[Source: Aljazeera]

Thailand’s prime minister has urged people to stay at home to help contain a surging coronavirus outbreak that began in a seafood market, and to avoid a strict lockdown.

Speaking after the health authorities confirmed a daily record of 745 new cases, the PM says the government was mindful of the potential economic damage from tough containment measures.

Most of the new cases are linked to a cluster among migrant workers that started in Samut Sakhon, a coastal province southwest of Bangkok, and led to cases in more than half the country’s 77 provinces.

Singapore and Malaysia have also seen surges in cases among migrant workers who mostly live in crowded dormitories that provide the ideal conditions for the virus to thrive.

In Thailand, the government’s COVID-19 taskforce has recommended extending an emergency decree that gives power to health authorities and provincial governors until the end of February.