- Phuket News
Taxi man “Brother Pom’ plays down DSI allegations of queue jumping
PHUKET: The leader of the Central Festival Phuket taxi group, who stands accused by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) of queue hopping, told officers not to worry about how he runs the shopping mall’s taxi network. “This is not a big thing to focus on… I would like to let the DSI know that they don’t need to worry…
- Hua Hin News
More babies for China; Iran nuclear deal on horizon; Weak rules threaten UN climate plan for forests
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China to loosen one-child policy, end labour camps Reuters / Phuket GazetteChina will ease its family planning policies and abolish a controversial labour camp system, according to a key document issued after a ruling Communist Party meeting, the official Xinhua news agency said on Friday.Couples will be…
- Phuket News
Chinese charge forward with Phuket consulate
PHUKET: Chinese officials confirmed that a consulate in Phuket will be operational by next year in order to cater for the dramatic increase in Chinese nationals visiting the island.“The plan to establish a Chinese consulate in Phuket has been approved. However, we still need to find a place for it, as well as personnel,” the Chinese Consulate General in Songkhla,…
- Thai Life
Beasties and beauties – Phuket Gardening
PHUKET: In a recent email, a colleague enclosed some photographs with the observation: “At home I came across this group of [tiny] mantids – about 100 minimum” which appeared to be mimicking ants. He added: “Have you ever seen so many?” My response was “No”, but I said I suspected they had just emerged from the safety of their protective…
- Food
Phuket Lifestyle: Climbing to the top of the list
PHUKET: Three establishments from the greater Phuket region found the formula for a perfect wine list and grabbed top spots in the 2013 Wine List of the Year Thailand competition. Over 60 leading food and beverage establishments and media gathered at Crave Wine Bar & Restaurant in Sukhumvit’s Aloft Hotel to witness the 2013 Wine List of the Year Thailand.…
- Food
Phuket Lifestyle: A breath of fresh O2
PHUKET: Most of Phuket’s beach clubs throng the sands of the west coast, but O2 Beach Club is bucking the trend and bringing great food, music and beach-side fun to the southeast coast at its stylish venue near Chalong Pier. Walking through the imposing ancient-style entrance gates, you enter a hidden oasis, the centerpiece of which is a huge jade-green…
- Phuket News
Patong hotel ordered to remove water-runoff pipe from beach
PHUKET: A leading Phuket resort has been ordered to remove a pipe that released runoff rainwater directly onto the sand at Patong Beach. The news came yesterday when officers from the Regional Environmental Office (REO) and Patong Municipality inspected the Impiana Resort, on the Patong beachfront road (map here). “We asked people in the area, and were told that the…
- Phuket News
Norwegian tourist drowns at Karon Beach
PHUKET: A Norwegian tourist drowned after being caught in heavy surf at Karon Beach, on Phuket’s west coast, yesterday. Kata-Karon chief lifeguard Uten Singsom reported his staff seeing the man, named by police as Chris Roger Hangsao, 55, having difficulty coping with the large waves. “There were big waves, up to about two meters high,” Mr Uten told the Phuket…
- Business News
Phuket Business: FoodPanda to change eating habits
PHUKET: You didn’t buy this luxury villa to be forced to leave it every time you feel hungry. So if you’re tired of fast food and pizza – the most common delivery foods – there is a new solution for you. Online food delivery company, Foodpanda has just entered Phuket and plans to change islanders’ dining habits. The Phuket Gazette…
- World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Ongoing occupation angers Tamils; Relief efforts gain momentum; Priest kidnapped by gunmen
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Army occupation angers Sri Lankan Tamils four years after war ends Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The threats came by text message, a phone call and a delivery of two cow skulls. The message was clear: stop protesting against the army’s occupation of your land or you will…
- Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Typhoon aid underway; Yingluck to face censure; BOT in good shape; Schools in South strike
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Doctors, medicines heading to Philippines The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The Public Health Ministry is expected to send 60 tonnes of medical supplies on an Air Force plane to the Philippines on Monday (Nov 18), with the government announcing yesterday it would initially provide Bt6 million to…
- Phuket News
Phuket joins Philippines typhoon relief effort
PHUKET: The Phuket chapter of the Red Cross Society has joined the relief effort to provide assistance to victims of Super Typhoon Haiyan, which devastated the central Philippines last Friday. “Right now we can only accept donations of money, which we will send to our head office in Bangkok,” Phuket Red Cross staffer Sarawut Rukkhaw told the Phuket Gazette. “We…
- Phuket News
Man slain by single gunshot in Rawai
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a 28-year-old man who was slain by a single gunshot to the head near Rawai Beach early this morning.Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent Jumroon Plaidoung was notified of the murder at about 3:30am.“When we arrived at the scene, an unregistered rental house about 150 meters from the beach, we found the body of Khin…
- Phuket News
Phuket illegal taxis given New Year deadline
PHUKET: Fed up with the delay in illegal taxi drivers complying with the law, Phuket officials have established a December 31 deadline for taxi drivers to become legal. Phuket officials have long been flexible in trying to accommodate local taxi drivers’ concerns, Vice Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada told a provincial transportation committee meeting on Tuesday. “In the past, we kept extending…
- Phuket News
Korean boy, 4, rescued from Phuket drain
PHUKET: A local resident rescued a 4-year-old Korean boy who plunged into a drain two-meters deep along the bypass road yesterday evening.“The cover for the drain was broken, and grass was obscuring the hole. It was hard to see because there was no light,” said a Kusoldharm rescue worker at the scene.Boonkua Saelim, 42, rushed to help the boy after…
- Phuket News
Phuket Sport: Singapore wins international cricket sixes competition
PHUKET: The Phuket Cricket Group (PCG) hosted the inaugural Sunseeker Thailand International Cricket Sixes event at the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) over November 8-10. The competition saw Phuket’s local cricketer’s line up against international teams from Australia and Singapore in an action-packed, fun-filled three days.The first two days comprised of round robin matches which were followed by a great night…
- Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Life on Cambodian border returns to normal; ATM skim gang in Songkhla; Luxury cars seized
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Life on the border returns to normal The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: All 47 schools in the border province of Si Sa Ket reopened yesterday as there was no backlash from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on Preah Vihear Temple.The schools, all in Si Sa…
- Phuket News
Patong Police chief told to clear parking spaces for tourists – or be transferred
PHUKET: The chief of police in Phuket’s premier tourism town of Patong has been ordered to clear beach road parking spaces for tourists by December 31 – or face being transferred.The news came after a video conference between Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Arun Kaewwatee and Police Region 8 Commander Panya Mamen yesterday.“Lt Gen Panya ordered the superintendents of the…
- World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Warships to help Philippines; 24,000 more houses in Jerusalem; Fukushima: now for the tough part
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S., Britain sends warships to help Philippine relief efforts Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: A U.S. aircraft carrier set sail for the Philippines on Tuesday to accelerate relief efforts after a typhoon killed an estimated 10,000 people in one coastal city alone, with fears the toll could rise…
- Thailand News
Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Restraint urged on Preah Vihear ruling; 10 hurt as train derails; Fundraiser for typhoon victims; Realty growth continues despite woes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Govt urges restraint on Preah Vihear ruling The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The government and military have held back on making definitive comments on the Preah Vihear case, waiting to see what transpires from a meeting with their Cambodian counterparts.As villagers living along the border cheered and…
- Phuket News
Phuket ATM robbers were “amateurs’, says expert
PHUKET: A welding expert today branded the thieves who last week used a blowtorch to steal 1.6 million baht from an ATM at Phuket’s Boat Lagoon as “amateurs”. Stuck for clues in tracking down the bandits, Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Serm Kwannimit today brought welding expert Wisut Pumsiri to inspect the scene of the crime (story here). “I believe…
- Property
Diamond condo sparkles – Phuket Property
PHUKET: Diamond Condominium, the latest project to be developed in Phuket’s high-end Bang Tao Beach area, is located just 400 meters from the beach, and minutes from the Laguna resort complex. The six rai (9,600sqm) property will contain four separate buildings surrounding a central swimming pool and landscaped community recreation area. In all, the four buildings will contain 388 units…
- Food
Phuket’s Iron Chef goes live tonight
PHUKET: Chef Scott Flaxman came all the way from Zimbabwe, via England, France, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland and Morocco, before he finally landed on Kao Yao Yai, 15 kilometers east of Phuket. There, he became the Chef and F&B Manager of GLOW Elixir Koh Yao Yai Resort – a place he now proudly calls home. Voted one of the best chefs…
- World News
Phuket Gazette World News: Typhoon survivors beg for help; Rioters clash with police in Warsaw; Women’s rights – poll
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Philippine typhoon survivors beg for help as rescuers struggle Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Dazed survivors begged for help and scavenged for food, water and medicine on Monday, as relief workers struggled to reach victims of a super typhoon that killed an estimated 10,000 people in…
- Phuket News
Driver blamed for Phuket tour bus crash
PHUKET: Police have given a Phuket tour bus driver seven days to present himself to face charges for the Patong Hill accident that saw 49* university students rushed to hospital Saturday afternoon. The 32-year-old driver, Manit Sawadee, is to be charged with reckless driving causing serious injury. The bus Mr Manit was driving plunged backward and slammed into a roadside…
- Phuket News
Safety helmet found at Phuket motorbike fatality scene
PHUKET: A man carrying a full-face helmet was found dead on the airport bypass road after falling from his motorbike early yesterday morning. Police were called to the scene, about one kilometer from Thepkrasattri Road (map here), at 2:30am. “The victim was identified as Thanapon Pawatpongphan, 44,” said Capt Santi Prakobkan of the Tah Chat Chai Police. “It seems as…
- Cannabis News
Phuket kratom cooks caught in the act
PHUKET: Police in Kamala, on Phuket’s west coast, nabbed two men cooking up a batch of the illegal drug cocktail “4×100” at a workers’ camp on Friday.“Plain clothes police informed us that two men, Aekkaluk Phanchalard, 29, and Suthep Abdulsamak, 42, were making 4×100 at the camp,” explained Lt Suchart Chompooseang of the Kamala Police.Uniformed officers quickly assembled a squad…
- Phuket News
Underway: B30mn study to pipe water to Phuket
PHUKET: The Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) on Thursday raised the public’s awareness of a 30-million-baht feasibility study investigating the possibility of piping water from Surat Thani to Phuket. The study was launched on June 24.“The project aims to provide enough water to support the growing number of residents and tourists in Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi and Surat Thani for next…
- Phuket News
BIS Phuket earn four trophies at its football tourney
PHUKET: British International School Phuket (BISP) was proud to once again host its annual football tournament, with the hosts taking home four of the total 30 trophies. This year there were teams representing 26 international schools from not only Thailand, but China, South Korea, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam. Out of 10 classes, BISP won top honors in the…
- Thai Life
Phuket Events: Abba-cadabra!
PHUKET: With no time machine available, it seems that only magic can take us back in time. But this past weekend at Laguna Phuket what took us for an amazing journey was music – and it certainly was magical!“The gates open at 6:30pm” the tickets clearly stated. But that didn’t stop a line forming in front of Laguna Latitude Marquee…
