Northern Thailand News
Stay updated with the latest Northern Thailand news at The Thaiger, your ultimate source for regional information. Keep informed on local events, business developments, and lifestyle stories in popular locations like Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, and Pai.
Our in-depth coverage includes famous monuments such as the White Temple and Doi Suthep. Whether you’re a resident or a visitor, The Thaiger’s Northern Thailand news page is your essential guide to exploring this culturally rich region. Delve into the vibrant community and diverse culture with our expertly curated content, designed to keep you connected and well-informed.
-
Sponsored Why is Bangkok's air quality so bad?
Imagine waking up early in Bangkok and you see all the beautiful morning fog from your balcony, but as you sip your coffee you realise it's just Bangkok's air pollution that's making the sun rise aesthetic. Ranked as the 36th...
-
UPDATE: Elite forces storm Terminal 21, gunman holding hostages – VIDEO
Following the shootings of innocent civilians by a Thai army sniper earlier this evening in Korat, north eastern Thailand, elite police and army forces of the Crime Suppression Division and Lop Buri-based Special Forces arrived at Terminal 21 shopping mall an hour ago. (Video of their arrival at Terminal 21 below) The armed gunman is believed to be still be…
-
UPDATE: Thai army shooter shot his commander before going on Korat rampage
A confirmed 12 people have been shot dead, some social media are already reporting up to 20 may have been shot dead. Many more are injured after a Thai army soldier, identified as Sergeant Major Jakraphanth Thomma, went on a shooting rampage this afternoon in Korat, Nakhon Ratchasima. The mass shootings are said to have started around 5.30 this afternoon.…
-
UPDATE: Thai Army soldier still at large in Terminal 21, Korat – Killed upwards of 12
As we update the story about the crazed Thai Army sniper going on a rampage around Korat in Nakhon Ratchasima, north east Thailand this afternoon, this is the latest information we have… • A Thai soldier allegedly killed his commanding officer before gunning down a reported 12 people. He was livestreaming the the entire incident as he slaughtered innocent people…
-
Thai Army sniper goes on shooting rampage in Korat – up to 20 shot and killed
UPDATE: A police and army detachment is currently searching for an army sniper in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Korat city centre. The solider has shot dead at least 12 people late this afternoon. The city is in virtual lockdown as security officials are trying to clear the areas around the crime scene. The gunman was live-streaming the entire incident and taking selfies…
-
Biker decapitated in Lampang
Police and rescue services in the northern Lampang province were confronted with a gruesome scene after the driver of a Kawasaki Z650 hit a metal lamp post in the middle of a downward section on the Lampang-Chiang Mai superhighway. The biker’s head, out of its helmet, was on one side of the road, his body on the other. The biker…
-
Police officer murdered, mutilated
The body of a police officer was found in the northeastern province of Kalasin yesterday. He had been stabbed to death and his body severely mutilated. Police later tracked down and arrested 45 year old Amornlak Jitkoh, a Kalasin native, who had fled and hidden in a forest in Nakhon Ratchasima province. He was persuaded to surrender and return to…
-
Police chase, arrest two women with 300 kilograms of compressed marijuana
Authorities in the northeastern Nong Khai province arrested two women yesterday and seized 300 kilograms of compressed marijuana. The two were captured after trying to run a police checkpoint. Police told reporters the arrests came after a tip-off that marijuana would be smuggled from neighbouring Bung Kan province, once a part of Nong Khai. It was to be transported to…
-
3 arrested for selling fake gold in Khon Kaen
Three men are now in police custody in the north-eastern province of Khon Kaen for selling fake gold to gold shops. 42 year old Suparb from Udon Thani province, 41 year old Pakorn from Bangkok and 30 year old Thanakorn from Surin Province were arrested after police received complaints of fake gold chains being sold to several shops in the…
-
1 person dead, 4 remain missing after boat capsize on reservoir near Laos border
One person has drowned whilst four others remain missing, presumed dead, after their boat struck an obstacle, probably a tree stump, that was submerged under the surface. The boat capsized on Sirikit Reservoir in Thailand’s northern province of Uttradit, near the Laos border. Rescue workers have been able to retrieve five other passengers and the boat’s captain from the reservoir,…
-
North eastern villagers protest fishy smells from seafood factory wastewater
Villagers in the northern Khon Kaen province are complaining of a seafood “factory” that has been dumping foul smelling wastewater into public drains. Hundreds gathered in the Mueang Kao subdistrict’s Sirirat Village to plea for help from local agencies. The smelly black water spills out from the drains, stinking up homes, and has even travelled into locals fields. Thousands of villagers…
-
Tour bus crash in northern Thailand injures 8
Eight people are injured, one seriously, after a tour bus crashed in northern Thailand’s northern Nan Province yesterday morning. The bus skidded into a mountain slope at a curve in the main city district. Thai media report that the bus was found lying on its side when police and rescue workers arrived at the scene. The 32 year old driver, Yutthapong…
-
6 million baht lottery winner goes on drug-fuelled rampage, tries to burn down house
A man who won a six million baht lottery prize in June is now in police custody in Sisaket, northeastern Thailand. His mother reported to police that “he’s become a berserk drug addict”. Police told Thai media that 56 year old Kom Poka called police to arrest her 32 year old son Chainarong in Sisaket after he went on a…
-
Buri Ram gold and jewellery thief arrested whilst trying to flee the province
A man was arrested in his car yesterday in the northeastern province of Buri Ram after allegedly stealing gold valued around two million baht from a shop at a local department store over two weeks ago, on the night of December 28. 22 year old Prawit Chaikheenee was arrested whilst sitting in his on the Buri Ram-Nang Rong Road while…
-
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…
-
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…
-
“Run Against Dictatorship” events blocked in two Thai provinces
This Sunday’s planned “Run Against Dictatorship” anti-government protest event in Bangkok has spawned copycat campaigns across Thailand, which have now been prohibited in at least two provinces. Organisers of the Bangkok event have tried to clarify that they are not involved with the planning for any runs planned elsewhere in the country. The campaign’s Thai name, “Wing Lai Lung” (วิ่งไล่ลุง) literally…
-
New road projects around Thailand in 2020
PHOTO: Nation Thailand The Thai Department of Highways plans to spend 124 billion baht during the next 12 months with five of the projects already budgeted and ready for the tender process. Contracts are expected to be signed in May for those projects. There will be a 16 kilometre eastern bypass around Nong Khai, just south of Vientiane and the…
-
Over 400 arrested for drink-driving in Kalasin province during holiday campaign
PHOTO: 200 drink-drivers ended up in court after being arrested on NY Eve – INN News More than 400 people have been arrested for drink-driving in the northeastern province of Kalasin alone over the holiday period. This, an appalling result during the first four of Thailand’s “7 Dangerous Days” safety campaign over the Christmas/New Year holidays. The drivers were caught…
-
Freak hailstorm causes blackouts, damages homes in Chiang Rai
PHOTOS: Thai PBS World Heavy rains and hail have damaged homes and caused widespread blackouts in the northern province of Chiang Rai. Strong winds knocked down trees in several districts, blocking traffic. Officials say the sudden storm, which struck Mae Sai, Chiang Saen and Mae Chan districts, lasted about 30 minutes and damaged several houses. They say the relief operation was hindered…
-
2 million baht of gold stolen in Buri Ram, police suspect inside job
A thief has made off with 2 million baht in gold necklaces, rings and bracelets from a gold shop at a Buri Ram department store. Police examined CCTV footage showing a man wearing a cap entering the shop in the early morning on Saturday before ransacking several areas. Officers took fingerprints at various locations including the gold shop. Thai media report…
-
Two drug smugglers killed by soldiers in Chiang Rai, drugs seized
Two drug runners have been shot and killed by soldiers in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai. They were shipping 600 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine (ice) which was seized in the operation. The men were killed during a gunfight between a group of drug runners and border police after the Pha The Muang military task force detected 15-20 men…
-
Woman injured by ‘exploding’ manhole cover in northern Thailand
PHOTO: sanook.com A manhole cover has exploded in the northern province of Lampang, seriously injuring a 22 year old delivery woman, who was knocked unconscious. Thai Residents reports that the incident took place in Lampang city yesterday afternoon as the woman, “Nun”, was going to collect a customer’s order. CCTV shows the manhole cover exploding as the delivery woman drove by…
-
Burmese migrants are chasing months of back-pay from Chiang Rai plantation
FILE PHOTO 45 legally registered Burmese migrant workers in Chiang Rai are seeking assistance from the local labour office to conduct an inquiry into unpaid salaries over a couple of months, some up to six months. The workers have been engaged at a banana plantation in the Phaya Mengrai district. The workers rallied at the provincial offices on Monday, some claiming they…
-
Worst drought in 40 years means tough times for Thais
The lowest rainfall ever recorded in Thailand was in 1979. Now, Thailand’s Meteorological Department is forecasting an even worse drought and dry season saying it will last until May 2020. Forty-three provinces in the north, northeast, and central regions will be the most affected. Some are already in the grip of critical water shortages with farmers being asked to swap their…
-
4 dead, 47 injured in Loei bus crash
PHOTOS: มะเขือขื่นข่าวเชียงคาน Just two days after 14 Singaporean tourists were injured in a tour van crash, 4 people have been killed and at least 47 people injured, some seriously, after a tour bus from Buriram lost control last night. “Brake failure” has been given as the reason for the crash. The bus, which was carrying mainly elderly Buriram residents, ended…
-
Paroled Thai serial killer “Jack the Ripper” spotted by two students before arrest
PHOTO: Alleged killer of his sixth victim on Sunday, Somkid Pumpuang (front centre), during his arrest in 2005 for five other murders Police arrested the paroled serial killer Somkid Phumphuang on a train in northeastern Thailand yesterday. He was wanted as a suspect in the killing of a woman in Khon Kaen province on Sunday. Police discovered Somkid, asleep next to…
-
15 year old Buriram girl forced to sell drugs for her boyfriend
PHOTOS: Sanook.com Police in Buriram north east Thailand, have rescued a 15 year old girl and arrested her 33 year old boyfriend after he threatened her with a gun to deliver drugs for his gang. The girl, known only as “Aum,” called her father, who told police his daughter was being kept locked in a rented room in Nang Rong…
-
Fugitive ‘serial killer’ Somkid arrested on Bangkok-bound train
Police have arrested the convicted killer Somkid Poompuang, who has been nick-named in Thai media as “Jack the Ripper” and “Kid the Ripper” this morning. He was on the run since a murder in Khon Kaen last Sunday. 55 year old Somkid was on a train at a railway station in the Pak Chong district of Nakhon Ratchasima province in north…
-
Thai Immigration Chief softens stance on tourist and expat visas
#shutdoorafterhorsehasbolted The head of Thai Immigration has told his department not to be too strict on tourists and scare them away from returning to Thailand. According to PattayaOne, the Chief has asked for his staff to “show some humanity”. Lt-Gen Sompong – also known as Big Oud, after his predecessor was nicknamed Big Joke – was doing a presentation during a…
-
Driver sees red, smashes window of car parked in disabled zone
PHOTO: Thai PBS World A driver who’s had enough of able-bodied people parking in disabled parking bays has vented his frustration by smashing the car window of one such offender. The incident is understood to have taken place in the parking lot of a Big C in Chiang Rai, with the man posting about it on social media, saying he…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.