Year: 2020
- Health
Cannabis oil gaining traction in Thai medical circles
Last week’s opening of Thailand’s first two full-time clinics dispensing cannabis oil (cannabidiol, or CBD) for medical treatment has brought international attention, not only to the kingdom’s burgeoning cannabis industry, but to the oil’s many reputed benefits. Around 25 CBD clinics have been operating part-time since the government agreed in 2018 to amend drug laws to allow the use and…
Read More » - South Thailand News
Base jumper rescued after dangling from sheer cliff face in Phattalung
An Austrian base jumper is safe after a harrowing rescue Monday afternoon, when winds blew him onto a cliff face and left him dangling about 175 metres off the ground from his snagged parachute in the southern province of Phattalung. The jumper, 28 year old Johannes Klauser, went with his wife to the top of 250 metre high Khao Ok Thalu…
Read More » - Crime News
Taiwanese husband arrested over death of Sri Racha woman in a suitcase
Just days after the body of a foreign woman washed up in a travel bag on Sri Racha Beach near Pattaya, police say they’ve arrested a Taiwanese man for the murder of the woman, his Chinese wife. The gruesome discovery was made by an officer from the nearby naval base. Police yesterday arrested 38 year old Lu Ji Yang of …
Read More » - Northern Thailand News
Poor air quality in Bangkok and northern Thailand today
Poor air quality and persistent haze is plaguing much of Thailand’s north today, with the worst pollution in Lampang province, just south of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Meanwhile, a bit further south, Bangkok residents had more of the fine-dust particles, aka. 2.5 microns, in eight of the city’s districts yesterday. The Pollution Control Department in the north has reported unsafe…
Read More » - Bangkok News
First case of New Coronavirus Pneumonia detected arriving in Bangkok
A first case of ‘New Coronavirus Pneumonia’ has been identified in Thailand, but the Public Health Ministry is assuring the public there is no wider outbreak of the virus. The mystery virus has now been identified by Chinese scientists and was earlier nicknamed as the mystery Wuhan pneumonia. Anuthin Charnvirakul, the Thai Public Health Minister has informed the media that…
Read More » - Crime News
Gold shop gunman could have fled to Chon Buri
The armed gunman who shot and killed three people, injuring another four during an apparent gold shop robbery in Lop Buri last week, could have fled to Chon Buri. Police are raising the possibility after the Thai army chief Apirat Kongsompong met with the heads of Provincial Police Regions 1 (Bangkok) and 2 (Chon Buri) in Bangkok yesterday. Some media and…
Read More » - Transport News
New upper and lower highway speed limits to be introduced
Motorists using the right lane of any Thai highway or motorway, with more than four lanes of traffic, and drive slower than 90 kilometres per hour, will face charges in the future. A proposal to raise the speed limit to 120 kilometres per hour is also being considered. The new regulations are expected to be ready by next month. The…
Read More » - Health
Paying the price for beauty: Top treatments for women in Thailand
As the thirst for plastic surgery in Thailand grows, this has led to many Thai females searching for alternative beauty solutions. In fact, Thai ladies are seeking better ways in order to achieve the ultimate look via cosmetic treatment. Now, who said beauty was only skin deep. Thanks to an emerging market where overseas patients benefit from top-notch surgeons at…
Read More » - Transport News
New rules for Royal road motorcades around Thailand
His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn has expressed concern about the motorcades of Royal Family members inconveniencing public road users. Around Thailand, when a member of the Royal Family travels by road, the roads are routinely closed off and hundreds of police stationed along the well-planned route to hold off traffic until the motorcade has passed through. Now HM The King…
Read More » - Phuket News
75 year old tourist ‘attacked’ by small unidentified shark in Phang Nga
A Phang Nga swimmer was was bitten and attacked by a mystery beastie…. thought to be a shark, and probably a small bull shark. The A 75 year old German tourist says he was swimming in the sea off the southern Thailand beach with his wife on Sunday. The incident occurred only 6 – 7 metres from the shoreline. He…
Read More » - Krabi News
Community volunteer jumps out in front of two out-of-control motorbikes
A member of the Krabi Civil Defence organisation in Krabi has become a real-life hero after jumping in front of two motorbikes carrying 2 adults and 2 children. The motorbike was hurtling down a hill and was unable to slow down (you guessed it, brake failure), as it was getting to the bottom of the hill. One of drivers showed… “It…
Read More » - Environment News
Central Thailand farmers ignore orders to stop burning off their sugar cane
Stick your burning ban up your 2.5 micron particulate! Local sugarcane growers in Nakhon Sawan, central Thailand, are burning their fields at night despite authorities’ ban on the practice. It appears little to nothing is being done to curb the practice which is one of the main causes, if not the main cause, of the smoke and haze problems in…
Read More » - Thailand News
Court rejects Premchai’s request to remove electronic monitoring ankle bracelet
Premchai Karnasuta, the fallen business tycoon who was sentenced last year over a case of hunting and killing protected species in a Kanchanaburi national park, has been trying to get his electronic monitoring ankle bracelet removed by the court. But the Thong Phaphum provincial court today rejected Premchai’s application for the removal of his electronic ankle bracelet. The request was…
Read More » - Crime News
Killer in Lop Buri gold shop attack may be ex-military
Police now believe the attack at a Lop Buri gold shop in central Thailand last Thursday that killed three, including a two year old boy, may have been carried out by a former military officer. Four others were wounded in what appeared to be a botched robbery. A high ranking police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that…
Read More » - South Thailand News
One dead, two wounded in Narathiwat insurgent attack
An insurgent is dead and two defence volunteers wounded after a clash in the the southern border province of Narathiwat on Sunday. Police reports indicate a group of insurgents attacked a defence volunteer outpost in the Sukhirin district just before noon, injuring two. Reinforcements rushed to the scene and fired on the fleeing gunmen who headed for the nearby woods.…
Read More » - Central Thailand News
Restaurant owner returns 700,000 baht to tourist
Imagine discovering you’ve left close to three quarters of a million baht in cash at a Thai restaurant. That’s exactly what happened to a tourist from Ubon Ratchathani on Sunday. Fortunately for him, the money was in good hands. Pariwat Thangtham was horrified to discover he’d left a bag with 700,000 baht in cash at a restaurant in Petchabun province, central Thailand.…
Read More » - Central Thailand News
Central Thailand woman battles snake that appears from the toilet
You go to the toilet, you sit on the toilet, you don’t expect a snake in the toilet. But that’s what happened to a woman in central Thailand. “We all think that it’s something that won’t happen to us, I thought that was too until now when this happened in my own home. How can a snake this size be…
Read More » - Politics News
Thousands join the pro and anti government protests in Bangkok
Protesters, from both sides of the political camp turned up in two different parts of the capital yesterday for their respective political rallies. Organiser of the anti-regime “Wing Lai Lung” (Run to Oust the Uncle), Tanawat Wongchai, told the crowds at Suan Rot Fai in Chatuchak, a northern suburb of Bangkok, that the run marked the start of the campaign…
Read More » - World News
8,000 evacuated from menacing Taal volcano, south of Manila, Philippines
A volcano, not far south of Manila in The Philippines, has been spewing volcanic ash along with rumbling sounds and tremors most of yesterday. Philippine authorities have raised the alert level and ordered the evacuation of about 8,000 residents and suspended flights at Manila’s civil airports. The highest alert is level 5, when a volcano is actually erupting. At this…
Read More » - South Thailand News
Two young girls swept out to sea in Narathiwat, search continues
Search and rescue volunteers and officials in Thailand’s south spent all yesterday searching for two young girls who went missing. At this stage the two are believed to have drowned. The pair were swept into deeper waters by a series of large waves in the Gulf of Thailand seas off Naratat Beach in Narathiwat province on Saturday. Strong winds and…
Read More » - Crime News
Police doubt gold robbery was the motive for deadly Lopburi attack
Police and authorities now suspect that the motive for Thursday’s brutal and deadly attack, which killed three, including a toddler, may not have been robbery. The lone gunman stormed into a gold shop at a Robinson’s Shopping Centre in Lopburi, Central Thailand, and systematically shot and killed customers and shop staff. The Crime Suppression Division is running background checks on…
Read More » - Crime News
Murdered foreign woman’s body found in travel bag on a Sri Racha beach
Chon Buri police are seeking a suspect after the body of a foreign woman washed up in a travel bag at Bang Phra Beach in the province’s Sri Racha district, north of Pattaya. The victim was stuffed inside a black travel bag with red patterns. Her nationality remains unknown. The woman was dressed in a camouflage shirt, black shorts, and white running…
Read More » - Environment News
Drought prompts Tesco Lotus to increase bottled water production
Tesco Lotus, the Thai division of Britain’s biggest retailer, is boosting bottled water production to help customers cope with drought. The chain says it will increase production of its own branded bottled water and also increase orders of other brands to sell at its branches nationwide, in response to this year’s drought and water shortages, which is predicted to be the…
Read More » - Northern Thailand News
Mother and daughter busted for selling meth pills in Thailand’s north east
A mother and daughter are currently in custody after their arrest for selling ‘yaba’, or methamphetamine pills in Kalasin, north east Thailand. The 54 year old woman, named only as Sang, and her 25 year old daughter Tarnthip, were arrested at their home in the northeastern city of Kalasin with 13 yaba pills and the 280 baht cash used in…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Bangkok man charged with girlfriend’s brutal murder
Bangkok police say they finally have enough evidence to charge a man in a murder case dating back to last year. Police arrested a Mr. Apichai, also known as “Ice,” at his home in Bangkok’s Phetkasem district. He’s charged with killing his girlfriend, allegedly hitting her in the head and stuffing her body in a chest. Police found the body of…
Read More » - Crime News
Two motorbike thieves nabbed in Phuket
Two men have been arrested in Phuket last night. They’ve been charged with stealing motorcycles and then reselling them. One of the arrested men is an unemployed 36 year old tour bus driver. According to police, he was able to convince a 21 year old accomplice, who was his neighbour, to help him steal the motorcycles,. The stolen motorbikes were…
Read More » - Events
Thousands gather for this morning’s protest running event in Bangkok
This morning’s fun run/rally/political event/marathon/jog/protest at Suan Rot Fai park in Chatuchak, a northern Bangkok suburb, attracted thousands of runners. The run was organised as a protest against Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and his government. The “Run Against Dictatorship” was organised by opposition political parties and activists calling for greater political freedom. The event was held less than 10…
Read More » - Events
Guns, tanks and political speeches. Just another Children’s Day in Thailand.
Children’s Day has come and gone for another year. As usual, the media like to follow the Thai PM in the hope of a perfect photo of him and an unsuspecting Thai child. The prime minister certainly enjoys the annual interaction and appears more comfortable surrounded by children than performing in Parliament. It’s also a day that the Thai armed…
Read More » - South Thailand News
4 out of 19 missing Rohingya captured after Wednesday’s detention centre escape
4 Rohingya migrants who escaped with 15 others from a Songkhla detention centre earlier this week have now been captured. The superintendent of Songkhla Province’s Immigration Bureau reported yesterday that four more of the detained Rohingya had been captured. Rohingya migrants entering Thailand, often as boat passengers or smuggled on their way to Malaysia, are treated as illegal immigrants and…
Read More » - Road deaths
5 dead, 8 injured as tourist passenger van slams into rear of broken down truck in central Thailand
Five tourists have died and another eight injured after their passenger van slammed into the rear of a parked ten wheel truck that had broken down. The incident happened outside the Ban Noi PTT petrol station in Nong Phai district on the Saraburi to Lomsak Road. The van was on its way from the south to Khao Khor in Petchabun,…
Read More » - Thailand Weather Updates
Top 10 ways to save our water
Hot weather and Thailand’s boom-or-bust water issues (floods in wet season and water shortages in the hot season) are a part of our life. It’s predicted that there will be hotter hot seasons and wet-seasons with less rain in the future. Even if we’re not sure what the future brings we should all be conscious of our water usage, be…
Read More » - World News
Iran military admits ‘unintentionally’ shooting down the Ukrainian passenger jet
Iranian officials have announced that its military “unintentionally” shot down the Ukrainian Boeing 737 jet that crashed earlier this week, killing all 176 aboard. Earlier the Iranian government had repeatedly denied accusations that it was responsible. The plane was “accidentally”shot shot out of the sky on Wednesday, just hours after Iran had launched a retaliatory missile attack on two US…
Read More » - World News
Thailand is the leading ASEAN nation in annual suicide rates
“Thailand, which ranks in 32nd place with 14.4 of suicides per 100.000 population – or nearly 10,000 suicide deaths last year.” Every 40 seconds, someone loses their life to suicide and nearly 800,000 people die due to suicide every year, according to the World Health Organisation. In Thailand, suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds, after…
Read More » - Environment News
Bangkok haze and smog continues over the weekend
There is unlikely to be much respite of the air pollution shrouding Greater Bangkok this weekend. And the PM is urging people to inform a hotline of any vehicles belching smoke and fumes into the Bangkok sky. The Pollution Control Department says the smog, which saw just about all of the 50 air quality stations hitting levels of PM2.5 over…
Read More » - Crime News
Senior police double down with their praise of the new Biometrics system at Thai airports
Police are doubling down with their overt support of the new biometrics system at airports. A high-level disagreement over the 2.1 billion baht contract for the biometrics equipment and installation, is emerging as the reason for last yea’s mystery side-lining of the former head of Thailand’s immigration Bureau, Surachat Hakparn. Ever since the introduction of the systems at airports across…
Read More » - Crime News
Gunman wasn’t after gold – investigators speculate about killer’s motives
Investigators have become suspicious of the motives of the lone gunman who shot and killed three people, injuring another four, at the Aurora Gold Shop in the Robinsons Mall in Lopburi on Thursday. They are seeking more information on the victims as the gold stolen was such a small amount – the suspicion is that the target wasn’t the gold…
Read More » - Thailand News
New survey shows Thai kids are subject to excessive levels of bullying
Thai students are suffering from high levels of bullying – physical, verbal and online. Two years ago a Department of Mental Health survey indicated that Thailand had the second highest rate of bullying in the world. The most recent survey shows things have not improved and remain alarming. 92% of Thai school kids have been exposed to physical or psychological abuse…
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