Legacy Phuket Gazette
- Phuket News
Patong motorbike taxi drivers get free helmets
PATONG, PHUKET: Hoping to improve both safety standards and their public image, scores of blue-vested motorbike taxi drivers on Saturday took part in a training project and received free safety helmets. The initiative is part of a road safety and crime prevention campaign created by Kathu Police Superintendent Grissak Songmoonnark. At 1 pm on Saturday, about 400 members of the…
- Phuket News
Homeless Swedes face deportation from Phuket
PHUKET CITY: A homeless couple from Sweden face imminent deportation for overstaying their permits to stay. Lt Col Boonlert Onklang of the Chalong Police identified the couple as Bjorn Lennart Lundqvist, 59, and his female companion Gabriella Rose-Marie Strand, 58. Officers found the couple lying on the sidewalk in front of the Bangkok Bank branch in Kata at 1pm last…
- Phuket News
New tsunami buoy deployed off Phuket
PHUKET: Thailand’s tsunami direct detection buoy has been successfully replaced and the new unit began transmitting data via satellite at 9:15am Thursday morning.Staff of the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) and technical experts from the US who conducted the mission returned aboard MV Seafdec at 8am yesterday, as planned.NDWC Director Viriya Mongkolveerapan told the Gazette the old unit will be…
- Phuket News
PTT expands search for liquid gold off Phuket
PHUKET: PTT Exploration and Production Plc (PTTEP) will continue its search for oil and natural gas reserves off Thailand’s Andaman Coast, with the possibility of drilling as early as 2013, a company project manager told the Phuket Governor on Thursday.PTTEP project manager Bandit Chaisilboon, responsible for three concession areas (A4/48, A5/48 and A6/48) off the Andaman Coast, said PTTEP has…
- Phuket News
Englishman dies in Phuket boating accident
CHALONG, PHUKET: An Englishman died yesterday after the catamaran he was sailing in with two friends capsized off Koh Hei.Chalong police identified the deceased as UK national Kevin Corrigan, a retired former employee of AIG Insurance.One of the survivors, 67-year-old English expat Bill Dobbs, told the Gazette that he and Mr Corrigan left Chalong Bay in the catamaran owned by…
- Phuket News
No late nights for Phuket City bars
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Governor has refused a request by several bar owners on Yaowarat Road to be allowed to stay open until 2am, saying he lacks the authority to overrule Ministry of Interior regulations.In recent years a number of small bars and restaurants have opened up on the stretch of the road close to the intersection with Dibuk Road…
- Phuket News
Phuket – Udon Thani flights start Monday
PHUKET CITY: Thai AirAsia will launch a new direct flight service connecting Phuket and the Isarn town of Udon Thani on Monday, December 21. The new service, with a 1 hour and 40 minute flight time, will operate on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Thai AirAsia CEO Tassapol Bijleveld said “Udon Thani is in the central part of the Northeast…
- Phuket News
Phuket Sea Gypsies face lawsuit, possible eviction
RAWAI, PHUKET: Thirteen Moken sea gypsy families are being threatened with eviction after a businessman bought the title for the land their homes are built on. The families claim they occupied the land before the chanote land title was issued. The owner of the 2.7 rai plot of land in Rawai Village 2 has applied to the Phuket Provincial Court…
- Phuket News
Phuket lifeguards seek back pay from PPAO
PHUKET CITY: Fifty former members of the provincial beach guard gathered at the offices of the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization (PPAO) yesterday morning to protest over non-payment of two months’ salary. The guards, led by Kamala Beach head lifeguard Tawee Sariya, were met by PPAO Vice President Chawalit Na Nakorn at about 11:30am. The guards complained that all 67 members…
- Phuket News
Kamala Fest 2009 activites announced
KAMALA, PHUKET: Live performances from Kangkeng and Hin Lek Fai as well as a fishing competition and a football tournament are among the highlights of the Kamala Festival 2010, set to take place next month. Juta Dumluck, president of the Kamala Tambon Administration Organization (TAO), recently announced details of the festival, funded to the tune of three million baht. The…
- Phuket News
Phuket Gov seeks end to Darasamuth Road impasse
WICHIT, PHUKET: A poor family with no place else to go is the only thing holding up government plans to complete a road project that could reduce traffic congestion on the bypass road at the Darasamuth School Intersection. Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop held a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall Tuesday afternoon to discuss the impasse. The 550-meter-long road starts just…
- Phuket News
Phuket’s ‘Golden Boy’ back in town
PHUKET CITY: Satree Phuket student Peerasak Sae-eung returned to Phuket yesterday as the island’s first-ever gold medal winner at the International Junior Science Olympiad in Azerbaijan. A crowd was on hand at Phuket International Airport to congratulate him on his victory, which took place earlier this month. Later the same day, he returned to his school where he told reporters,…
- Phuket News
Water truck crashes in Kata
KATA, PHUKET: A six-wheel water tanker owned by the Diamond Cottage Resort and Spa yesterday rolled about 10 meters downhill on Patak Rd, crashing into two nearby shops in Kata Center and damaging their front canopies. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. Staff at the hotel said the tanker was pumping water into the hotel at about 3:30pm when the handbrake…
- Phuket News
Phuket Carnival underway in Patong
PHUKET CITY: ‘Phuket Carnival at Patong 2009’ kicked off in style yesterday with fireworks, a colorful parade and plenty of activities along the Patong beachfront. The grand opening began at 5:30pm with a welcome speech by Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop, followed by a parade from the football field all the way along the beach road south to the Holiday Inn.…
- Phuket News
Phuket tsunami memorial services announced
PHUKET CITY: Memorial services marking the fifth anniversary of the 2004 tsunami disaster will take place on December 26 at locations in Patong, Mai Khao and Kamala. In Patong, a religious ceremony will take place at Loma Park on Patong Beach from 8am to 12pm, and again in the evening from 6pm to 7pm. In Mai Khao, similar ceremonies will…
- Phuket News
Man drowns in Phuket tin mining pond
KATHU, PHUKET: An unemployed former monk died of apparent drowning in a tin mining pond opposite Kathu Temple yesterday.The deceased was identified by his Thai ID card as 59-year-old Sa-ngiam Sompanpaing, a resident of Srisaket province.His friend and regular fishing partner Thiti Srinakuang, 59, said the pair regularly cast fishing nets into the pond.After arriving at the pond around noon…
- Phuket News
Year-end celebration of local Phuket life
PHUKET: Old Phuket Town will be strung with lights and festive decorations for the fourth annual ‘Local Life Festival’ on the last Sunday of December, giving Phuketians young and old, a taste of yesteryear.From 6:30pm until 11pm on December 27, all are invited to wander through Soi Romanee and Thalang Road to take in the sights, sounds and smells of…
- Phuket News
“Phuket Balloon Festival 2009′ at Central Festival
PHUKET CITY: Central Festival Phuket will host the Christmas-themed ‘Phuket Balloon Festival 2009’ starting with a grand opening ceremony at 1pm on Saturday. To take place in the Grand Hall on the mall’s first floor, the event will feature balloons up to three meters across, specially crafted to resemble a variety of sea creatures. Under the theme ‘Christmas Under the…
- Opinion
PHUKET OPINION: What constitutes a crisis?
PHUKET: I expected some backlash for my support for a provincial plan to implement a charge for plastic bags, and it came the weekend before last in the form of a strongly-worded open letter to the Phuket Energy Office with the heading: ‘Crisis? What Crisis?’, after the 1975 Supertramp album by the same name. The letter, by a Canadian who…
- Phuket News
Phuket tsunami protection upgrade due by Saturday
PHUKET: A new tsunami detection buoy is on the way to replace the old one located 600 nautical miles northwest of Phuket. The new buoy, along with the Director of the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) and specialists from the US, set off from Cape Panwa aboard the Royal Thai Navy vessel MV Seafdec at 0800 today. The 47-million-baht detection…
- Phuket News
Phuket rescue effort fails to save dolphin
PHUKET CITY: A Risso’s dolphin that washed ashore in Chalong on Friday night and later died, might have been suffering from exhaustion due to giving birth, researchers at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) think. Residents of the Khok Tanode community in Chalong Village 9 initially reported two stranded dolphins at Haad Son (Pine Beach) to the PMBC’s Marine Endangered…
- Phuket News
Satree Phuket boy grabs gold at science olympiad
PHUKET CITY: Satree Phuket student Peerasak Sae-eung was among Thailand’s three gold medal winners at the the sixth International Junior Science Olympiad (6th IJSO) in Azerbaijan from December 2 to 11. Another three Thai contestants took silver medals in what proved to be the country’s best-ever medal haul at the Olympiad, which this year had 258 competitors from 49 countries.…
- Phuket News
Three Phuket City cops face transfer after nightclub beating
PHUKET: Three Phuket City Police officers are set to be transferred after a fight with a group of Territorial Defense Volunteers in a Phuket Town nightclub early on Saturday. The altercation took place at the ‘Khon 101’ nightclub, a ‘songs-for-life’ establishment located near Nimit Circle. The three volunteers claimed they were beaten at about 1am by a group of six…
- Phuket News
Trio bags Annual Phuket Community Service Award
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette’s ‘Person of the Year Award’ for 2009 was abruptly forced into the plural ten days ago with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding to curtail Phuket’s extravagant use of plastic bags. Our award is thus presented to the three driving forces behind that project: Dr Wiwat Seetamanotch, Deputy Chief Medical Officer of the Phuket Provincial…
- Phuket News
Health workers gear up for swine flu spread
PHUKET CITY: The Department of Disease Control is gearing up for a re-emergence of the A(H1N1) virus that causes swine flu.Mrs Sirilak Thaijaroern, director of the Department of Disease Control (DDC) Region 11 Office in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, said the number of new cases of A(H1N1) is increasing nationwide with the arrival of the cool season.To fight the spread of…
- Phuket News
Kathu police keep tabs on ladyboys
PATONG, PHUKET: A ‘ladyboy’ registration plan that went into effect in October has been hailed a success by Patong’s top cop, with a drop in the number of crime cases committed by members of Patong’s transgender community. The registration plan was established last October following concerns that US military servicemen on leave in Phuket might fall prey to gangs of…
- Phuket News
TAT accepting Thai Tourism Award 2010 applications
PHUKET CITY: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is accepting applications for its 8th annual Thailand Tourism Awards, with 101 prizes in five categories up for grabs. The five categories are: attractive tourist destinations, tourist accommodations, tour packages, tourism support organizations and health tourism. Categories are subdivided, with destination awards for such classifications as best ‘natural’ tourist destination, best historic…
- Phuket News
Jetstar Asia announces Phuket “daily double’
PHUKET CITY: Jetstar Asia Airways held a press conference on Tuesday to announce a second daily flight on its Singapore – Phuket route starting on December 15. The Singapore-based low-cost carrier will also increase weekend flights to the island and increase the number of flights on its Sydney – Phuket route from three to five per week. The increases will…
- Phuket News
Alcohol act to be strictly enforced in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket businesses selling and promoting alcohol and tobacco will face stricter enforcement of the Alcohol Control Act in the New Year.Operators of bars, pubs, restaurants and advertising agencies face fines up to 500,000 baht and prison sentences of up to two years for infringements of the laws.The imminent crackdown follows a Ministry of Public Health report claiming that despite…
- Phuket News
Centenary celebrations at Satree Phuket School
PHUKET CITY: Phuketians are invited to join festivities currently underway at Satree Phuket School to celebrate the school’s 100-year anniversary.Many of the school’s 3,334 students have been taking part in celebratory activities since yesterday, including comedy shows, student marching band performances, live animation shows, IQ tests, science and singing contests.Visitors can also have souvenir pictures taken with students wearing traditional…
