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The Thaiger key takeaways The most common medical emergencies for expats in Thailand include motorcycle accidents, tropical diseases, and food or water-borne illnesses. Air pollution and heat-related conditions like heatstroke also pose serious seasonal health risks, especially in northern and...
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China official manufacturing PMI falls to 50.0 in July, below forecasts
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China official manufacturing PMI falls to 50.0 in July, below forecasts Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Growth in China’s vast manufacturing sector stalled in July, missing market expectations for slight growth, an official survey showed on today. The official Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) stood at 50…
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Drive at your own risk
PHUKET: Confronted with a never-ending array of road-construction projects from multi-million-baht underpasses to reparation of enormous potholes, drivers travelling on Phuket’s roads – some of the most dangerous in the world – do so at their own risk, confirmed officials this week. The issue of road construction safety measures was thrown into sharp focus after a Phuket lawyer flipped his…
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Opinion: Packed prison
PHUKET: Credit is owed to the government for finally coming through with funding to build a much-needed and long overdue new prison for Phuket. It is well known that the existing Phuket Provincial Prison is dangerously overcrowded. With a maximum capacity of just 800, the 115-year-old facility currently holds more than 3,000 inmates – a recipe for disaster if ever…
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Region 8 Police headquarters to open in Phuket Monday
PHUKET: Despite some protest, the Region 8 Police Headquarters will be partially operational in Phuket on Monday. “There are several systems that need to be put in place, until they are up and running in Phuket, we will also be operating out of our Surat Thani office,” said Region 8 Police Commander Decha Budnampeth. The move of the regional police…
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12-year-old girl killed in hit-and-run
PHUKET: An 18-wheeled truck hit and dragged a 12-year-old girl to death after she fell off the back of her mother’s motorbike this morning. Vassana Kaewkumpa, 40, screamed for the truck driver to stop as it continued down the southbound lane of Thepkrasattri Road just past the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint, explained police. “Ms Vassana found the body of her…
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WRAPUP 5: Plane debris on remote island points to breakthrough in MH370 mystery
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community WRAPUP 5-Plane debris on remote island points to breakthrough in MH370 mystery Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Plane debris washed up on the French island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean is almost certainly part of a Boeing 777, a Malaysian official and aviation experts said,…
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Boy drowns off Koh Sireh
PHUKET: A 13-year-old boy drowned off Koh Sireh yesterday after his friends were unable to save him and did not report the incident to adults or authorities for nearly three and a half hours. Payu Pairiron, a student at Baan Koh Sireh School, drowned at about 1.30pm after becoming too tired to swim back to the floating walkway. “We started…
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Three more ‘Game of Thrones’ seasons likely, HBO says
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Three more ‘Game of Thrones’ seasons likely, HBO says Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: HBO’s most-watched series, the medieval fantasy drama “Game of Thrones,” will likely continue through three more seasons, a network executive said on Thursday, as he defended the show’s gritty violence. The sixth…
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Hunting club that suspended U.S. hunter donates to top lawmakers
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hunting club that suspended U.S. hunter donates to top lawmakers Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: A hunting club that suspended a Minnesota dentist who killed Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe has given money to the campaigns of numerous U.S. politicians, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell…
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New taxi queues announced for Phuket
PHUKET: More than a year after the National Council for Peace and Order made a sweeping effort to remove illegal taxi stands from Phuket, the provincial government has announced a plan to establish legal taxi ranks at ten locations throughout the island. “The move to establish the taxi stops at some schools, hospitals and police stations on the island goes…
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Cheap tuk-tuk plan rolls forward
PHUKET: Yellow-roofed tuk-tuks costing a flat fee of 30 baht are on the road to Phuket Town in order to lessen congestion and provide affordable public transport in the area, explained Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong. “There will be 87 tuk-tuks registered under the 30-baht flat-fee program. They will only be able to operate in Phuket Town toward Bang Khu intersection…
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Police bust bar for hookahs, selling to minors
PHUKET: Raids on nightlife venues in Phuket continued last night, with police seizing 40 hookahs used for smoking shisha and catching eight underage drinkers. “We received a tip-off about a specific venue serving alcohol to minors, as well as providing shisha, a flavored tobacco product that is illegal to import into Thailand,” explained Aroon Sing-in of the Phuket Provincial Office,…
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Cabinet nod for upscaling Phuket port
PHUKET: Phuket’s goal of becoming the regional maritime hub has shifted into high gear after the Cabinet agreed to expand the island’s deep sea port to accommodate larger cruise ships. The National News Bureau of Thailand reported yesterday that the Cabinet has given the green light to improve Phuket’s Deep Sea Port, and is considering the construction of a similar…
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Lithium find in exploding star could help solve astronomy puzzle
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Lithium find in exploding star could help solve astronomy puzzle Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Astronomers have discovered lithium in a type of stellar explosion known as a nova for the first time, a find that helps clear up a longstanding mystery in astrophysics about the…
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BISP student takes 3rd at golf Teen World Championship
PHUKET: British International School Phuket (BISP) student Mark Luangnitikul came in third place at the golf Teen World Championship 2015 held on Pinehurst course in North Carolina, in the United States of America. More than 500 players from 34 countries competed on courses that have crowned some of golf’s greatest champions. “We are very proud of Mark for taking third…
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FACTBOX: U.S. Export-Import Bank moves closer to liquidation
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community FACTBOX-U.S. Export-Import Bank moves closer to liquidation Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Hopes for a quick revival of the shuttered Export-Import Bank were dashed on Tuesday as the U.S. Congress moved toward a short-term extension of highway funding without a provision to renew the trade bank’s…
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China stocks fall for fourth day but declines ease, Hong Kong shares up
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China stocks fall for fourth day but declines ease, Hong Kong shares up Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: China stocks fell for a fourth day on Wednesday but losses were more subdued than earlier in the week after Beijing reiterated its determination to stabilise its wild…
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Raid nets six rigged metered-taxi drivers
PHUKET: Six metered-taxi drivers were caught and charged for using tampered meters in a swoop initiated by the Phuket Land Transport Office on Friday. “We mounted the raid after many complaints were filed by both tourists and locals about high fares being charged for metered taxis in Phuket,” said Phuket Land Transport Office [PLTO] Chief Teerayout Prasertphol. The six drivers…
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Copyright law to ban internet plagiarism
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Copyright law to ban Internet plagiarism The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Social network scribes should be wary of a new intellectual property law due to take effect on August 4 that outlaws the copying of other people’s work and using it for commercial purposes, deputy…
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Provincial officers raid Phuket nightlife venues
PHUKET: A raid by provincial officers on the island’s popular nightlife spots found one Phuket Town bar to be operating as a nightclub without permission last night. Parkpoom Intarasuwan, Phuket provincial chief administrative officer (Palad), led a team of military personnel, police, district officers, excise officers, and other relevant officials to check 10 nightlife venues in the Phuket Town area,…
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A Decade Ago: West coast marina marked for Phuket
PHUKET: With a 2-billion-baht investment, there would be 150 condo units, 45 villas, and a marina with a berth for 30 boats – not a terribly exciting point for a page one story… so was news slow coming into July 23, 2005? No. The twist, and there was a twist, to the project that eventually represented the potential for the…
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Phuket honors the Crown Prince’s 63rd birthday
PHUKET: Governor Nisit Jansomwong led public officials in an alms-offering ceremony with 63 monks this morning in honor of HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn’s 63rd birthday. The blessing ceremony, which took place at Sanam Chai in Phuket Town, was the first of a few events to take place on the Crown Prince’s birthday today. Governor Nisit was joined by Phuket…
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Opinion: Sterilizing Phuket strays
John Dalley, originally from Leeds in the United Kingdom, is the president of the Soi Dog Foundation. John worked as a chemical plant manager for many years before retiring in 2002. In September 2003, he became involved with the Soi Foundation when it first started in Phuket. Here, he talks about the soi dog problem in Phuket, and Thailand, the…
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Opinion: Gambling in Thailand: Out with the old, in with the new
PHUKET: There has been a lot in the news lately about gambling. One recent Gazette article discussed the history that Thailand has had with this recreational activity and noted that it originally came here with Chinese immigrants. As late 19th century western leaders found gambling to be crude and thought it synonymous with crime, King Rama V led the government…
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Myanmar worker dies in road smash
PHUKET: A Myanmar worker died after falling off the rear of a pick-up truck when it was slammed by a sports utility vehicle (SUV) near Baan Jee Teng on Thepkrasattri Road yesterday morning. “At the scene we found a Myanmar worker named Soe Thue, 25, critically injured on the ground,” Lt Col Sanit Nukong of the Thalang Police told the…
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Seriously injured Chinese tourists remain in hospital after bus crash
PHUKET: Four Chinese tourists who were seriously injured when their tour bus flipped on Phuket’s bypass road yesterday are still in hospital recovering from their injuries. The accident occurred at about noon, opposite the Premium Outlet on the southbound side of the road (story here). The bus was transporting 16 Chinese tourists, along with a tour guide, a guide assistant…
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Phuket to observe two-day alcohol ban
PHUKET: The sale of alcohol will be prohibited nationwide on Thursday and Friday in honor of Buddhist holiday Asarnha Bucha and the beginning of Buddhist Lent. The ban will begin at midnight on Thursday and will last until midnight on Saturday, Capt Prudsatorn Yoothon of the Phuket Tourist Police told Phuket Gazette this morning. “We have been doing our rounds…
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Chinese tour bus flips on bypass road
PHUKET: A tour bus carrying Chinese tourists flipped over and crashed onto its side on the bypass road, opposite Premium Outlet Phuket, at about noon today. The bus, which was carrying 17 tourists and two tour guides, was heading northbound when the accident occurred. The crash trapped one Chinese tour guide and one tourist inside the bus, but rescue workers…
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SIM card registration deadline swiftly approaching
PHUKET: Prepaid SIM card users have six days left to register their cards or else be blocked from accessing data services and placing calls. “All users who have yet to register their SIM cards must do so before July 31. If you do not, you will be blocked from making any calls, other than those to emergency numbers,” says Wanna…
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New prison construction to begin next month
PHUKET: Construction of the long-awaited Phuket Provincial Prison is set to break ground next month, the prison chief confirmed to the Phuket Gazette today. The new prison will relieve some of the pressure on the current facility, which has a capacity of 800 prisoners but currently detains more than 3,000. “The new facility will be a top-of-the-line design and have…
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