- Phuket News
B17m for Andaman Sea Rescue
PHUKET: The Andaman Sea Rescue Service (ASRS) has received a budget of more than 17 million baht to spend on new lifesaving equipment, though officials don’t expect to receive the new gear until the third quarter of this year. The ASRS carries out sea rescues off the coasts of five of Thailand’s six Andaman provinces: Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Ranong…
- Phuket News
Panther on the loose in Chumphon
CHUMPHON: A huge black panther has been attacking livestock in a village next to a national park in Muang District. Local resident Sanguan Damsanit told reporters on January 6 that he saw the animal on New Year’s Day in a field in Tambon Tha Yang. Mr Sanguan, 55, said that when he went to round up his eight head of…
- Opinion
OPINION: CCTV expansion in Phuket: Is it warranted?
PHUKET: On the face of it, the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization’s (PPAO’s) funding of 53 more closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at a cost of 17 million baht seems a wise use of taxpayer money, which could provide a needed boost in security, albeit initially to Phuket Town residents only. Numbers alone justify the increased use of ever-improving CCTV technologies in…
- Phuket News
Phuket kids have their way on Children’s Day
PHUKET: It was a busy day for kids in Phuket today, which is National Children’s Day in Thailand. There were numerous prizes and giveaways all over the island: Jungcyelon, Rajabhat Phuket University, Bangkok Hospital Phuket, Phuket Provincial Hall and the new provincial bus terminal in Rassada, to name just a few. It was mostly fun and games, but there were…
- Phuket News
Phuket Red Cross raffle results
PHUKET CITY: The main stage area at Saphan Hin was packed with excited punters last night when local VIPs drew the winning numbers in the annual Red Cross Fair charity raffle. The top prize for the first time ever in Thailand was a detached house on 56 square wah of land in the Phanason Parkville 3 housing estate off Thepkrasattri…
- Phuket News
Phuket Luxury property sales top Bt1.1bn
PHUKET: Phuket’s luxury property market saw transactions worth 1.1 billion baht for the period of July through November last year, according to market research by leading Thai consulting firm C9 Hotelworks.A growing resale sector accounted for 50 percent of the sales.According to Bill Barnett, Managing Director of C9, “There was an absence of new high-end product in 2009, which propelled the secondary…
- Phuket News
Course set for “fun’ regatta
PHUKET: The Phang Nga Bay Regatta 2010, one of the world’s most scenic sailing events, will be the center for the Southeast Asia’s yachting community this February 3-7.Encompassing four days of racing and five days of partying that covers the three provinces of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi, the regatta’s success in past years has helped it earn the nickname,…
- Phuket News
Kamala Fest 2010 underway in Phuket
KAMALA, PHUKET: The three-day Kamala Fest 2009 got underway this morning with a fishing competition, followed by a fancy parade in the afternoon. The official opening ceremony will be at the auspicious time of 6:39pm, when Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop will ring a bell to declare the festival open. There will also be a fireworks display. Song and dance performances…
- Phuket News
Phuket tourism in high gear with last-minute bookings
PHUKET: For the last few weeks, a steady rise in the island’s hotel reservations indicate a strong start for the 2010 tourism season.According to the Phuket Tourist Association, which since 1980 began monitoring information and trends for the island tourism industry, hotel bookings have increased considerably compared with the same period last year.According to Phuket Tourist Association president Somboon Jirayut,…
- Phuket News
Phuket kids have their day
PHUKET: Tomorrow is Children’s Day. Around Phuket, many government, public and commercial venues will be putting on free entertainment for the island’s little people and their families. Normally restricted government offices will open their doors and to allow young visitors inside for educational tours and information. Strong moral values, health and education are an important message promoted and rewarded on…
- Phuket News
PIMEX International Boat Show begins
PHUKET: The latest gleaming luxury yachts, water craft, sailing equipment and other hi-tech marine products are on show at Royal Phuket Marina’s exhibition hall for this year’s PIMEX International Boat Show, which officially opens tomorrow.From Friday through Sunday, 45 luxury yachts and 80 exhibiting companies are welcoming potential buyers, families, hard-core boat junkies, or anyone just curious about all the…
- Phuket News
Love triangle turns deadly in Phuket
PHUKET: Police have arrested two people for the brutal stabbing murder of a Kathu town council member in a Phuket Town hotel late yesterday afternoon. Lt Col Pitakpon Sompong said staff at the Park Inn Hotel on Luang Phor Rd contacted police at 6:30pm yesterday to report a heated argument taking place inside Room 30. Just as police were arriving…
- Phuket News
Canadian confesses, pays fine at Phuket Court
PHUKET: Canadian tourist Ivan Bob Anwar, who was involved in a punch-up with a Patong tuk-tuk driver earlier in the week, has been ordered to pay a 1,000 baht fine after confessing to assault charges. Mr Anwar, 51, paid the fine at Phuket Provincial Court earlier today after pleading guilty to charges of assault against tuk-tuk driver Tassanarit Damthong, 30.…
- Phuket News
Phuket City police nab thieving teens
PHUKET CITY: Phuket City Police on Tuesday morning held a joint press conference to announce the capture of four young men arrested on various theft charges. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pekad Thantipong presented the first suspect, identified as 23-year-old Thepkrasattri resident King Polasan. Despite the first name, the youth’s recent actions were anything but regal. Mr King was arrested at…
- Phuket News
Hollywood-style bar brawl in Patong
PHUKET: A bar in Patong was wrecked this morning when a vicious fight broke out between two gangs at 3am.The men, numbering at least ten, were all young and muscular and smashed wooden chairs and bottles over each other in the fight on Soi Happy off Rat-U-Thit 200 Pii Road, said Phuket Immigration Volunteer Mr Robin Lee.Three police officers, including…
- Phuket News
UPDATE: Phuket tuk-tuk assault case
PHUKET: A Patong tuk-tuk driver charged with assault for allegedly beating a Canadian tourist has been granted bail. Tassanarit Damthong, 30, handed himself in at Kathu Police Station at 3pm on Tuesday. He was arrested and charged with the assault of Canadian tourist Ivan Bob Anwar, 51. Mr Anwar claimed he was punched five times after refusing to pay 150…
- Phuket News
Fabio: Grazie Mille Phuket
KAMALA, PHUKET: Italian tourist Fabio Fanzani was reunited with his lost wallet today after an appeal was launched on this website yesterday. Kamala Police had been trying in vain to contact the owner of the wallet after it was found by a Thai tourist, Ms Khanungnit Kwanyao, at Surin Beach and handed over to authorities over a week ago. When…
- Phuket News
More tuk-tuk trouble in Phuket
PATONG, PHUKET: A Canadian tourist was hospitalized after being punched repeatedly in an attack involving a tuk-tuk driver yesterday afternoon. Ivan Bob Anwar, 51, told the Gazette that he was punched five times in the attack, which resulted in a large gash above his left eyebrow requiring five stitches. He also sustained a bloody nose and bruising to his face.…
- Phuket News
British man dies in Phuket
KOH KAEW: A 65-year-old Englishman was found dead in his rental home near the Boat Lagoon yesterday afternoon. The deceased, Barry Ronald Cutler, was found at about 4pm, naked and lying on a staircase landing in his rented home in Phuket Inter Villa residential estate on Soi Bangkoo 1. Mr Cutler rented the house in October and lived alone. A…
- Phuket News
Disabled to help Phuket City Police with CCTV monitoring
PHUKET: Phuket City Police are moving forward with a plan to have disabled people monitor closed-circuit television (CCTV) security cameras, but the project will be limited to those who can get up the stairs to the fourth-storey CCTV control room on their own. Phuket City Superintendent Wanchai Ekpornpit told the Gazette yesterday that his department is working with the Phuket…
- Phuket News
Phuket holiday road toll: 8 dead, 92 injured
PHUKET CITY: Final figures are in for this year’s ‘Seven Days of Danger’ road safety campaign in Phuket and they are depressing indeed with eight dead – almost triple the number from last year, when three died. Figures released by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket) today showed that 82 reported accidents left 92 people with injuries requiring…
- Phuket News
Karon tuk-tuk driver gets bail
CHALONG, PHUKET: The Karon tuk-tuk driver accused of attacking a family of French tourists with a metal pole on December 26 turned himself in to police and was released on bail, the Gazette has learned. Chalong Police Inspector Chana Suthimas identified the alleged attacker as 32-year-old Likhit Thaengthae, a resident of Karon. Mr Likhit appeared at Chalong Police Station at…
- Phuket News
Fabio! Your wallet’s in Phuket
KAMALA, PHUKET: Kamala Police are trying to contact an Italian tourist named Fabio Fanzani, whose wallet was found by a Thai tourist at Surin Beach and handed over to authorities a week ago. Lt Col Supavich Suvanpirom said the wallet was found by 31-year-old Petchaboon native Khanungnit Kwanyao, who is in Phuket for the New Year holiday. “I saw the…
- Phuket News
Snatch-and-run bandits nabbed in Phuket
KAMALA, PHUKET: A pair of of English tourists will leave Phuket today with no pictures of their holiday to show friends back home – thanks to the depredations of a trio of thieves in Kamala. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pekad Thantipong and Kamala Police yesterday afternoon held a press conference to announce the arrest of two men wanted in connection…
- Phuket News
Wild car crash in Phuket Town
PHUKET: Like a scene out of a Hollywood action movie, an out-of-control car plowed through market stalls in the Samkong area of Phuket Town yesterday morning, leaving scores of motorbikes damaged and one woman with a broken arm. Phuket City Police were informed of the accident at 9am. Arriving at the scene, opposite the Dairy Hut restaurant on Hongyok U-thit…
- Phuket News
Hazardous waste separation drive to launch in Phuket
PHUKET: A project aimed at separating used electrical equipment from the solid waste stream will kick off with special activities on Saturday, which is National Children’s Day in Thailand. The force behind the project is the Phuket chapter of the Business and Professional Women’s Association of Thailand (BPW-Phuket). Chapter president Pornpinit P. Suwan met with Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngpop at…
- Phuket News
Sea turtles fitted with GPS in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Researchers from the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) have fastened GPS electronic tracking devices to the backs of eight young green turtles, which were released off the coast in Phang Nga. The small GPS transmitters will transfer important research data back to the PMBC at Cape Panwa. These turtles will provide much needed information about the behavior patterns…
- Phuket News
Readers’ Poll: CCTV expansion in Phuket Town
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) is installing 53 more CCTV cameras in and around Phuket Town at a cost of 17 million baht. The stated aim is to improve security for residents and tourists alike. The PPAO says it plans to extend coverage to other parts of the island, including Chalong, in the future. Do you think this…
- Opinion
OPINION: Public transport a blot on the Phuket landscape
PHUKET: Last week, a family of French tourists were savagely assaulted with a steel shaft at Kata Beach when they attempted to park their rented car for a late afternoon spell of sun and fun on the sand. The attack occurred in front of the local Municipality Office opposite the Kata Beach Resort, and right next to a police post.…
- Phuket News
Phuket holiday road deaths at provincial average – so far
PHUKET: New Year’s Day in Thailand saw 686 road accidents kill 70 people and injure another 737, bringing the cumulative casualty count for the long holiday to 238 deaths and 2,725 injuries from 2,510 accidents. Of the 238 deaths, 3 have been recorded in Phuket, in line with the average for the country’s 78 provinces. But Phuket’s serious injury count,…
