Month: April 2013
- Phuket News
Malaysian biker dies in crash on last day of Phuket Bike Week
PHUKET: A second Malaysian biker participating in the Phuket Bike Week died on Sunday morning after losing control of his motorbike on the infamous Baan Kor En curve and crashing into the median strip in Thalang. Zhi Wei Loh, 29, was starting the return journey to Malaysia with a group of friends when he approached Baan Kor En curve on…
Read More » - Thai Life
Phuket Humor: In praise of sitting
PHUKET: A recent article claimed that too much sitting can kill you. It causes heart attacks, diabetes and a bigger bum. The author worried about the health of people who spend all their working days sitting in cubicles in front of computers, then go home to spend their entire evenings sitting in front of TV sets. Indeed, I have often…
Read More » - Property
Slave to the bean
PHUKET: I’ve just checked out of the emergency room, covered in bandages not dissimilar to those worn by the damaged star of the movie The English Patient, or perhaps more fittingly, Return of the Mummy. Anyway, same-same but different, said the man outside the sliding hospital door. My horrific accident that will no doubt result in permanent scars, comes from…
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Two Phuket hotels honored at DestinAsian Reader’s Awards
PHUKET: The JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa was named the Best Hotel in Phuket in the 8th annual DestinAsian Readers’ Choice Awards 2013, while the spa arm of the Banyan Tree brand was named Top Hotel Spa in the Asia-Pacific region. On Phuket’s beautiful Mai Khao Beach, the luxury 265-room JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa is set across…
Read More » - Property
No cooling measures needed in BKK
PHUKET: As concerns of a real estate bubble escalate, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) recently asked commercial banks to become more cautious about mortgage lending, particularly to borrowers who are suspected of buying houses or condominiums for speculative purposes. While the BOT’s position is reasonable, as easy lending can inflate real estate bubbles, cooling measures are not needed at this…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: London does it; EPL nail-biters; Vettel wins
Big crowds, black ribbons for Boston at London Marathon Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Undaunted by the Boston Marathon bombings, big crowds lined the route of London’s mass road race to cheer on around 36,000 runners, many of whom wore black ribbons to remember the dead and wounded. Hundreds of extra police were deployed to secure the first race in…
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Tennis Update: Chang-SAT ITF Pro Circuit 2013
PHUKET: Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC) is currently hosting a round of the prestigious International Tennis Federation (ITF) pro tennis circuit. Scroll down for today’s schedule and yesterday’s results. The 2013 ITF round consists of two consecutive women’s tournaments from April 20 to April 27 and April 27 to May 4. The highlight of the Chang-SAT ITF Pro Circuit…
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Thai Football: Phuket FC buries Khon Kaen’s ‘T-Rex’ in injury time
PHUKET: A late winner by Brazilian striker Luiz “Dudu” Purcino secured all three points for Phuket FC in their home match against Yamaha League One rivals, Khon Kaen FC, last night. Phuket wasted a number of chances throughout the game and the match looked destined to end 0-0, until Dudu scored his last gasp winner with one of the last…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Boston bomber conscious; Paraguay goes right; Europe told to work harder; March of the Living
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hospitalized suspect in Boston bombings awaits charges under guard Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Federal prosecutors prepared criminal charges yesterday against an ethnic Chechen suspected in the deadly Boston Marathon bombings as he lay severely wounded, unable to speak and hospitalised under heavy guard two days after his…
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Raw sewage leaves Phuket residents retching
PHUKET: Polluted water with a stench so overpowering it is making people physically ill has become the bane of residents along the banks of the Bang Yai Canal in Phuket Town. “People vomit and get serious headaches,” said Samkong resident Lek Bumrung. “Dirty water is released into the canal at odd intervals, day or night,” she said. “But each time…
Read More » - Phuket News
Dead dugong discovered east of Phuket prompts local resident action
PHUKET: A dead dugong was found floating just off the coast of Koh Pu in Krabi by a local crab fisherman yesterday morning, prompting villagers to take action.The young marine mammal was discovered with a long gash across its snout in front of the Baan Koh Pu village port and was dragged to shore by villagers before it was reported…
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Earth Day celebrated with Phuket beach cleanup
PHUKET: Earth Day, underway in Phuket and around the world Monday, will see local residents, tourists and island visitors take to Kata Beach in an effort to preserve the island’s environment with Go Eco Phuket’s beach cleanup. Those wanting to take part in the Earth Day activity on Kata Beach are encouraged to meet at 8:30am at the north end…
Read More » - Property
Up-country condo market not flooded
PHUKET: The head of the Agency for Real Estate Affairs Company Limited (AREA), has rejected reports that Thailand’s key up-country condominium markets are currently being oversupplied. The markets in question include Phuket, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Khon Kaen as well as the Gulf of Thailand coastline stretch between Hua Hin and Cha-am. AREA President, Dr Sopon Pornchokchai, PhD, said that such…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Oilfield Classic drives new record
PHUKET: THE 5th annual Phuket Oilfield Classic (POC) charity golf tournament attracted more than 130 oil and gas executives from around the world, who gathered on the island earlier this month for four days of golf and entertainment (click here for final results table). After the welcome cocktail party on April 4, teams of four enjoyed a great first day…
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London Marathon is on
London lays on 40 percent more police for marathon Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Britain is increasing police numbers by 40 percent for tomorrow’s London marathon as part of an effort to reassure competitors and spectators after bombs devastated the Boston race on Monday (click here for the latest update). Two explosions near the finish line of the Boston race…
Read More » - Thailand News
Fake “yogi’ nabbed by cops
PHUKET: A 35-year-old Indian Sikh is in police custody after allegedly tricking villagers in Surin Province into believing he was a yogi with magic powers. Balvinder Singh extracted thousands of baht from at least five believers to “cleanse” them of their bad karma, police say. Mr Singh was arrested while he performed a “magical” ceremony for “Mr Ek”, a 31-year-old…
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Phuket Laguna Golf Club cuts green fees
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket Golf Club is offering Thai and expat golfers cut-price green fees of 1,800 baht for 18 holes during the current low season – less than half the usual 4,200 baht visitor rate. This offer is available until October 2013, but the green fees exclude caddy fee. Meanwhile, Laguna Phuket Golf Club recently hosted the second match of…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket policeman charged with attempted murder still on active duty
PHUKET: A Phuket policeman charged with attempted murder after a violent attack on Valentine’s Day remains on active duty in Thalang, while police prepare their case for the prosecutor. Sen Sgt Maj Wichit Dada of the Thalang Police was charged with attempted murder after he was accused of restraining a teenager while his son threatened the teen with his father’s…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Second suspect in Boston bombings captured
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Second suspect in Boston bombings captured after huge manhunt Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Police captured a 19-year-old man suspected of carrying out the Boston Marathon bombings with his older brother after a day-long manhunt on Friday that closed down the city and turned a working-class suburb into…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: One suspect in Boston bombing dead, manhunt underway for second suspect
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community One suspect in Boston bombing dead, manhunt underway for second suspect Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Police killed one suspect in the Boston Marathon bombing during a shootout and were engaged in a house-to-house search for the other on Friday in the Boston suburb of Watertown.Authorities warned people…
Read More » - Phuket News
TPL teams struggle against champions
PHUKET: Thailand’s two representatives in the AFC Champions League, Muang Thong United and Buriram United, are struggling to make it out of the competition’s group stages. Muang Thong’s form in the Champions League is the polar opposite of their five-game unbeaten start to the 2013 Thai Premier League (TPL) season. The current TPL champions are rooted to the bottom of…
Read More » - Phuket News
Chonburi top AFC qualifiers
PHUKET: Thailand’s Futsal Premier League (TFPL) champions, Chonburi Bluewave finished top of the AFC Futsal Club Championship 2013 Zone 2 Qualifiers. The Zone 2 qualifying groups comprised of ASEAN and East Asian teams, while Zone 1 has West, South and Central Asian teams. Zone 2 featured two groups, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the semifinals.…
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Phuket Police pursuit nets drug suspect from fish pond
PHUKET: Phuket City Police in hot pursuit of a drug suspect yesterday finally arrested their man after hauling him out of a fish pond in Rassada.Police were alerted to the suspect when officers at a checkpoint on Palian Road in Phuket Town saw a new Toyota Vios, still bearing red license plates, pull over just short of the checkpoint at…
Read More » - Business News
Laguna Phuket to host record-breaking Nu Skin incentives meeting
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket is playing a major role in a record-breaking annual incentive program being staged over six days, from Sunday April 21, for 4,000 delegates and staff of anti-aging products company NU SKIN Greater China. The delegation is expected to generate a business boom for Phuket and Thailand.NU SKIN delegates from seven cities in mainland China, as well as…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Police say one suspect in Boston Marathon bombing dead, one at large
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police say one suspect in Boston Marathon bombing dead, one at large Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Police believe they have shot dead one of the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing and were searching for another who was at large in the Boston suburb of Watertown, officials…
Read More » - Phuket News
Temperatures, tyres and tactics – F1
PHUKET: Before Shanghai, I predicted correctly that Kimi Räikkönen and Fernando Alonso would be on the podium, but who would be the third driver to join them? In the event it was Lewis Hamilton, but in truth it could have been any driver in the first half of the field (click here for article). If only Felipe Massa’s car had…
Read More » - Phuket News
Malaysian biker dies en route to Phuket Bike Week
PHUKET: A Malaysian biker died in a road accident in Phattalung yesterday afternoon while riding to Phuket to join Phuket Bike Week. Lt Boonthip Wunfai of the Khao Chaison Police told the Phuket Gazette this morning that the accident occurred on Petchkasem Road, the main highway from the southern Thai border to Bangkok, at about 2:30pm. Officers and rescue workers…
Read More » - Thailand News
Thailand News: Preah Vihear land dispute update
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Romanian expert becomes star at the ICJ Supalak Ganjanakhundee / Budsarakham Sinlapalavan / The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Alina Miron, co-counsel on the Thai legal team that is presenting the country’s case in the Preah Vihear land dispute before the world court, smiled in surprise…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Justice: Hope fades for finding Jintana’s executioners
PHUKET: Police officers’ hopes are dissipating as they once again turn to the public for help in finding the executioners of Jintana Mahattanapak, who was shot in the head on her way home from work in January. With leads running out earlier this year, police were banking on CCTV footage captured in the area to help identify the killers or…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Texas reels from blast, Boston bomb suspects wanted; UN slams Syria crisis; NASA finds life planets
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rescuers search for survivors of Texas fertilizer plant blast Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Rescuers worked in cold rain on Thursday to find survivors amid the rubble of houses destroyed in a fiery explosion at a Texas fertilizer plant filled with hazardous chemical tanks.The death toll in West,…
Read More » - Opinion
Phuket Opinion: Paradise found
PHUKET: I lived on Racha Yai Island for five years, teaching English to the staff at the luxury resort there, and I support the local conservation group that wants to ensure that restaurants and hotels deal properly with their wastewater and garbage, and allow streams to flow freely to the sea.I love nature, but I’m no enviro-activist. I don’t have…
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Phuket Opinion: Taking responsibility for Phuket’s garbage
Environmental specialist Nutthakrit Polpetch, 45, is the director of the Phuket office of Natural Resources and Environment. He has a bachelor’s degree in Forestry from Kasetsart University. A native of Phattalung, he has lived in Phuket for 20 years. Here he talks about how managing organic garbage in Phuket can reduce garbage and also create useful products. PHUKET: I am…
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Phuket Opinion: Seeing through the muck
PHUKET: Pollution levels in the Bang Yai Canal strong enough to make residents of Phuket Town’s Samkong area physically ill should spur authorities in all relevant jurisdictions to work together to pinpoint the source of the contaminants and punish any violators. Unfortunately, the official response on all sides has been the opposite. Some local officials are firing off knee-jerk denials,…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket’s first underpass to open early next year
PHUKET: To alleviate the ongoing traffic tailbacks at the construction site of Phuket’s first underpass (story here), the project managers will open all three lanes of the underpass at the beginning of next year. “So far, the underpass is 11 per cent complete. At the beginning of next year, it will be opened for road users,” Department of Highways’ Bureau…
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Phuket Tiger Disco fire charges parried, delayed
PHUKET: The Phuket Chief Public Prosecutor’s attempt to levy a series of charges against Tiger Group CEO Piya Isaramalai and Sara Entertainment Co Ltd after a fatal blaze killed four people at Patong’s famous Tiger Disco nightclub on August 17 have been delayed for a second time. “The charges were originally given the green light last month [story here],” Phuket…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket Songkran 2013 road death toll to remain at zero – forever
PHUKET: The nationwide Seven Days of Danger road safety campaign ended at midnight last night, with the official tally of no deaths in Phuket to remain as the formal record forever, the chief of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket office (DDPM-Phuket) has confirmed. Officers at the DDPM-Phuket, when contacted by the Phuket Gazette today, said they had…
Read More » - Phuket News
Russian teen student still in coma after horrific motorbike crash
PHUKET: Vlad Abrashko, the Russian student who was driving the motorbike involved in the high-speed accident on the bypass road two weeks ago (story here), has been discharged from hospital with a broken leg. His passenger Sevastian Lukashov, however, remains comatose at Phuket International Hospital, a source close to the teens has confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. With Mr Abrashko…
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