A large number of locals and foreign tourists flocked to Bangkok’s Khaosan Road last night (Wednesday) to engage in Songkran water fights, despite the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration’s ban on the usual widespread splashing of water for the third year, to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.

Wednesday afternoon, municipal officials from Phra Nakhon District Office ordered all businesses on Khaosan Road not to allow tourists to splash water and to remove all ice buckets, adding that those who defy the order would be subject to a 100,000 baht fine.

Despite the ban, however, many foreign tourists continued to play with water guns, without maintaining any social distancing. Most of them did not wear facemasks.

The Director of Phra Nakhon district office ordered all shops and businesses to close by midnight and all tourists to leavethe area, as they had not complied with the COVID-19 preventive measures.

Khaosan Road is a popular destination for foreign tourists at Songkran.

On Thailand’s resort island of Phuket, police officers from Patong police station yesterday (Wednesday) ordered all businesses, including pubs and bars, on Bang La Walking Street not to allow any splashing of water, or the smearing of face powder. Officers also informed tourists of the order.

During the evening, even though many businesses complied with the order, many local and foreign tourists did flock to the area and proceeded to spray water at each other.

Meanwhile, Thailand has recorded 24,134 new COVID-19 infections today (Thursday), while the death toll reached another new-high of 115 in the last 24 hours. Cumulative COVID-19 infections this year are 1,749,568, with 229,704 patients currently receiving treatment.