Year: 2002

  • Phuket NewsTourist drowns in hotel pool | Thaiger

    Tourist drowns in hotel pool

    PATONG: Tourists dived to the rescue of a Taiwanese guest who had sunk to the bottom of a hotel swimming pool on Sunday, but were unable to save his life. Wang Jeng Chuan, 31, arrived at the Merlin Beach Hotel on Thaweewong Rd, Patong, on Sunday morning. He was swimming in the hotel pool around 4 pm that day when,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsUS command ship visits Phuket | Thaiger

    US command ship visits Phuket

    PHUKET: The US Navyโ€™s 7th Fleet command ship, the USS Blue Ridge, arrived here today. While in port, 7th Fleet Commander, V/Adm James Metzger, and his staff will have a series of meetings with Thai military and civilian leaders to discuss regional issues of concern, including the fight against terrorism. They will also discuss holding combined exercises with the Royalโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsOrBorJor denies collapse of bus plan | Thaiger

    OrBorJor denies collapse of bus plan

    PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) today dismissed rumors that plans to launch a local bus service had been scrapped, insisting that bus services will start next month. Wisut Santikun, Deputy President of the OrBorJor and Chairman of the Public Transportation Board, told the Gazette, โ€œThe OrBorJor is 100% sure that Phuket will have a bus service thisโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsValentine’s Day is no D-Day | Thaiger

    Valentineโ€™s Day is no D-Day

    PHUKET: Hundreds of couples are lining up to marry in Phuket on Valentineโ€™s Day and the message for couples who want to divorce on February 14 is: Please donโ€™t. โ€œI donโ€™t want any couple divorcing on that day because itโ€™s a day of love and happiness,โ€ Sirinee Leelanont, Chief Registrar at the Thalang District Office, told the Gazette. Last yearโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsA quieter Chinese New Year | Thaiger

    A quieter Chinese New Year

    PHUKET: The Chinese New Year may have opened in Phuket with many a bang from strings of firecrackers, but otherwise itโ€™s pretty quiet, an informal survey by the Gazette indicated today. Fresh food sellers, jewelers and other retailers in Phuket responded with much the same bottom-line answer: sales are down. Usually gold, symbolizing wealth and good fortune, is given toโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsBust nets B8.5m in smuggled goods | Thaiger

    Bust nets B8.5m in smuggled goods

    AO MAKHAM: A squad of 25 Marine Police officers seized boat spares, radios and electronic equipment worth 8.5 million baht in a raid on a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Saturday. Pol Col Peera Boonliang, Superintendent of the Phuket Marine Police, told the Gazette yesterday, โ€œWe received a tip-off that the goods would arrive on a Taiwanese fishing boat and beโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsPoliceman in murder-suicide | Thaiger

    Policeman in murder-suicide

    PATONG: A policeman stationed at Tungtong Police Station shot his girlfriend dead early yesterday morning, then killed himself with a single bullet to the head. Neighbors of the couple, Pol L/Cpl Chamlong Homkate, 29, and 26-year-old Vanich Meejun, called police just before 2 am to report hearing two gunshots from the coupleโ€™s room on Phra Barami Rd. The couple hadโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsProstitution arrests sharply up | Thaiger

    Prostitution arrests sharply up

    PHUKET: Arrests for prostitution rose sharply last month, police statistics for January 1 to 25 show. A total of 53 people were held on prostitution-related charges, about seven times the figure in the same period of December. The number of people arrested on drugs charges also rose, from 120 in December to 144 last month. Ya bah (methamphetamine) was involvedโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsDeputy PM launches recycling initiative | Thaiger

    Deputy PM launches recycling initiative

    PHUKET TOWN: Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawitayanunt launched a government initiative yesterday to sort and recycle trash in Phuket. Participants in a seminar at the Metropole Hotel discussed various ways to effectively dispose of trash to lighten the workload of the overburdened municipal incinerator at Saphan Hin. Khunying Chodchoy Sophonpanit, Chairperson of the Thai Environment & Community Development Association (TECDA),โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsAlien search center lands in Phuket | Thaiger

    Alien search center lands in Phuket

    PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Labor and Social Welfare Office has set up a center to seek out and arrest illegal aliens. The center is located at the officeโ€™s premises on Narisorn Rd, Phuket Town. Those who wish to report sightings of, or close encounters with, illegal aliens can call 076-354035 or 076-354036 between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm, or visitโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsASEAN ministers to meet in Phuket | Thaiger

    ASEAN ministers to meet in Phuket

    BANGKOK: Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will meet in Phuket on February 20 and 21 for a two-day โ€œretreatโ€, officials said today. Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Rattakit Manathat said the meeting would have no set agenda, but was likely to follow up on issues explored at the ASEAN summit in Brunei last year. Measures toโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsMan held over large shark fin haul | Thaiger

    Man held over large shark fin haul

    PHUKET TOWN: A tip-off led the Marine Police to arrest a Taiwanese fisherman in possession of 115 shark fins today, the second arrest of its kind in just over three weeks. The man, named by police as Chern Whan Yee, 58, left his boat, โ€œWoritaโ€, this morning carrying two large white bags. When the officers asked Chern to open theโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsFires cause 650,000 baht damage | Thaiger

    Fires cause 650,000 baht damage

    PHUKET TOWN: A fire at 9.30 pm on Tuesday night destroyed two houses, and a second fire badly damaged a gift shop half a kilometer away, in Phuket Rd, yesterday afternoon. Damage to the houses in Soi Ton Pho was estimated at 400,000 baht, while stock worth 250,000 baht in the gift shop, Baan See Khao, was ruined in theโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsTourist drowns off Surin Beach | Thaiger

    Tourist drowns off Surin Beach

    SURIN BEACH: Italian tourist Marisa Tolomelli, 69, drowned while swimming off Surin Beach yesterday afternoon. Mrs Tolomelli and her husband at first went swimming together. The husband then returned to the beach to sunbathe. She disappeared shortly afterwards. Pol Capt Anake Mongkol of the Cherng Talay Police Station told the Gazette that witnesses said Mrs Tolomelli had been missing forโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsCouple arrested for fraud | Thaiger

    Couple arrested for fraud

    PHUKET TOWN: Police on Monday arrested the son of a prominent Phuket businessman, along with his wife, on charges of fraud. Thiti โ€œKobโ€ Tandavanitj, 31, and his wife Sukannikar, 24, were arrested at K-House on Phang-nga Rd after a complaint was laid by 22 employees of the coupleโ€™s website design company, Data Info Co Ltd. The employees alleged that theโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsBoat owners warned over tax | Thaiger

    Boat owners warned over tax

    PHUKET: The Phuket Excise Department has warned the owners of all imported pleasure craft, including speedboats and jet-skis, to settle their outstanding taxes before April 1 or face huge fines and possible imprisonment. An Excise Department statement said the grace period would give boat owners time to pay taxes owed. The total import taxes payable on foreign-made pleasure craft wereโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsMobile phone ban for motorists | Thaiger

    Mobile phone ban for motorists

    BANGKOK (AFP): The government today tabled a proposal to outlaw the use of mobile phones by motorists, saying they distract drivers and cause accidents, a senior minister said. Defense Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh told reporters that the cabinetโ€™s Scrutinizing Committee had agreed to draft legislation that would prohibit motorists from talking on mobile phones, even with the use of hands-free equipment.โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsGov rebuffs Shark lawyer | Thaiger

    Gov rebuffs Shark lawyer

    PHUKET: Provincial Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi has flatly rejected a message from a Canadian lawyer representing Kevin Radke, managing director of the company that owns the Shark Club, urging him to reverse his order closing the club permanently. In the email message, which was copied to the Gazette, lawyer Kieran Bridge wrote, in part, โ€œYour order to close the Sharkโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsTeen gang “robbed to buy drugs and toys’ | Thaiger

    Teen gang โ€œrobbed to buy drugs and toysโ€™

    PHUKET TOWN: Police believe they have brought a series of snatch-and-ride crimes to an end with the arrest at the weekend of four young suspects who, officers say, used their ill-gotten gains to buy toys and drugs. Women riding motorbikes alone after dark were the gangโ€™s usual targets. Police allege that the three boys and a girl would grab handbags,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsAlleged ya bah dealer slain | Thaiger

    Alleged ya bah dealer slain

    KAMALA: A man police say they believe was a drug dealer was ambushed and shot dead soon after dropping his daughter at school in Kamala today. The killing took place soon after 8 am as Natee Yayee, 35, rode his motorcycle across the bridge at Klong Pakbang, after dropping his daughter at Baan Kamala School. Pol Maj Pisit Cheanpetch, Inspectorโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsDozens of sea turtles hatch | Thaiger

    Dozens of sea turtles hatch

    MAI KHAO: A nest of leatherback turtles hatched at the weekend on Mai Khao beach, the fourth hatching since January 17. The mother turtle arrived on the beach to lay the eggs in December. Thanu Naep-nien, spokesperson for the environmentalist group Wildlife Fund Thailand, said, โ€œThere were 105 eggs in the nest. Around 80 have hatched. They started hatching Saturdayโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsJammin latest victim of crackdown | Thaiger

    Jammin latest victim of crackdown

    PHUKET TOWN: Jammin Music Club on Bangkok Rd became the latest victim of the crackdown on the entertainment industry when it was raided by police early this morning and ordered closed for 30 days because one customer was found to be underage. Officers led by Phuket Town Police Station Superintendent Paween Pongsirin went to the club at around 12:30 am,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket News611 in jail over drugs | Thaiger

    611 in jail over drugs

    PHUKET: More than half of the people incarcerated in Phuketโ€™s overcrowded provincial prison have either been convicted of narcotics offenses or are awaiting trial on drug-related charges. According to the latest statistics released by the prison, 611 of the 1,204 inmates are locked up on narcotics-related convictions or charges. Of these, 506 are men and 105 are women. In addition,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket Town to host biker festival | Thaiger

    Phuket Town to host biker festival

    PHUKET TOWN: After failing to persuade Patong to host their event, the organizers of the Phuket Bike Rally have now received the go-ahead from the authorities in Phuket Town to stage three days of contests, games and parties at Saphan Hin, from February 22 to 24. Tanate Trivut, managing director of Delice Thai Co, the management company for the event,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsPatong tap water declared safe | Thaiger

    Patong tap water declared safe

    PATONG: The tap water in the Patong municipal area has been declared safe for drinking. Deputy Interior Minister Sora-at Klinpratoom made the announcement this morning at Loma Public Park on Thaweewong Rd, shortly before taking a drink from one of the three fountains set up to provide free water to thirsty residents and tourists in the area. โ€œI think thisโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsShark staff petition in vain | Thaiger

    Shark staff petition in vain

    PHUKET TOWN: 131 staff members of Patongโ€™s Shark Club, ordered closed yesterday by Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi, assembled at the Provincial Hall this afternoon to demand that he reopen the club. They were unable to meet with the governor, who was in Bangkok today, and instead presented their petition to Vice Governor Manit Wattanasen. Three representatives โ€“ Pathamapan Rattanapan,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsGovernor shuts the Shark

    Governor shuts the Shark

    PHUKET: The biggest disco in Phuket, Patongโ€™s Shark Club & Discotheque, was today ordered closed permanently on instructions from the Minister of Interior, Purachai Piemsomboon. The closure order, announced by Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi, came after it was discovered that the operating license for the disco โ€“ which can hold more than 1,500 revelers at a time โ€“ contained irregularitiesโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsB13m lost in warehouse blaze | Thaiger

    B13m lost in warehouse blaze

    PHUKET TOWN: Firefighters from all over the island took seven hours yesterday morning to put out a blaze in a warehouse. Damage in the fire was estimated at about 13 million baht. No one was hurt. Police answered a call about 3 am, by which time six fire engines from Phuket Town were already at the warehouse in Songkhla Rd,โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsVice-Governor shuts Timber Hut | Thaiger

    Vice-Governor shuts Timber Hut

    PHUKET TOWN: One of Phuketโ€™s oldest and most popular nighttime venues, the Timber Hut pub on Yaowarat Rd, has been ordered to close for 30 days because a Vice-Governor saw people dancing there. Vice-Governor Manit Wattanasen told the Gazette that he went to the pub on Saturday to meet a friend, and saw people dancing. โ€œMuang District is in myโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsSailor killed, dumped at sea | Thaiger

    Sailor killed, dumped at sea

    PHUKET TOWN: The body of a man who had been stabbed 15 times was found in the fishing port of Soi Si Sena at the weekend. Police received a phone call from a local fisherman at about 1:30 pm on Saturday and found the body of the unidentified man floating in the water, said Pol Lt Parichat Jaturonpun of Phuketโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsCouples set to get wet and wed | Thaiger

    Couples set to get wet and wed

    TRANG: A record number of couples are expected to marry in the annual mass underwater wedding ceremony off Trang on Valentineโ€™s Day. Partly because thereโ€™s no need to bring something blue โ€“ they will be floating in it โ€“ Trangโ€™s watery wedding on February 14 is expected to win a place in the Guinness Book of Records. So far, 36โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsAppeal for action against megastores | Thaiger

    Appeal for action against megastores

    PHUKET TOWN: A crisis meeting of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce (PCC) today pushed for government support for small Thai retailers in the face of overwhelming competition from large foreign supermarkets and discount stores. The meeting was told that as many as 250,000 small retail outlets around Thailand had already been forced to close because they could no longer compete.โ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsSheraton to run new resort in Krabi | Thaiger

    Sheraton to run new resort in Krabi

    AO NANG: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc and Thai company MBK Properties and Development have announced an agreement whereby Starwood will manage a new resort, now being constructed north of Ao Nang, under its Sheraton brand. The 246-room Sheraton Krabi Beach Resort is to open in December on a 48-rai site on Khlong Muang Beach, which is north ofโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket News50 international phone booths vandalized | Thaiger

    50 international phone booths vandalized

    PHUKET: More than 50 public telephones for international calls have been jammed in what appears to be a campaign of deliberate vandalism. Plastic cards, cut in half, were jammed into the phone card slots in booths around the island. Some would-be callers, angry at not being able to make overseas phone calls, added to the damage by venting their frustrationโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsPolice raid Asia Island Homes office | Thaiger

    Police raid Asia Island Homes office

    CHERNG TALAY: A squad of some 10 officers from the Bangkok-based Economic Crimes Unit (ECU) yesterday raided one of Phuketโ€™s biggest property development companies, Asia Island Homes (AIH), and arrested two people for work permit violations. Sources who asked not to be named told the Gazette that the investigators arrived at about midday, armed with a search warrant issued byโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsBonanza for crash helmet shops | Thaiger

    Bonanza for crash helmet shops

    PHUKET: Thanks to the police crackdown on the wearing of crash helmets on motorcycles, helmets have been moving off shop shelves almost as fast as passing motorbikes. But businesses surveyed by the Gazette today said that the popular buys have been cheap, low-quality models that provide little if any protection in a crash. The shops also said that, after anโ€ฆ

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  • Phuket NewsSeized yacht finally auctioned off | Thaiger

    Seized yacht finally auctioned off

    PHUKET TOWN: The sailing yacht โ€œBin Cha Chaโ€ was finally sold at auction this morning at the Phuket Customs Region 5 office, after two previous attempts to sell it last year failed. Niwat Triemsantipap, the assistant general manager of the Maiton Resort, acquired the 7.9-meter yacht with a bid of 200,000 baht, just one third of its original reserve priceโ€ฆ

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