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German justice minister sacks top prosecutor over treason row
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community German justice minister sacks top prosecutor over treason row Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Germany’s government sacked the top public prosecutor on Tuesday after he accused the justice ministry of interfering in a widely criticised treason investigation against a news website. In a rare clash between…
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India floods derail two trains, killing at least 20; hundreds rescued
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community India floods derail two trains, killing at least 20; hundreds rescued Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Two express trains were partially swept off a flooded bridge over a river in centralIndia overnight, killing at least 20 people and injuring 100, the government said on Wednesday. Divers…
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A Decade Ago: Tsunami warning issued in Phuket
PHUKET: More than seven months after the devastation of the tsunami tore apart communities along the Andaman coast and swept away entire villages in Indonesia, Thailand’s National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) issued a tsunami warning. An earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale had struck the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, only 664 kilometers from Phuket, but no tsunami rose from…
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Thailand arrests five for trafficking women into sex slavery in China
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Thailand arrests five for trafficking women into sex slavery in China Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Thailand has arrested five people suspected of trafficking Thai women into sex slavery in China and believed to be part of a ring that has also trafficked women into Malaysia…
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Unique Four Regions Fair’ to start on Mother’s Day
PHUKET: A special ‘Unique Four Regions Fair’ will take place on Mother’s Day, HM Queen Sirikit’s birthday, on August 12 and continue through August 16 at Sanam Chai Park in Phuket Town. Organized by the Royal Thai Navy’s Phuket-based Third Area Internal Security Operations Command [ISOC] and sponsored by the provincial police and municipality, this nationwide event is the fourth…
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Australian weather bureau: El Nino has emerged and is expected to strengthen
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community El Nino has emerged and expected to strengthen – Australian weather bureau Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: An El Nino is now well established and continues to strengthen, the Australian Bureau ofMeteorology (BOM) says, with models indicating that sea-surface temperature anomalies in the central Pacific Ocean…
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Japan A-bomb survivors speak out against nuclear power, decry Abe’s view of war
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Japan A-bomb survivors speak out against nuclear power, decry Abe’s view of war Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: When Atsushi Hoshino set out to revive a group representing atomic bomb survivors in the rural northeast Japanese prefecture of Fukushima 30 years ago, one topic was taboo…
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Idaho woman comes under fire for celebrating her killing of giraffe
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Idaho woman comes under fire for celebrating her killing of giraffe Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: A big-game trophy collector from Idaho has ignited a firestorm of criticism fromanimal-rights activists for flaunting online images of herself posed with the carcasses of a giraffe and other wildlife…
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Swedish tourist falls from Phuket hotel
PHUKET: A Swedish tourist and a Thai woman took a tumble from the balcony of their room at the Phuket Paradise Hotel in Patong early this morning. “When we arrived at the scene, Dahlin Erik Conny, 33, was unconscious and Numpueng Kumpuong, 26, was crying out in pain on the ground,” said Lt Col Jessada Saengsuree of the Patong Police.…
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Kratom user takes anger out on ATM
PHUKET: An unruly kratom user was arrested at his apartment in Rawai this morning after CCTV footage showed him smashing the screen of an ATM on his way home from Phuket Town. “We received the report of the broken ATM at about 4am this morning. At the scene, we found a big piece of concrete, as well as a smashed…
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High ranking officials mourn death of “Pink Panther’
PHUKET: Numerous Phuket officials showed up to pay their respects to former Phuket senator and Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) President Paiboon ‘The Pink Panther’ Upatising, who lost his battle against cancer Sunday morning (story here). The well-established politician had been dubbed Phuket’s ‘Pink Panther’ for his use of pink to brand his public projects and his ability to turn…
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Rescuers in Myanmar struggle to reach flood-hit areas, toll seen rising
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rescuers in Myanmar struggle to reach flood-hit areas, toll seen rising Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: A death toll of 27 from flooding across Myanmar was expected to rise as rescue workers struggled on Monday to reach some of the hardest-hit and most remote inundated areas,…
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Syrian jet crashes into market, 12 killed
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Syrian jet crashes into market, 12 killed Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: At least 12 people were killed when a Syrian army fighter jet crashed into a busy marketplacein the rebel-held northwestern town of Ariha on Monday, a monitor said. Most of the dead were civilians…
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TMD fails to issue weather warning
PHUKET: Despite today’s torrential rains, which led to flash flooding in several parts of the island, the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) has yet to issue any weather warning for Phuket. “The TMD did report that there would be rain fall all day, which could cause landslides. However, no warnings have been issued,” Santhawat Riwleung, chief of the Department of Disaster…
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Mobile phone thieves knock over Phuket shop
PHUKET: Police are searching for a team of thieves that made off with more than 30 mobile phones and about 10,000 baht in cash early Saturday morning. The thieves created a key for the shop shutter of Sapum Mobile on Thepkasattri Road in order to break in. However, they were unable to access the more expensive mobile devices, such as…
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Monster monitor lizard sneaks into Phuket home [video]
PHUKET: Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers captured a 20 kilogram monitor lizard at a house in Phuket, as heavy rains inundated the island this morning. “It was quite a big monitor; about one-meter long,” Kasun Naepnean, a rescue worker, told the Phuket Gazette. “It was very strong, and difficult to catch.” It took the team about 30 minutes to capture the…
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Cruising through “Green Season’
PHUKET: Phuket has been recognized as a world-class cruising destination for many years, with the majority of sailors visiting during the ‘high’ season months. This period is noted for its favorable weather that keep the skies clear, cruising grounds sheltered and beaches packed. However, it is the ‘green season’, from June to October, that is becoming a popular alternative, offering…
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Opinion: Taking up space
PHUKET: If you have ever been to Tesco Lotus or Big C – I will go out on a limb to say that most of us on the island have – did you ever park your vehicle in a handicapped parking spot if you are not handicapped? I hope not. If you have, stop being selfish and give the spot…
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Up in the air: Bangkok Airways flies to Hat Yai
PHUKET: Bangkok Airways will launch a new service between Phuket International Airport (HKT) and Hat Yai International Airport (HDY) starting in late October. Tasara Taksinapan, the carrier’s media relations manager, recently confirmed the new route with the Gazette’s ‘Up in the Air’, but said that the carrier had yet to issue an official press statement about the service, which will…
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Small vehicles warned of Phuket flash floods
PHUKET: Flash floods are causing long tailbacks and leaving many motorists pushing their scooters through deep water in Chalong and Patong, as well as at the Samkong underpass construction site, today. “Small vehicles should avoid roads where flooding has occurred,” Santhawat Riwleung, chief of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Phuket office, told the Phuket Gazette. “The rate…
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Funeral rites announced as Phuket mourns the death of Paiboon Upatising
PHUKET: Former Phuket senator and Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) President Paiboon Upatising died this morning at Bangkok’s Thonburi hospital. Mr Paiboon had been fighting colon cancer for several years, succumbing to it at 1.09am today. Funeral rights for Mr Paiboon will begin at 3pm tomorrow, Monday, August 3, at his family home on Vichitsongkram Road, near Surakul Stadium. Many…
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Police arrest driver for death of 12-year-old
PHUKET: Police arrested the driver of an 18-wheeled truck that hit and dragged a 12-year-old girl to death just south of the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint yesterday morning (story here). The truck allegedly struck the motorbike that the girl and her mother were riding, causing minimal damage, but knocking the mother-daughter pair to the concrete. Nong Latthaporn fell under the…
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Police hunt Phuket gambling organizer
PHUKET: Police are hunting the organizer of a gambling event in Phuket who managed to evade arrest during a raid in Thalang last night. “There were more than 10 of them taking part in a gambling game known as Gung-pla [literally, ‘shrimp-fish’]. However, many of them managed to scramble free during the raid,” Thalang Police Superintendent Chanuchan Cholsuwat said. Nonetheless,…
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Direct Phuket-Hainan flights tabled to boost tourism
PHUKET: Direct flights to Phuket from the island’s sister province in China were tabled this week during an official Hainan tourism fact finding mission in Thailand (story here). The plan was announced as officials marked the 10-year anniversary of Phuket and Hainan becoming ‘sister cities’, said Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong. “The direct flights will be good for both provinces’ tourism…
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Phuket police officer found shot in head
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a fellow officer who was found in his home with a gunshot wound to the head and a 9mm handgun still in his hand. “When we arrived at the scene yesterday, we had to break down the door, as it was locked from the inside,” explained Lt Peerasit Nhupayan of the Cherng Talay…
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Finance: Get smart with cyber security stocks
PHUKET: The recent New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) trading halt triggered a brief rush into cyber security stocks on renewed fears of yet another serious hack attack. While that incident was apparently caused by a computer malfunction, it shows just how jumpy investors are when it comes to the possibility of a new high-profile hack similar to the one that…
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World number 45 golfer swings by Laguna Phuket Golf Club
PHUKET: Prominent golfer, current Asian Tour Order-of-Merit leader and world number 45 golf player Anirban Lahiri recently visited Phuket, where he conducted a golf clinic and played nine holes with three young and promising island-based golfers at Laguna Phuket Golf Club. On the way to the US Open in Seattle, Mr Lahiri stayed at Laguna Phuket’s Banyan Tree Resort and…
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Chinese to “hack’ Phuket tourism industry
PHUKET: The Provincial Communist Party chief for Phuket’s sister province in China arrived in Phuket this week with hopes of ‘hacking into’ the secret to the island’s strong tourism sector. “Hainan officials are here on a fact finding mission to better understand exactly why Phuket hosts so many tourists from so many countries, while Sanya of Hainan is only playing…
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Donald Trump’s companies have sought visas to import at least 1,100 workers
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Donald Trump’s companies have sought visas to import at least 1,100 workers Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET:Donald Trump is staking his run for U.S. president in part on a vow to protect Americanjobs. But this month, one of his companies, the elite Mar-a-Lago Club resort in…
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Former CEO of collapsed Mt. Gox bitcoin exchange arrested in Japan: reports
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Former CEO of collapsed Mt.Gox bitcoin exchange arrested in Japan: reports Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Mark Karpeles, the former head of defunct bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, was arrested on Saturday in connection with the disappearance of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of the virtual…
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