Month: March 2010

  • Phuket NewsPhuket football on a roll | Thaiger

    Phuket football on a roll

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Football officials in Phuket have high hopes that the island will become the next haven for the AFC’s Vision Asia program. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC), headquartered in…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket flooding: Mayor Pian fights back

    Phuket flooding: Mayor Pian fights back

    PATONG, PHUKET: Patong Mayor Pian Keesin has launched an ambitious program of public works in a bid to prevent a repeat of the flooding that deluged Phuket’s premier resort town during last year’s monsoon season. Mayor Pian said he guaranteed that the four projects underway would be complete before the rains start this year. “I’m not saying there will be…

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  • Phuket NewsYoung French boy in Phuket jellyfish attack

    Young French boy in Phuket jellyfish attack

    NAI HARN, PHUKET: A four-year-old French boy is expected to make a full recovery from a jellyfish sting on Nai Harn Beach this afternoon thanks to the quick thinking of two former Phuket lifeguards. The two men, who now work as beach vendors, rushed to help Aymeric Roussel after he was pulled from the surf screaming. “We poured vinegar over…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket sea gypsies protest cemetery plans

    Phuket sea gypsies protest cemetery plans

    MAI KHAO, PHUKET: Moken sea gypsies gathered at Phuket Provincial Hall on Tuesday to protest a plan to appropriate cemetery land for the construction of a new police office. Around 50 members of the Ban Laem La and Ban Hin Look Diow Moken communities voiced their discontent at the Treasury Department’s plan to grant nearly half of their public cemetery…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket tourism titans optimistic for 2010 | Thaiger

    Phuket tourism titans optimistic for 2010

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Somboon Chirayus, president of the Phuket Tourism Association, says the island should gain more visitors this year as many airlines plan to add more charter flights into Phuket…

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  • Phuket NewsBuses the new solution to Phuket transport woes

    Buses the new solution to Phuket transport woes

    PHUKET: Plans for a light rail system spanning Phuket have been scrapped in favor of the much cheaper option of scheduling new bus routes, it recently emerged. “We will no longer refer to this project as the light rail or monorail system project,” said Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop. “We will now refer to it as the Bus Rapid Transit system…

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  • Phuket NewsMonk kills monk | Thaiger

    Monk kills monk

    PHUKET: A  monk was stabbed to death after boasting that the talismans (amulets) hanging from his neck made his skin impenetrable to weapons. Phra Sunantha Phongsu-wan, 44, died in hospital earlier this month from a single stab wound to his chest. Witnesses reported that the previous evening Phra Sunantha and his friend Phra Sathien Khamphira, 55, had been at Samnak…

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  • Phuket NewsDoctor gunned down in Phuket Town

    Doctor gunned down in Phuket Town

    PHUKET TOWN: A well known doctor was gunned down in a drive-by killing outside his own clinic in Phuket Town today. Police found the body of Dr Somchai Wongbunterng, 47, on the sidewalk outside Somchai International Clinic on Wichit Songkhram Road in Phuket Town around midday. He had been shot in the head. Phuket City Police Deputy Commander Komol Wattraporn…

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  • Cannabis NewsAussie tourist on Phuket drugs rap

    Aussie tourist on Phuket drugs rap

    CHALONG, PHUKET: An Australian tourist was one of five drug suspects paraded by Chalong Police at a press conference in Phuket yesterday afternoon. Richard Beaver, 28, was allegedly caught with 0.9 grams of dry marijuana by police on Tuesday night. Mr Beaver was stopped on Soi Samakee 2 off Saiyuan Road at around 11:30pm. The tourist allegedly told police he…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket bemused as protests fizzle | Thaiger

    Phuket bemused as protests fizzle

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: The mass anti-government rally in Thailand appears to be losing steam. Tens of thousands have returned to their farms. They drew nowhere near the promised million protesters. But…

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  • OpinionOPINION: Reports of My Death | Thaiger

    OPINION: Reports of My Death

    PHUKET: One of history’s great lines, (which is often misquoted), is Samuel Clemens’ (Mark Twain’s) “Reports of my death have been exaggerated.” As it turned out, the quote itself was an exaggeration, as the true story was a case of transmogrified news about Clemens’ relative James Ross Clemens. In fact, the line is, “The report of my death was an…

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  • Phuket NewsDam fine: Phuket beauty spot gets overhaul

    Dam fine: Phuket beauty spot gets overhaul

    KATHU, PHUKET: Bang Wad Dam, one of Phuket’s most popular leisure spots, is getting a huge overhaul to turn it into a fully fledged recreational park. A project is underway to add a new drainage system, a new bike path, new landscaping and build what is being called “the most beautiful toilet in Phuket.” Overseeing the makeover is Phuket Irrigation…

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  • Phuket NewsNews Hound: Protests waning, Phuket remains quiet

    News Hound: Protests waning, Phuket remains quiet

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Protesters spilled what they say is their own blood at the gates of Thailand’s Government House late yesterday in what canada.com described as “a colourful act of political…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket’s Ironman to climb Mont Blanc – for local charity | Thaiger

    Phuket’s Ironman to climb Mont Blanc – for local charity

    PHUKET: Les Bird’s teeth are clenched, muscles taut and body drenched in sweat as he sprints the last leg of his training hike to the summit of Nakkerd Hill in Chalong. As he heaves off his 40 kilogram bag and glances at his watch, Les scolds himself for finishing his training hike in under an hour. “I need to slow…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket vaccination drive for cats and dogs | Thaiger

    Phuket vaccination drive for cats and dogs

    PHUKET : More than 100 injection centers have been set up across the island in a drive to vaccinate Phuket’s dogs and cats against rabies. The livestock office-led campaign began on February 16 and will wrap up April 28. Centers are operating daily except for weekends and public holidays. “Instances of infection in dogs seem to be on the decline,”…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket about-turn: Patong one-way to be reversed

    Phuket about-turn: Patong one-way to be reversed

    PATONG, PHUKET: There could be a turnaround in Patong’s traffic woes by the year’s end. Mayor Pian Keesin has announced plans to redirect the one-way system in Phuket’s tourist epicenter from clockwise to anticlockwise. Newly appointed Kathu Police Superintendent Arayapan Pukbuakao said earlier this month that the current system, which came into effect in 2007, “not only confuses people but…

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  • Phuket NewsNorwegian’s nose broken in Phuket punch-up

    Norwegian’s nose broken in Phuket punch-up

    KATA, PHUKET: A 69-year-old Norwegian tourist sustained a fractured nose and other facial injuries after he was reportedly attacked while enjoying his morning coffee in Phuket on March 12. Kristian Kristiansen claims he was sitting on the porch of his ground floor room at Moon Shine Apartments in Kata when he was approached by a leather-clad Thai man with long…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket NEWS Hound: Protest Updates | Thaiger

    Phuket NEWS Hound: Protest Updates

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. Thai Prime Minister won’t step down PHUKET: Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva appeared on national television yesterday to reject a demand from demonstrators that he resign by midday and call…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket tourism industry unfazed | Thaiger

    Phuket tourism industry unfazed

    PHUKET: The tourism industry in Phuket has not been affected by the red shirt protests in Bangkok, according to the vice president of the Phuket Tourist Association. Mr Krisada Tansakul said the island-wide hotel occupancy rate is at about 65%. “That’s good compared to the March rate last year,” he said. “Patong is faring especially well with a rate of…

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  • Phuket NewsFC Phuket top of the league

    FC Phuket top of the league

    PHUKET: FC Phuket are top of Division Two (southern section) after an emphatic 2-0 victory over previous league leaders Satun Utd on Saturday. Even more encouraging for FC Phuket fans – who turned out in record numbers to support their team at Surakul Stadium – was the manner of the performance, with the Sea Kirin dominating the game from start…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket red shirts determined to succeed

    Phuket red shirts determined to succeed

    PHUKET: Phuket’s red shirts are determined to stay in Bangkok until the movement succeeds in bringing down the government, according to one of their leaders. Soonthorn Tohmharn, a local leader of the red-shirted United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), said more than 10,000 southern red shirts had joined the demonstration since Friday, with more arriving today. “I told people…

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  • OpinionOPINION: Lack of lifeguards intolerable

    OPINION: Lack of lifeguards intolerable

    PHUKET: When it comes to showing visitors a good time, Phuket is hard to beat. But when it comes to keeping them safe, the verdict has to be: ‘Must try harder’. Much has been written recently about the ongoing carnage on the island’s roads, but during the high season now ending we’ve heard less about Phuket’s second most prolific killer,…

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  • Phuket NewsBody identification easier after Phuket tsunami

    Body identification easier after Phuket tsunami

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: The slow body identification process that occurred in Phuket after the 2004 tsunami has motivated researchers in Perth to build a database of skeletons to help identify bodies…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket calm, but red shirts alarm Bangkok | Thaiger

    Phuket calm, but red shirts alarm Bangkok

    PHUKET: The Thai government will likely enforce a state-of-emergency decree today to cope with the escalating security problem in Bangkok after tens of thousands of provincial protesters arrived in the capital yesterday. A state of emergency, which would be on top of the current implementation of the Internal Security Act (ISA), would empower the military to fully take charge of…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket caddies end protest

    Phuket caddies end protest

    KATHU, PHUKET: Some 200 golf caddies at the Loch Palm golf course in Phuket have ended a two-day protest over the dismissal of their ‘caddy master’. Most are now back to work. The women, who began their sit-in protest at 4:30am on Thursday, originally insisted they would not return to work at the course in Kathu until the man was…

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  • Phuket NewsProtests well underway in Bangkok | Thaiger

    Protests well underway in Bangkok

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Tens of thousands of soldiers and police officers have been deployed to maintain calm in Bangkok as red-shirted protesters prepare to convert their current “rally” into demonstrations against…

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  • Phuket NewsReaders’ Poll: Majority drink and drive in Phuket

    Readers’ Poll: Majority drink and drive in Phuket

    PHUKET TOWN: A majority of Phuket Gazette readers have operated a motor vehicle in Phuket while under the influence of alcohol, according to the latest readers’ poll. A total of 844 readers cast votes in the survey. Overall, 36.7% of readers have driven under the influence “many times”, while just over 32% have done so “a few times”. Roughly the…

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  • Phuket NewsMarch blood drive in Phuket

    March blood drive in Phuket

    PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Chapter of the Thai Red Cross Society has announced the following dates and times for its mobile donation clinics for March: March 16 (1pm to 4pm): Banthai Beach Resort & Spa, Patong March 18 (1pm to 4pm): Andaman Cannacia Resort & Spa, Kata March 19 (1pm to 4pm): Diamond Cliff Resort & Spa, Patong March 25…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket’s Nai Harn buzzing with bikers

    Phuket’s Nai Harn buzzing with bikers

    RAWAI, PHUKET: Nai Harn Beach was bustling with bikers last night as riders from around Phuket kicked off the first annual Nai Harn Bike Event. The two-day party welcomes all biking enthusiasts and showcases the most impressive motorcycles on the island, whether traditional or modified. Hogs on show include Harley Davidson Choppers, Fat Boys and Heritage Softails, as well as…

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  • Phuket NewsJazz dinner in Phuket: philanthropy in full swing

    Jazz dinner in Phuket: philanthropy in full swing

    PHUKET: Making a special Phuket appearance, the Stockholm Jazz Orchestra hits town for two nights in the last two weeks of March. Performances are scheduled for March 20 at the Adamas Resort and Spa on Nai Yang Beach and March 27 at the Metropole Hotel in Phuket Town. The popular big band orchestra is led by founder and veteran trumpet…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket set for historical extravaganza

    Phuket set for historical extravaganza

    THALANG, PHUKET: The year’s first performance of ‘Thalang Light and Sound’, a grand re-enactment of the Battle of Thalang featuring a cast of 700, will take place in Phuket tomorrow night. The historical extravaganza has been organized by Phuket Provincial Administration Organization at a cost of six million baht. It will run from 8pm to 9:30pm at Thalang Victory Memorial…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket cop to end greasy traffic fines | Thaiger

    Phuket cop to end greasy traffic fines

    PATONG, PHUKET: In a move sure to win the hearts of foreigners, Patong’s new top police officer says he’ll end the longstanding practice of levying higher traffic fines against tourists and other foreigners than are levied against Thais. Kathu Police Superintendent Arayapan Pukbuakao, who took over from Col Grissak Songmoonnark last month, said traffic fines in Patong were ‘very high’.…

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  • Phuket NewsTourists to be routed to Phuket | Thaiger

    Tourists to be routed to Phuket

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Government sectors have teamed up to create the National Tourist Assistance Center (NTAC) to help tourists during the current mass rally against the government in Bangkok. Conducted by…

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  • Phuket NewsPolice enlist public as Phuket’s eyes and ears

    Police enlist public as Phuket’s eyes and ears

    PHUKET: Fearing that political groups may try to cause disruptions in Phuket during the red shirt demonstrations in Bangkok, the police are enlisting members of the public as their roving eyes and ears. Through a project called ‘News for Security’, the police are asking citizens to spot suspicious packages and unusual behavior, and to report it to the authorities. This…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket Chinese cemetery ablaze again

    Phuket Chinese cemetery ablaze again

    PHUKET TOWN: Firefighters used almost 9,000 liters of water to put out flames that raged in the Chinese cemetery on Rang Hill in Phuket Town today. Ten firefighters in three trucks rushed to the scene after the fire started at about 1pm. It took them around half an hour to bring the inferno under control. Arthit Phromsiri, head of the…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket red shirts head to Bangkok

    Phuket red shirts head to Bangkok

    PHUKET: More than one thousand Phuket red shirts have reportedly left the island to take part in mass demonstrations in Bangkok. A local leader of the red-shirt United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) movement, Soonthorn Tohmharn, said there would be no demonstrations in Phuket. A huge UDD protest in Bangkok is set to take place tomorrow afternoon in a…

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  • Phuket NewsNEWS Hound: Travel update for Thailand | Thaiger

    NEWS Hound: Travel update for Thailand

    Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily, pocket-sized packet of news from around the world, compiled by Phuket Gazette reporters for foreigners who want it short, sharp and straight to the point. PHUKET: Government-owned Thai media conglomerate Mcot reports that Bangkok’s major airport Suvarnabhumi has issued an advisory warning passengers check in 3 hours in advance for international flights, and 2…

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