News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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The Thaiger key takeaways The most common medical emergencies for expats in Thailand include motorcycle accidents, tropical diseases, and food or water-borne illnesses. Air pollution and heat-related conditions like heatstroke also pose serious seasonal health risks, especially in northern and...
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Phuket Gazette World News: Rudd sworn in as Australian PM; Snowden still at Moscow Airport; Mursi talks Turkey changes; Gay marriage gets US push
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rudd sworn in as Australian PM Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Kevin Rudd was sworn in as Australian prime minister for the second time on Thursday, a day after toppling Julia Gillard and three months out from scheduled elections with polls suggesting the ruling Labor Party is staring…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: B10bn in drugs goes up in smoke; Haze easing; DSI supercar probe in twists and turns; Health officials contemplate morning after pill
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community More than 3 tonnes of drugs torched The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Some 158,012 of the country’s estimated 2 million drug addicts underwent rehabilitation at 1,287 hospitals over the past nine months, Deputy Public Health Minister Cholanan Srikaew said yesterday. Of them, 84,404 were forced…
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Phuket tuk-tuk drivers protest illegal taxis
PHUKET: A protest by about 100 tuk-tuk drivers today won the drivers a crackdown on illegal taxis, which the tuk-tuk clan says are stealing their jobs. After staging a convoy from Kathu, the protesters parked their tuk-tuks at Sanam Chai, across the street from Provincial Hall in Phuket Town (map here). “We do not have enough money to pay the…
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Monsoon wind to spare Phuket from Indonesian haze
PHUKET: The Phuket weather office has predicted that the strong southwest monsoon wind that has caused the current rough seas along the Andaman coast will also keep the record-level hazardous haze from Indonesia away from Phuket. The haze, born of forest fires across Sumatra (click here for NASA interactive map showing fires and haze), saw air pollution reach record levels…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Snowden saga; 37 arrested for Himalayan massacre; Homophobia reaches new levels; Wimbledon update
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Putin rules out handing Snowden over to United States Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: President Vladimir Putin confirmed yesterday a former U.S. spy agency contractor sought by the United States was in the transit area of a Moscow airport but ruled out handing him to Washington, dismissing U.S.…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Haze hits South; BRN demands troops out before Ramadan; Thailand off money laundering watchlist
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Narathiwat haze level now ‘adverse to health’ The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Seven provinces in Southern Thailand were affected by smoke from Indonesian forest fires yesterday, with Narathiwat the hardest hit after particulate-matter levels there reached the 129 micrograms/cubic metre considered adverse to health.Meanwhile, Pollution Control Department…
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Singaporean tourists saved at Phuket’s Surin Beach
PHUKET: Amid the spate of drownings over the weekend that saw four tourists drown within four days (story here and here), a dramatic rescue by Phuket lifeguards saw two Singaporean tourists being pulled from heavy surf to safety at Surin Beach. Red “no swimming” flags were flying at Surin Beach, with ocean conditions remaining rough and dangerous despite the sunny…
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Jaguar, Land Rover get new dealership in Phuket
PHUKET: Luxury car importer GB Automobile Co Ltd was recently appointed to be the sole, official authorized dealer for Land Rover and Jaguar cars in Phuket and the rest of Southern Thailand. The official grand opening of the new showroom is set for next month. Meanwhile, GB Auto is undergoing an extensive renovation of their showroom, which is adjacent to…
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Phuket crackdown on wastewater pollution in the works
PHUKET: The director of the Regional Environmental Office has warned Phuket businesses and housing developments to comply with legal requirements in the treatment and release of wastewater – or face the consequences.Dr Pornsri Suthanaruk told the Phuket Gazette she will be enforcing Section 80 of the Enhancement and Conservation of National Environmental Quality Act BE 2535.“Business owners must have a…
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Helmeted motorbike driver survives Phuket hill crash
PHUKET: A helmeted motorbike driver was non-responsive but alive after crashing his motorbike into a drainage ditch while descending Patak Road toward Chalong this morning.Ruamjai foundation rescue workers quickly arrived at the scene and placed the man, Surat Udompol, 53, in a neck brace before loading him into an ambulance and rushing him to Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town.“At…
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Tortured, executed man connected to Phuket drug business
PHUKET: The man found tortured and executed several hundred meters from a Phuket school was involved with drugs despite having a clean police record, Phuket City Police Deputy Superintendent Yongyuth Kongmalai told the Phuket Gazette yesterday. Because of his clean record, police were originally scrambling for a motive for the slaying of Niwat Si-urai, 37, whose body was found dumped…
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Phuket Finance: One rotten apple can spoil the whole barrel
PHUKET: As of the middle of June, the portfolios of many active managers of both mutual funds and hedge funds alike were badly under-performing the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 index. In fact, and despite a bull market that had seen the S&P index climb about 16% since the start of the year, over two-thirds of active managers were missing…
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Australian dies at hospital after leap from Phuket balcony
PHUKET: The Australian Embassy has contacted the relatives of a 25-year-old Australian man who succumbed to his injures around midnight last night after having plunged from the third floor of a Patong building.A food shop vendor along Soi Kepsap 2, off Sai Nam Yen Road, contacted Lt Col Jongserm Preecha of the Patong Police when she saw the Australian, Joshua…
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Russian drug smuggler wanted by Interpol arrested in Phuket
PHUKET: Responding to a written request from the Russian embassy in Bangkok, Phuket Immigration last night arrested a Russian national wanted in his home country for “illegal transportation of drugs, committed on a large scale”.The request stated that Anatoliy Gural had been wanted by Interpol since November 2011, and provided details of a false passport he was using to travel.“Mr…
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Phuket Gazette World News: South Africa prepares to say goodbye; US competence in question; Berlusconi guilty on sex charges; Nadal out
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community South Africans resigned over ‘critical’ Mandela Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: South Africans appeared resigned to the inevitability of one day saying goodbye to former president Nelson Mandela after the 94-year-old anti-apartheid leader’s condition in hospital deteriorated to critical.Madiba, as he is affectionately known, is revered among most…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Woman held for trafficking Myanmar girls in Ranong
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Woman held for trafficking Myanmar girls The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Police yesterday announced the arrest of a Thai woman suspected of human trafficking and the rescue of 13 Myanmar women – including a 16-year-old and three girls under 18 – allegedly lured into sex work at…
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Senator sets sights on Army to resolve Phuket land encroachment
PHUKET: A member of the Thai Senate is looking to call in the armed forces to wage war against the “big guys” behind land encroachment in Phuket.Pol Col (Rtd) Sontaya Sangphow was in Phuket on Friday to arm himself with information in order to pitch his suggestion to fellow senators in Bangkok.“We are concerned that District Officers are ‘unable’ to…
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Drunk, loaded and arrested: Man brandishes loaded pistol, nunchucks in Phuket Town street
PHUKET: Phuket City Police this morning arrested a man for brandishing a loaded pistol at local residents in Soi Paniang near Samkong, Phuket Town. Maj Rattaket Munmuang of the Phuket City Police – with about 30 other officers – arrived at the scene at about 8:30am to find that the man had exchanged the loaded gun for nunchucks. The 46-year-old…
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Super moon monsoon rip current takes another life in Phuket
PHUKET: Rescue workers today recovered the body of an 18-year-old who was caught in one of the strong rip currents caused by the super moon that is bringing chaos to Phuket’s beaches. “The moon is as close to the Earth as it will be this year, which causes more dramatic changes between high tide and low tide, resulting in faster…
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Mercedes-Benz driver runs over man on busy Phuket road
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of an unidentified man who was hit and killed instantly last night by a Mercedes-Benz as he was crossing Phuket’s busy Thepkrasattri Road.By the time police arrived at the scene, near the Srisoonthorn Municipality offices, the driver of the Mercedes-Benz sedan, Virat Aumarat, 56, was already en route to Thalang Police Station.“Mr Virat asked…
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Phuket temple visit postponed after car bursts into flames
PHUKET: Two women on their way to Phuket’s famous Chalong Temple escaped from their car on Chao Fa East Road shortly before it burst into flames.Police responded to a 5:30pm call to find 31-year-old Kesara Thongnop, the driver of the car, and a friend siting in shock by the side of the road next to a burned out white Toyota…
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Giorgi heads Phuket FC back to fifth
PHUKET: It was an exciting weekend for the Thai Sports world, especially for Thailand’s professional and semi-professional football leagues. Phuket FC seized back their 5th place ranking in the 18-team Yamaha League One (division 1) with a much needed 0-1 win on the road to Rayong United on Saturday evening. The match’s only allowed goal was scored by Georgian import…
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Phuket family flees as restaurant gas cylinder catches fire
PHUKET: A family fled the kitchen of their Southern-Thai style restaurant early yesterday morning after a leaky gas tank burst into flames.No injuries were reported.The two-storey building housing PahMuay restaurant on Soi Patchanee, in the housing estate opposite Super Cheap in Rassada, was consumed in flames by the time firefighters and Phuket City Police officers arrived at the scene around…
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3 drownings in 3 days prompts Phuket plea to obey red flags
PHUKET: Following three tourists drowning at Phuket beaches within three days, the island’s authorities have issued a public plea for everyone to heed red warning flags, marking that the surf is too dangerous to swim. The plea follows the drowning death of Indian tourist Ramesh Chand Singhal, 49, at Kata Beach (map here) on Saturday. Mr Singhal, on holiday with…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Snowden in Moscow, seeks asylum in Ecuador; Mandela health critical; Bus plunges off Montenegro bridge; Saudis change working week
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Snowden lands in Moscow, seeks asylum in Ecuador Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Fugitive former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden is seeking asylum in Ecuador, the Quito government said on Sunday, after Hong Kong let him leave for Russia despite Washington’s efforts to extradite him on espionage…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: White masks to march on CentralWorld; Sadao supercar smuggler’s highway; Call for businesses to help educate
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community White masks adamant about rallying at CentralWorld despite ban The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The white-masks are adamant about rallying at CentralWorld today as part of their weekly anti-government protest, although the department store yesterday banned protesters from using its premises for political rallies.CentralWorld announced that it…
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Phuket Opinion: Samsung’s new gilt trip
PHUKET: So there we were – me, my wife and our nearly 3-year-old daughter – sitting down for a family dinner together when the advertisement for Samsung’s latest technological marvel came on the television. A mother sends her son off to travel the world armed with only his wits, backpack, stunning girlfriend and of course his Samsung S4, reasonably priced…
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Phuket Opinion: Life-saving skills, English to the rescue
Juan Burana, 37, came from Surin to work in Phuket in 1995. He has been a Kusoldharm Foundation volunteer since 2003 and has worked as a rescue worker in Patong for the past four years.Here, he talks about what tourists can do to stay safe and what Kusoldharm can do to improve the skills of their staff and help save…
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Phuket Opinion: Culture of neglect holds steady path
PHUKET: Failure of local authorities to complete the multi-million baht “Sea Gypsy Cultural Center” on Koh Sireh in Rassada is just the latest in a long string of long-delayed projects on the island that highlights the inefficient use of taxpayer money and failings of bureaucracy – all at the teetering altar of “tourism promotion”. Millions of baht in funding for…
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Phuket cat burglar nabbed after Hat Yai holiday
PHUKET: The ex-con responsible for a string of robberies at Rock Garden Estate was arrested by police yesterday, after several days of high-living in Hat Yai with the proceeds from the fenced goods.“Weerapat Pikulthong, 36, robbed six houses in Rock Garden Estate after he was released from prison. He sold the stolen goods in Hat Yai,” said Phuket City Police…
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