Legacy Phuket Gazette
- Phuket News
Waves drag musician from iconic Phuket cape, search efforts postponed
PHUKET: High waves forced rescue workers to abandon their search for a musician who was swept from the rocks near Promthep Cape this afternoon. Somchai Yung-Talay, 30, was visiting Phuket from Koh Yao Yai with his girlfriend when he was struck by a large wave and dragged out to sea while fishing. “Witnesses saw the man in the sea trying…
- Business News
Laguna Phuket to host Thailand’s first domestic MICE mart
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket will be the location of Thailand’s first Domestic MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) Mart on August 1. The event is being organized by the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), a public organization tasked with promoting and developing MICE businesses and events in Thailand. The campaign aims to advocate and enhance MICE industry development in Thailand…
- Phuket News
Police bag Bangkok-Phuket dealer with B400k of drugs
PHUKET: Police arrested a man on Sunday for smuggling 400,000 baht worth of drugs from Bangkok into Phuket. Amnart Rossukhon, 28, was arrested at his rental room in Rassada at about 11:30pm on Sunday, explained Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Arayapan Pukbuakao. Officers searched Mr Amnart’s bedroom and found 100.8 grams of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) and 2,000 ya bah…
- Phuket News
Phuket City Police stunned by officer’s suicide
PHUKET: The Phuket City Police this morning are reeling after the death of one of their well-liked officers by suicide. Sen Sgt Maj Sapeewat Kongchim was found in the car park of the police accommodation units behind the Provincial Police headquarters on Yaowarat Road, in Phuket Town, at 7:30am. He had a single gunshot wound to the head. The weapon…
- Thai Life
Between a rock and a hard place: planning a rockery.
WHEN I was knee high to a grasshopper, the expression ”between the devil and the deep blue sea” meant you were stuck in a hopeless, no-win situation. Nowadays the American adage “between a rock and a hard place” is more likely to be used to convey the same dilemma. But rocks are not always linked to intractable situations: gardeners for…
- Phuket News
Laguna secure victory against the Village
In the 4th round of the Outrigger T20 league, Laguna took on the Village in the afternoon game on Sunday 27 July 2014 at the Alan Cooke Ground (AGC). With both teams looking to secure their first win, they had all to play for. After winning the toss, the Village elected to field first due to the threat of impending…
- Thailand News
Ivory worth Bt9m seized at Suvarnabhumi airport
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Ivory worth Bt9m seized at airport The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Customs officials arrested a Chinese woman and a man from Vietnam at Suvarnabhumi Airport after they allegedly tried to smuggle elephant tusks and ivory products worth about Bt9 million out of the country, Customs’…
- Thailand News
Three insurgents, 10-year-old girl killed in Deep South
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Three insurgents, 10-year-old girl killed in latest attacks in far South The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Insurgent violence has continued in the far South after the devastating car-bomb attack in Yala’s Betong district last Friday, two days before the end of Ramadan. It included a…
- Phuket News
About 90% of Phuket protected forest stolen, says RFD
PHUKET: The Royal Forest Department (RFD) is untangling the land title documents that account for 90 per cent of what is supposed to be Bang Khanun protected forest, said RFD Director-General Theerapat Prayurasiddhi on Saturday. The RFD has joined the battle on Phuket against land encroachment, which has seen swaths of public beaches, national parks, protected forests and protected mangroves…
- Phuket News
Forest Department targets Phuket luxury resort for allegedly illegal land documents
PHUKET: Officials from the Royal Forest Department (RFD) are investigating the legality of nine land title deeds for a Phuket luxury resort allegedly being built in a protected forest. “We inspected a luxury resort on Kamala Hill that is being built on 10 rai of land that is possibly protected forest,” RFD Director-General Theerapat Prayurasiddhi said during his inspect of…
- Business News
Flipping tweets – translation service for social media savvy businesses
PHUKET: Following an extensive period of beta testing, a Chiang Mai-based tech startup’s new translation service, Fliplingo, went live on June 26. The company, also called Fliplingo, has searched out a distinct niche in the translation market by offering live translation of Twitter messages in – as of this time – up to 32 languages. That’s right, actual multilingual human…
- Phuket News
Nibali’s journey from Sicily ends in yellow in Paris
PHUKET: Thirteen years ago, Vincenzo Nibali packed his bags and left his home in Sicily to start the journey that led him to a triumphant ride on the Champs Ely sees on Sunday as Tour de France champion. The 29-year-old Italian, as soft-spoken in life as aggressive as he is on the bike, joined Eddy Merckx, Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault,…
- Phuket News
Live artillery shell unearthed at Phuket construction site
PHUKET: Workers at a construction site in Phuket unearthed an unexploded artillery shell on Friday. However, Phuket City Police weren’t notified of the find at the apartment complex building site in Rassada until yesterday. “Once we realized what it was, we called in the Phuket Provincial Police Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) to promptly recover it and dispose of it,” said…
- Phuket News
Belgian family escapes Phuket surf disaster – all safe
PHUKET: Surin Beach’s fatality-free four-year* record almost came to a tragic end when four tourists, including a 3-year-old boy, were caught in a flash rip current yesterday. “A family of three from Belgium, including their three-year-old son, along with a fourth victim, could have all lost their lives yesterday in a space of a few minutes,” a Surin Beach lifeguard…
- Phuket News
Weekly Phuket beach cleanups important, says Army
PHUKET: The tourism industry would benefit from locals cleaning up Phuket’s beaches every week, said an Army officer after yesterday’s 3,000-person-strong cleanup. “Officials should hold beach cleaning events at least once a week. If locals continued to clean the beach, it would improve the island’s image,” said Somchai Ponatong of the Royal Thai Army’s 41st Military Circle. About 2,700 Phuket…
- Phuket News
Phuket Police on alert for fake B1,000 banknotes
PHUKET: Senior police officers have warned people to beware fake 1,000-baht banknotes in circulation in Trang province, south of Phuket, as the counterfeit notes may make their way onto the island. The warning follows Raksina Chittawech, a tea shop owner in Trang Town, reporting being handed a fake1,000-baht banknote just before she closed shop last week (story here,in Thai). Ms…
- Business News
Thailand strives to increase organic exports
PHUKET: The Ministry of Commerce is pushing for organic products on the national agenda following growing demands worldwide, especially in the US and European markets. Permanent Secretary for Commerce Chutima Boonyapraphatson said the ministry would join hands with eight government and private organizations to promote Thai organic products which had become increasingly popular despite an economic slowdown over the past…
- Phuket News
Ramadan draws to a close throughout Phuket
PHUKET: The sighting of the new moon last night heralded the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, with Eid-al Fitr to be celebrated today. “The traditional sighting of the moon was carried out by representatives at mosques throughout Phuket, ” said Piyadet Chuachalard, Secretary of the Phuket Islamic Committee. “As the moon was sighted, we are celebrating Eid-al…
- Phuket News
Phuket tour bus plows into cars at busy junction
PHUKET: Brake failure of a Phuket tour bus caused of a major pile-up at the Darasamuth Intersection, near Central Festival Phuket, at about 3pm on Saturday. “In total, 10 vehicles were damaged in the accident. The brakes on a bus failed, causing it to crash into vehicles waiting at the intersection,” Wichit Police Deputy Superintendent told the Phuket Gazette. “No…
- Phuket News
Gold the best remedy for England’s suffering Trott
PHUKET: England’s double Olympic champion Laura Trott, who has been suffering with a kidney infection, claimed gold in a dramatic women’s 25km points race at the Commonwealth Games on Sunday. “I can’t believe it. I felt so bad at times and I’m so glad. I’m not even 100 per cent, I’ve not eaten properly for the last two days and…
- World News
Fighting in Gaza abates, but truce hopes look fragile
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Fighting in Gaza abates, but truce hopes look fragile Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Fighting subsided in Gaza on Sunday after Hamas Islamist militants said they backed a 24-hour humanitarian truce, but there was no sign of any comprehensive deal to end their conflict with Israel.…
- Phuket News
Chalong Police officers to be charged for Phuket dive company shakedown
PHUKET: Three officers from the Chalong Police are expected to be charged with extortion and abusing their positions of power by the end of August, the Phuket Gazette has been told. Lt Col Wannop Somjintanakul, the Public-sector Anti Corruption Commission (PACC) officer leading the investigation into the alleged extortion of more than 20 dive instructors at Chalong Pier in March,…
- Thailand News
Deadly car bomb hits Betong
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Deadly car bomb hits Betong The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A car bomb exploded in Betong district in Yala yesterday evening, killing at least two people and wounding 34 others, three of them seriously. The explosion also set nearby buildings on fire and caused major…
- Phuket News
European challengers commit to America’s Cup
PHUKET: Four European teams promised on Friday to compete for the next America’s Cup, ensuring the event would be viable after official challenger Team Australia pulled out because of rising costs. The European rivals from Italy, Sweden, Britain and France said they would cooperate with Oracle Team USA, the holders, to ensure the 35th America’s Cup in 2017 was a…
- Phuket News
Phuket beach vendors given 15 days to clear Tri Trang and Paradise Beach
PHUKET: Businesses encroaching on the sands at Phuket’s Tri Trang Beach and Paradise Beach on Thursday were given 15 days to tear down their illegal structures – or pay Navy officers to do it for them. “We will check in every day. If it is not done by the deadline [August 7], I will have my officers take the structures…
- Phuket News
No answers for outraged Phuket beach vendors
PHUKET: Dozens of Phuket beach vendors went toe-to-toe with Patong’s mayor yesterday demanding that she protect them and their livelihoods. “I thought the beach vendors would have ideas on how we can support them, but they mostly just complained about me not taking care of them and not protecting them,” said newly-elected Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsab. “I understand that they…
- Phuket News
Hamilton fastest in hot Hungarian practice
PHUKET: Lewis Hamilton started his Hungarian Grand Prix weekend as he meant to continue, with the fastest lap in Friday’s first free practice and championship-leading Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg behind him. The winner of the last two Hungarian Grands Prix lapped the Hungaroring circuit outside Budapest with a best time of one minute 25.814 seconds. Rosberg was second fastest,…
- Opinion
Opinion: Horrible history of dolphins in Thailand continues in Phuket
PHUKET: Thailand is witnessing an ever-increasing legal and illegal exploitation of local wildlife and marine life. Dolphins have been kept in captivity in Thailand since 1986. The first wild pink dolphin was caught and kept at Laem Singh in Chanthaburi by Vichai Wattanapong at a venue that later became the Oasis Sea World. But it wasn’t until recent years that…
- Business News
Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket appoints new director of sales and marketing
PHUKET: The Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket has announced the appointment of Sanjeev Tandon as its new Director of Sales and Marketing. An Indian national, Mr Tandon holds a master’s degree in Management Studies with a specialization in marketing from the SP Jain Institute of Management and Research at Mumbai University, India. He also comes to the role with extensive experience…
- Phuket News
Olive ridley sea turtle found dead on Phuket beach
PHUKET: Local residents collecting shells on Mai Khao Beach discovered the remains of a female olive ridley turtle washed ashore yesterday. “We believe the turtle died a few days before the local villager found its remains,” said Jittipong Pimarnprom of the Mai Khao Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor). Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers took the remains of the turtle, about 53cm long…
