Prime Minister Anutin Chanvirakul has referred the Ministry of Public Health to clarify whether the deaths of 72 tigers at the Chiang Mai sanctuary are related to avian influenza, following concerns from Professor Yong Poovorawan about the risk of infection. Meanwhile, Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat revealed that the Department of Disease Control is currently investigating the disease.
At 10:00 a.m. on 24 February 2026, at the Government House, Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Anutin Chanvirakul attended a Cabinet meeting. Reporters asked about the case of 72 tigers dying at the sanctuary in Mae Rim District, Chiang Mai Province, after Professor Yong Poovorawan, head of the Clinical Virology Specialty Center at the Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, expressed concern about the possibility that the deaths were caused by avian influenza infection.
Prime Minister Anutin Chanvirakul briefly responded that the Ministry of Public Health should handle this matter.
Meanwhile, Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat declined to give an interview on the issue but stated that the Department of Disease Control is currently investigating the situation and declined to provide further details.