Burmese workers at seafood markets were checked for COVID-19 following a surge in cases in Thailand.

Government health officials in Khon Kaen province screened workers at the Khon Kaen Fishing Net (KKF) company to check that they were complying with preventive measures to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Police Lieutenant General Yanyong Vejosot said that Burmese migrant workers were being checked for symptoms as the firm had links to A seafood vendor from neighbouring Ubon Ratchathani who had been infected.

After checks, none of the workers were found to have contracted Covid-19.

The measures came after hundreds of Burmese migrant workers contracted the virus while working at one of the country’s largest seafood markets in Samut Sakhon province near Bangkok.

High-risk venues in Bangkok – such as nightclubs and massage shops along with horse racing and cockfighting arenas – have been ordered to close until January 5.

Cases have now spread to more than 44 provinces and infected more than 2,000 people, including several taxi drivers and hundreds of gamblers at an illegal casino.

COVD-19 task force spokesman Taweesilp Wisanuyothin warned that daily cases in Thailand could soar to 8,000 a day unless they act quickly to prevent a second wave from ravaging the country.