MOPH: Two people have died from cold snap

BANGKOK, December 27 (TNA) - Thailand's updated Public Health Ministry statistics show that two people have died from the winter's cold snap so far, both in the northern region. Passakorn Assawasewee, Director of the Bureau of Epidemiology under the ministry's Department of Disease Control, said that several Thai areas have been swept by the cold spell in the wake of widespread floods over the past couple of months, with temperatures having plunged to 3-5 degrees Celsius and some areas having been already declared cold-hit disaster zones. Dr. Passakorn confirmed that at least two villagers in their 50s, both in Lampang Province in the Thai North, have died from the cold snap. The senior Thai health official warned people living in the cold-stricken areas, including patients of asthma, high blood pressure and diabetes, as well as those who are prone to pneumonia, to always stay warm, eat newly-cooked food and refraining from alcohol. According to the senior official, the overall number of influenza patients of several types has slightly increased lately, while those suffering from the deadly 2009 H1N1 flu have, however, dropped. (TNA)