Cold-borne respiratory ailments on the rise in Thailand

CHIANG RAI, THAILAND, December 25 (TNA) - The number of patients suffering from respiratory illnesses in Thailand has been rising due to a cold snap spreading across the country, while several areas have been declared cold-hit disaster zones. In Chiang Rai Province in the Thai North, for instance, prisoners are suffering from the winter cold, prompting the Ministry of Justice's Department of Correction to install heaters at local prisons to alleviate the inmates' plight. In Yasothon Province in the Thai Northeast, a sharp drop in temperatures has caused chickens to lay less eggs than usual and local farmers have, thus, used plastic plates and lights to help keep the chickens warm. In the western Kanchanaburi Province, temperatures have fallen below 15 degree Celsius and four districts have been declared cold-stricken disaster zones, prompting the provincial public health office to have issued a warning for locals to take special care of the elderly, children and chronic disease patients who are vulnerable to respiratory diseases, as the number of patients admitted to local hospitals for treatments has been on the rise.(TNA)