A health official has said that hospitals in Thailand's capital Bangkok and surrounding provinces are running out of beds due to a jump in Covid-19 patients, as the country reported a record number of infections for the fourth time this week.

The country's Covid-19 task force has reported 17,669 coronavirus cases and 165 deaths, both record highs, while it said 21 of the fatalities died at home, Reuters reports.

"We don't know where to put the sick people anymore, the ER (emergency room) units in many hospitals have to be temporarily closed because they no longer have bed spaces," Somsak Akksilp, head of the Department of Medical Services, told a news conference.