News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
-
Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
-
Man charged with strangling mother-in-law
CHERNG TALAY: A man has confessed to strangling his mother-in-law after she chastised him for being lazy.Neighbors of Srila Kanchorn, 52, a native of Phayao, found her body lying face-up in a coconut plantation in Baan Pasak about 9 am yesterday. She was dressed in a yellow shirt and light blue sports pants.Cherng Talay Police Investigation Inspector Lt Col Jetsada…
-
Welcome Gate to officially open
TAH CHAT CHAI: More than three years after it was initially conceived, the Phuket Welcome Gate will have its grand opening ceremony on the auspicious date of September 9. The gate, proposed and championed by Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) President Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutra, will welcome tourists onto the island with a history of the province and a rest stop area.The…
-
Call for more organ donors
PHUKET: Senior figures of the Phuket chapter of the Thai Red Cross Society and Patong Hospital on August 3 called for more people to sign up as organ donors. The announcement was made at the “Organ and Blood Donations Devote Life to Mother and Nations” blood donation drive at Jungceylon, where in five hours 94 people donated blood that will…
-
Drug crimes still high
PHUKET: There were 46 ya bah (methamphetamine) arrests in July with a total of 1,119 pills seized. Drug-related crimes accounted for 107 arrests over the month, almost double the number recorded in July 2006, according to figures released by Phuket Provincial Police.Twenty-five people were arrested for the use of cannabis, with 106 kilograms confiscated. There were 18 arrests for inhalant…
-
TDA teaches sea gypsies to dive
RAWAI: Twenty villagers from Rawai’s sea gypsy community are taking part in a five-day dive course that kicked off with a ceremony Thursday morning presided over by Minister of Tourism and Sports Dr Suwit Yodmanee.The training, being held jointly by the Thai Diving Association (TDA) and the Phuket Office of Sports and Recreation Development, is intended to give the sea…
-
Tourism Minister sets ICEC decision deadline
PHUKET CITY: Tourism and Sports Minister Dr Suwit Yodmanee yesterday announced that August 24 will be the deadline for Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit to decide on a location for the long-awaited International Convention and Exhibition Center (ICEC). Dr Suwit set the deadline at a meeting at the Phuket Merlin Hotel – one of several meetings being held by the minister…
-
Taiwanese businessman shot
WICHIT: The Taiwanese owner of a fish export business is fighting for his life at Phuket International Hospital after being shot by unknown assailants on Chao Fa West Rd yesterday morning.Phuket City Police Duty Inspector Pol Lt Sathid Noorid identified the victim as 48-year-old Hsueh Hsu Sheng, a resident of Baan Suan Thai housing estate off Chao Fa West Rd.Mr…
-
Fisheries Office extends po trap amnesty
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Fisheries Office (PPFO) has given fishermen until August 28 to apply to continue using po traps, shallow-water fish traps made by stringing a net between stakes stuck in the seabed, although the traps have been outlawed since 1996. The announcement follows the passing of the July 29 deadline set by the PPFO for all total ban…
-
“Nong Red’ slowly recovering
AO MAKHAM: The spinner dolphin that washed ashore at Karon Beach on July 1 is recovering slowly after a full month at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC), where she was taken for treatment of a severe respiratory infection and other ailments.PMBC Biologist Kongkiat Kittiwattanawong told the Gazette this afternoon that the dolphin, nicknamed Nong Red, has faced numerous health…
-
Dog shelter begging for attention
THALANG: Phuket’s uncared-for canines are last in line for handouts as funding dries up and food supplies dwindle at the Mid Road Dog Shelter in Baan Kanoon, Thalang.The shelter – managed by the Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO) and where registered animal welfare charity Soi Dog Foundation (SDF) have operated from since January – is currently home to more than…
-
Experts fear Jatukham fever may endanger dugongs
PHUKET (Gazette/Kom Chad Luek): Conservation experts fear that fierce competition in the promotion of Jatukham Ramathep amulets may have sparked renewed interesting in the hunting of dugong, whose teardrops are believed by some to have magical powers. Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) biologist Kanjana Adulyankosol told the Gazette that fears stemmed from promotional material used by one Jatukham seller coupled…
-
Phuket businesses scoop top awards
PHUKET: Phuket’s hospitality industry received a major boost last week with the announcement that three prestigious awards had been won by local companies.Mom Tri’s Boathouse & Villa Royale in Kata was awarded Wine Spectator magazine’s Best of Award of Excellence for the second consecutive year, maintaining its status as the only establishment in Thailand to receive the coveted award.Wine Spectator‘s…
-
Tsunami false alarm in Krabi
KRABI (Nation): Seven disaster-warning towers in Krabi unexpectedly sounded an alarm simultaneously on Saturday evening, prompting frightened residents and tourists to run for higher ground in fear of a tsunami.Krabi disaster-prevention and mitigation officer Thalerngsak Phuwayanapong said he had been informed that the warning towers at Koh Phi Phi pier, Saladan, Koh Lanta, Koh Jam, Haad Yao, Laem Sak Bay…
-
Chuan opens Halal Food Hilal Town festival
THALANG: The third annual Halal Food Hilal Town festival began Friday night, with former Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai heading the opening ceremony.Before declaring the event open, K. Chuan, Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Democrat Party, walked through the festival accompanied by Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) President Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutra and other guests.The event is…
-
Bars asked for “no-alcohol’ weekend
PHUKET: Bars and retail outlets are being asked to refrain from selling alcohol on Sunday and Monday to honor Asarnha Bucha Day and Buddhist Lent Day, respectively.Natanit Phromthawee, an administrative officer of Kathu District Office, told the Gazette that her office had issued a formal request to that effect.“We can’t force anyone not to sell alcohol over the two holidays…
-
Phuket ready for referendum
SAPHAN HIN: More than 1,000 people gathered at Saphan Hin this morning to promote Phuket’s participation in the forthcoming national referendum on the newly-drafted constitution, which will take place August 19.Phuket officials were joined by members of the public and representatives from each Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) wearing yellow T-shirts and carrying banners and flags in support of the referendum.…
-
Call for Phuket tourism businesses to go “green’
PHUKET: A Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) seminar held at The Metropole hotel on Tuesday brought together academics and members of the tourism sector to discuss global warming effects in Phuket, where an estimated 344 million tonnes of greenhouse gases are produced every year, said Nisanat Sathirakul, deputy secretary general at the Office of Natural Resources and Environment Policy and…
-
Local crew heads for Platu world championships
PHUKET: Local sailor Australian Scott Duncanson, better known in Phuket as owner and skipper of Somtam Express, which won Phuket Raceweek regatta last month, has compiled a crew to defend the title of National Platu champion at the national finals in Pattaya on August 13 and 14.The crew are using the national Platu finals as a springboard for training for…
-
Registered population keeps rising
PHUKET: The island’s official population climbed by 2,146 to 323,660 from June 21 to July 20, but the figure still under-represents the number of Thais calling Phuket home – not including the number of expats and low-wage laborers from abroad who have migrated here in recent years.The rise is slightly lower than during the previous reporting period, when a gain…
-
Tsunami evacuation drill “hit and miss’
PHUKET: Andaman Wave 007, the first regional testing of the 79 National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) tsunami warning towers along the Andaman Coast, was conducted at 9:45 this morning, with mixed results in Phuket.While impressive mock evacuation and emergency response drills were being staged for the media on the beach at the foot of Soi Bangla in Patong, residents in…
-
Tsunami evacuation drills tomorrow
PHUKET: All residents of coastal areas should be reminded that the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) tomorrow morning will conduct the first full-scale regional testing of its 79 tsunami warning sirens along the Andaman Coast, including 19 towers in Phuket. Evacuation drills in tsunami-risk areas will be conducted by local administrative bodies working together with district offices and members of…
-
New bus station planned near Supercheap
RASSADA: The Phuket Provincial Transport Office (PPTO) has agreed to buy 10 rai of land near Supercheap on Thepkrasattri Rd to build a new inter-provincial bus station.The existing bus station, on Phang Nga Rd in Phuket City, will be used for only local buses, vans and songtaew, most of which now leave from Ranong Rd.PPTO chief Chatchawarn Ngarmtup told the Gazette…
-
Somtam Express wins Phuket Raceweek
AO CHALONG: After four days of racing in and around Chalong Bay, Scott Duncanson’s Somtam Express has won the IRC 1 class in this year’s Phuket Raceweek regatta.Shifting winds played havoc with the start of the final race in the regatta yesterday and the fleet waited four hours for it to swing around to allow the race to start.Once underway,…
-
Somtam Express extends lead in Phuket Raceweek
AO CHALONG: Scott Duncanson’s Somtam Express today secured yet another win to stretch their lead to five points in the IRC 1 class of the fourth annual Phuket Raceweek regatta being raced in and around Chalong Bay and the surrounding islands. Peter Ahern’s Yo! 2 finished three minutes behind Somtam Express on corrected time to hold onto second place overall…
-
Somtam Express takes Raceweek lead
AO CHALONG: Scott Duncanson’s Somtam Express moved into first place in the IRC 1 class of the Phuket Raceweek regatta after finishing first and second in the two races for the class today. Peter Ahern’s Yo! 2 was relegated to second place overall in the class after finishing third and fourth in today’s races. Jim Poulsen’s Vino holds steady in…
-
Extortion racket taken down in “sting’
PATONG: Kathu Police on Wednesday night arrested four men for allegedly attempting to extort 100,000 baht from the Thai-Nepalese owner of a tailor shop.The four suspects were presented to the media at a press conference at Kathu Police Station at 3 pm yesterday. They were identified as 40-year-old Burmese national Chom “Johnnie Lek” Bunyawej, the ringleader, and his three accomplices:…
-
Yo! 2 leads Phuket Raceweek
AO CHALONG: Peter Ahern and his crew on Yo! 2 are in first place overall in the IRC 1 class in the fourth annual Phuket Raceweek regatta, being held in and around Chalong Bay until Sunday. Phuket-built Somtam Express drew first blood, winning Race 1 after a midday start in light conditions that teased crews with breezes of two to…
-
Pistol penisectomy
NAKHON SRI THAMMARAT (Gazette, Kom Chad Luek): A Buddhist ordination ceremony in Phraphrom District took a turn for the worse on July 6 after an outbreak of violence led to a firearms incident which left one unlucky follower of the Middle Way with a serious pain in his crotch. The evening began jovially at the ceremony held in Na Phru…
-
It’s no yolk! Egg theft ring cracked
NAKHON RATCHASIMA: Accounts of police breaking up rings of drug dealers, armed robbers and teenage motorcycle thieves are a fairly common occurrence in Thailand these days. Officers from Chalermprakiat District Police had a more unusual task at hand on June 20, however, when they managed to crack a ring of egg thieves who had been terrorizing chicken coops across Khorat.…
-
Rawai resident drowns at Nai Harn
NAI HARN: John Chatteris, founder of Atsumi Healing Center in Rawai, drowned while swimming at Nai Harn Beach late yesterday afternoon.Ian Lenton, who works at the center, told the Gazette that Mr Chatteris, 61, went to the beach with his family at about 5 pm.Although red flags were posted at the beach, indicating that the surf was unsafe for swimming,…
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.