmetic surgery on 7 April.
On 10 April she began to feel feverish, with a sore throat and severe diarrhea.
On 18 April, the woman took a taxi from Bangkok to Nong Khai. A Thai national contacted a boat for her, and she was taken across the river back into Laos.
The woman arrived near Kaoliao Village yesterday, where she was picked up in Hyundai truck.
She visited her friend near the Chao Fa Ngum Statue in Chanthabouly District, before going to Mahosot Hospital by TukTuk, where she tested positive for Covid-19 today.
Four people who have had contact with the woman have been isolated and tested for Covid-19.
Laos has now confirmed a total of 60 cases of Covid-19, with eleven people currently undergoing treatment for the virus across the country.
Laos has not reported any deaths from Covid-19.