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Amari Watergate presents donation to Baan Gerda
Karl Morsbach (standing
5th from left) receives the donation from Pierre Andre Pelletier
(standing4th left) and Michael Kordys, President BMW Group Thailand
(standing center) surrounded by other Amari staff members and children
from Baan Gerda.
Mr. Karl Morsbach, Chairman and founder of the Baan
Gerda Project recently received a donation cheque for 1.5 million baht
from Mr. Pierre Andre Pelletier, General Manager of the Amari Watergate
Hotel, Bangkok.
The funds were part of the 3.35 million baht raised from the “10th Amari
Watergate & BMW Group Thailand Midnight Run” and the “11th Aerobic
Marathon on Aids” to support the HIV orphanage in Lopburi Province. The
other 1.85 million baht has been donated through HRH Princess Maha
Chakri Sirindhorn to support the Chalerm Prakiat School in Lumpoon
Provice.
Freeloading railway bedbugs to be ‘outta Dodge’ before Songkran
Thailand’s rail services are busily issuing free one-way tickets to undersized
non-fare-paying passengers whose nocturnal eating habits were becoming
increasingly irritating to many larger passengers.
According to Thailand’s Minister of Transport Santi Prompat, the blood-sucking
bedbugs are being shown the door to bedbug heaven, so that the kingdom’s
railways will be bedbug-free before this month’s Songkran Festival. The State
Railway of Thailand (SRT) is cleaning carriages that were infested by the pest.
The SRT authorities recently suspended 10 express train services running between
Bangkok and Chiang Mai, Ubon Ratchathani, Yala and Surat Thani provinces to
intensify a two- week campaign designed to eliminate the pesky passengers.
The non-fare-paying hitchhikers ‘bugged’ numbers of passengers who complained
about the nocturnal insects - members of the family Cimicidae that live by
hematophagy, that is by feeding on the blood of humans and other warm-blooded
hosts.
Thailand’s understandably indignant fare-paying passengers demanded that state
transport authorities clean up the bug-infested carriages.
Mr. Santi said all the carriages on 10 complete passenger trains were in the
process of being cleaned with chemicals and high-powered hot water spray to kill
the bedbugs.
Two complete railway routes had already finished changing all seats from velvet
coverings to leatherette and had resumed services from Bangkok to Ubon
Ratchathani and Chiang Mai.
The rest would be ready to run again after complete the cleaning process, he
said, adding that he was confident that the trains could resume full service
before Songkran Festival holiday which starts this weekend.
The minister also attempted to convince passengers who planned to use rail
services to travel home during the Songkran holiday that all trains would be
bedbug-free and that they could travel with comfort during the coming hot season
water festival. (TNA)
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