Month: January 2008
- Phuket News
Officers befuddled by seaplanes in Patong
PHUKET CITY: Destination Air seaplanes landing and taking off near the Amari Coral Beach Resort have left government officers in a spin about what to do with complaints about noise, safety and even fuel left floating in the planes’ wakes.At a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday, Kathu District Chief Khantee Silapa said, “For nearly three months I have received complaints from…
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Gov calls for “right’ Tourism Minister
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit yesterday called on the new central government to appoint a Minister of Tourism and Sports who will push through the “mega-projects” Gov Niran believes will aid Phuket’s development.At the Phuket Provincial Security Committee meeting at Katina Hotel, Gov Niran said that after seven years as Phuket Vice-Governor and one year as Governor, Phuket still…
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Bomb scare in Rawai
RAWAI: Chalong Police closed the road along the Rawai beachfront at midday yesterday for about 30 minutes while bomb squad officers attended to a suspicious package left on the footpath opposite the Mama Klong restaurant.After local villagers reported the package to police, officers taped off a “safe zone” before moving in to disarm the suspected bomb.The incident caused much commotion and concern…
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Man charged for robbing Adrian Zecha’s villa
PHUKET CITY: Police yesterday announced that they had arrested a man for allegedly robbing Adrian Zecha’s villa at the exclusive Amanpuri, which the mogul developed himself as the first Aman boutique resort.At a press conference at Phuket City Police Station, Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth presented Weerapol Laolang, 22, a resident of Soi Phaneang in Phuket City.Gen Decha said that…
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Robber nabbed after fake-pistol heists
PHUKET CITY: Phuket City Police collaborated with Songkhla Police to bring in a robber who went on a one-month robbing spree around Phuket City armed with a fake pistol.Satun-native Narathon Uraiwong, 30, who was arrested on Saturday, admitted to robbing two grocery stores, one 7-Eleven and one tourist, stealing a total of 21,900 baht, said Phuket City Police Deputy Superintendent Col…
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Glass adding to trash crisis – experts
PHUKET CITY: With the volume of trash generated in Phuket increasing almost 20% annually, Phuket is facing a waste disposal crises that needs immediate attention, experts told a seminar at the Phuket Provincial Office on January 28. Monthip Srirattana Tabuganon, Deputy Director-General of Natural Resources and Environment Ministry’s Department of Environmental Quality Promotion led the meeting, much of which focused…
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Desalination plant working at “near capacity’
KARON: After months of rectifying problems related to unstable power supply, Thailand’s second-largest desalination plant is finally working near full capacity, the Gazette has learned.The reverse-osmosis (RO) plant, located at the hairpin turn on the road from Karon to Patong, was completed mid-2006 at a cost of 528 million baht by REQ Water Service Ltd.By mid-2007, the plant was unable…
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Banphaeo Hospital inks deal with OrBorJor
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) and Banphaeo Hospital in Samut Sakhon signed a deal on January 26 at Phuket Merlin Hotel that will see the long-abandoned buildings of Phya Thai Hospital renovated and jointly run as a public organization under provincial administration.Public Health Minister Mongkol Na Songkhla and Phuket Vice-Governor Worapoj Ratthasima witnessed the signing that will see…
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Two more candidates enter senatorial race
PHUKET CITY: Two local lawyers have registered to run in the March 2 senatorial election, bringing the final number of candidates in Phuket to three.The second candidate is Adirak Engchuan. The 46-year-old Phuket native, who holds a law degree from Ramkhamhaeng University in Bangkok, registered his candidacy Thursday morning.The final candidate to register was Cherdchai Wongseree, 47, who arrived at…
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Four arrested for Phuket City muggings
PHUKET CITY: Police have announced the arrest of four suspects charged with being part of gang believed to have mugged at least nine motorbike riders in Phuket City.In a press release, Phuket City Police Superintendent Col Nos Svettalekha identified one of the gang members as Prasit Intachoot, 24.Prasit and a 15-year-old boy were arrested in Surin Rd Soi 1 in Phuket…
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Three die in Kalim horror smash
KATHU: Two Italian tourists and a Thai teenager were killed in a head-on collision in Kalim on Thursday night, a local Thai-language newspaper has reported. The two Italians were named as Luiz Fransescopilato, 37, and his female companion Anna Montone, 30.The Thai victim was identified as 15-year-old Patong resident Theerawat Samarnmitr.Ms Montone was riding pillion on a blue Honda Click…
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Gambling trumps crime statistics
PHUKET: Yet again, gambling has topped the monthly crime statistics released by Phuket Provincial Police, with 284 arrests in December.During the period, drug-related cases accounted for 131 arrests, of which 55 involved ya bah (methamphetamine). A total of precisely 13,041.5 pills were seized.Thirty people were arrested for using cannabis, with a total of just 39.4 grams confiscated. There were 23…
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New limo service sparks strike at airport
MAI KHAO: While Phuket Mai Khao Company launched its airport limousine and minibus service at Phuket International Airport yesterday morning, some 100 drivers and other staff of the Phuket Limousine and Business Services Cooperative (PBC), which already operates limos and minibuses at the airport, staged a five-hour strike in protest of the new concession.However, few passengers were inconvenienced as there…
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Dr Smith’s injuries not life threatening
RANONG: The injuries sustained by Dr Smith Dharmasaroja, Director of the National Disaster Warning Center, during a car accident in Ranong late Wednesday afternoon are not life threatening, the Gazette has learned.A reliable source told the Gazette this morning that Dr Smith can speak, talk, watch television and read newspapers as normal, but he is being kept under close watch…
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Dr Smith injured in Ranong crash
RANONG: While returning to Bangkok from a seminar in Phuket yesterday, National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) Director Dr Smith Dharmasaroja sustained head injuries in a road accident in Ranong. Forty-eight-year-old Somchai Sriplienjan was driving Dr Smith’s blue Mazda BT50 pickup during heavy rain along Route 527 in Pakjun District, Ranong, when he lost control of the vehicle on a curve.…
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“Gee’ ready for senate race
PHUKET CITY: Former senator-elect Thanyarat “Gee” Achariyachai is the only candidate thus far registered to run in the senatorial election to take place in Phuket on March 2. K. Thanyarat arrived at Phuket Community Hall with her husband and supporters on the morning of January 21, the first day of the five-day registration period. She was given candidate number “1”…
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NDWC to install more tsunami-warning buoys
PHUKET CITY: The National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) has finally received 165 million baht from the central government to install two more tsunami-warning buoys in the Andaman Sea. They are to be installed by the middle of this year, NDWC Director Dr Smith Dharmasaroja told a conference in Phuket City on January 21.The conference, at the Royal Phuket City Hotel…
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TOT broadband: 1Gbps by July
PHUKET (Nation/Gazette): TOT kicked off its project to build a new fiber-optic broadband-Internet service for Phuket with the awarding yesterday of a 136.8-million-baht network-construction contract.“We picked Phuket as the first location to launch the service because the island has affluent consumers who can afford the premium-priced service,” said Sayan Tinsamran, TOT senior executive vice president for marketing and product development.Under…
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German caught robbin’ the hood
CHALONG: Jannik Norbert Volz, 19, from Germany, was arrested about 2 am on Sunday while he was attempting to steal a motorbike just after he had stolen a hunting bow and arrows from the Phuket Shooting Range.Police arrested Jannik and charged him with “nighttime theft”, which in Thailand carries a stiffer penalty than robbery in daylight, after he was seen stealing…
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Hotel room tax generates B65m
PHUKET: About 65 million baht in tax on hotel rooms was collected in Phuket in 2007, some 5 million baht more than expected, Anchalee Vanich Tephabutra, president of Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) has announced.“Our target was 60 million baht. More tax was collected because we met with a large number of hotel operators and explained to them how the…
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Chalong Circle to be removed?
CHALONG: Motorists in the southern end of the island may soon be missing their favorite landmark as the provincial highways office is considering removing Chalong Circle and installing traffic lights at the five-way junction.Saroj Suwinchai, director of the provincial office of the Highways Department, told the Gazette that the idea behind the proposal is to relieve traffic congestion at the…
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Chairat launches Patong beach food crackdown
PATONG: Patong Municipality has warned Patong beach vendors against cooking and selling food on the beach, saying violators will be arrested.“If we find any vendors selling food on the beach we will arrest them. Only drinks can be sold on the beach and all vendors doing so must pay a tax and trash-collection fee to the municipality,” said Chairat Sukkaban,…
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Year of the Rat a boon to Phuket tourism
PHUKET CITY: Despite many public events being canceled in respect of the passing away of HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana on January 2, the Tourism Authority of Thailand expects a 20% increase in the number of mainland Chinese celebrating the upcoming Chinese New Year in Phuket over last year.The lunar-based Chinese New Year celebrations, this year marking the arrival of the…
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Marine tourism the cornerstone of 4-year provincial development plan
PHUKET CITY: The provincial government’s next four-year development plan aims to establish the island as a world-class marine tourism destination by 2012 while sustaining annual 10% increases in tourism-industry revenue over the four-year period starting in 2009.The ambitious plan, drawn up by the Governor’s Office, was presented to elected local officials and representatives of government agencies at a meeting at…
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Two tonnes of smuggled beef goes up in flames
PHUKET CITY: Nearly two tonnes of smuggled beef went up in smoke at the Phuket Incinerator in Saphan Hin on Sunday. The meat, worth an estimated 153,600 baht, was from cattle infected with foot-and-mouth disease, said Phuket Vice-Govenor Smith Palawatvichai.Most smuggled meat was from diseased animals and was of low quality, he added.According to a press release issued by the…
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PITO calls for voluntary price freeze
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Internal Trade Office (PITO) on Tuesday called for shops and restaurants to join its Blue Flag voluntary price freeze program, aimed at giving consumers some relief from rising prices. Prices of many everyday necessities have risen in Phuket, reflecting price increases for raw materials, PITO Chief Wassana Utsaharam said. The strong baht has driven up the…
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World-class windsurfers set off on 100km rally
NAI YANG: Thailand’s first international windsurfing rally championship started yesterday as 30 world-class windsurfers from 21 countries set off from Nai Yang Beach in the first of four days of racing covering 100 kilometers.The windsurfers are members of the Eastern Windsurfing Club (EWC), which has teamed up with the Windsurfing Association of Thailand, the Yacht Racing Association of Thailand (YRAT)…
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Slain frogman identified
KARON: After days of intense speculation, Chalong Police investigating the bizarre death of a frogman who attacked a Swiss yacht owner and a Thai woman on the night of January 9 have finally identified the attacker as German national Peter Michael Schmid, aged 35. The investigation by Chalong Police included showing pictures of the deceased frogman to hotel employees in…
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Full booze ban for Senatorial election
PHUKET: Following final confirmation by the national Election Commission (EC) that voting for the Senatorial election will take place nationwide on March 2, the Phuket Election Committee (PEC) has confirmed that it is 100% ready to conduct the polls – and that the same restrictions on alcohol sales will be in force during both the advance and general polling.Under the…
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Old Phuket Festival canceled
PHUKET CITY: The Old Phuket Festival, originally scheduled to take place along Thalang Rd from February 13 to 15, has been canceled as the nation mourns HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana, who passed away on January 2.The cancellation of what would have been the 10th annual festival follows a request made by the Royal Household Bureau on January 2 for a period…
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2008 telephone book now on sale
PHUKET: The 2008 edition of the Gazette Guide, Phuket’s English-language yellow pages, goes on sale at noon today. The price of the directory is 140 baht. A list of retailers in Phuket, Phang-nga, Krabi, Koh Samui, Pattaya and Bangkok is available here. All businesses listed in the directory are entitled to one copy of the book at 70 baht, a…
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Party for the Little People
PHUKET: Parents around Thailand today have their hands full as the nation celebrates Children’s Day. To mark the annual event, free activities, prizes and entertainment are being held for youngsters around the island. Here, the Gazette has compiled a roundup of where to go and what to do to keep Phuket’s little people entertained on this special day. However, this…
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Banphaeo Hospital steps in to help OrBorJor
PHUKET CITY: Banphaeo Hospital in Samut Sakhon will next month sign a management contract agreeing to help the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) re-open the long-abandoned Phyathai Hospital as a public organization, to be run independently of the Public Health Ministry.OrBorJor President Anchalee Vanich Tephabutra said that when the new facility opens, hopefully by the end of the year, it…
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Kho En “death bend’ roadworks complete by March
MAI KHAO: Roadworks to make the notorious Kho En “death bend” on Thepkrasattri Rd safer are about 40% complete and the section of road should be ready by the end of February, Saroj Suwinchai, director of the provincial office of the Highways Department, has told the Gazette.The Kho En curve is a notorious blackspot that has been the site of several…
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Police release sketches of gold shop bandits
WICHIT: Police are still searching for two men who robbed a gold shop on Chao Fa East Rd Wednesday morning, escaping with jewelry valued at more than a million baht.Phuket City Police Duty Officer Lt Theeradet Jiraksa told the Gazette that the robbery took place about 11 am at Srithong Gold Shop, located by Moom Muang Market, near the entrance…
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Frogman killed in Kata Bay fracas
KARON: Chalong Police are investigating the bizarre killing, apparently in self-defense, of an unknown frogman who attacked a Swiss yacht owner and a Thai woman late Wednesday night.The details of the case, as provided to the media at a press conference yesterday afternoon by Chalong Police Superintendent Col Saman Chainarong, are based on the eye-witness account of 25-year-old Trat native…
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“Crab Bank’ launched in Rassada
RASSADA: In a bid to increase dwindling crab stocks in local waters, the Phuket Provincial Fisheries Office with other government and non-government organizations this morning held a ceremony to launch the island’s first “crab bank”, off the coast of Rassada Village 3.As part of the ceremony, nine monks blessed 250 saffron ribbons, which were tied around mangrove trees lining the…
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