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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Bee swarm invades Krabi school
PHUKET: A swarm of wild bees invaded several classrooms at Baan Tabpol School in Krabi’s Khao Phanom District on Friday, stinging 23 students and a teacher.Three of the children – aged 9, 10 and 12 – were taken to hospital for treatment for multiple bees stings, said School Director Bussakorn Hohkul.“Doctors had to inject antihistamine in one of the boys…
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New Phuket Weekend Market opens at Boat Lagoon
PHUKET: The Boat Lagoon Weekend Market opened yesterday to a welcome reception by local vendors and market goers. With pitch rentals as low as 100 baht, vender Jantima Tanpitakpong saw the opportunity to set up a stall of her own. “We buy handmade items, add value to them and sell them on. We don’t have our own shop yet, so…
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Phuket Opinion: Message in a bottle
PHUKET: It would be difficult to find a country anywhere in the world that has a wider gap than Thailand in terms of its alcohol control laws and their actual enforcement – and no other province suffers as much as Phuket because of it. The Phuket Gazette knows that alcohol use is often associated with fatal and debilitating accidents, violence,…
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Phuket Airport factored into plans for regional aviation hub
PHUKET: A high-level board delegation representing Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT), including six directors of major airports in Thailand, met yesterday at Phuket International Airport to discuss strategies to place Thailand in the top 10 of Asia’s aviation hubs. In line with AOT’s aspirations for Thailand to become a regional aviation hub, the current expansion planned project to…
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Anti-corruption probe uncovers Phuket land deals’ dirty history
PHUKET: A probe into the issuance of land title deeds in Phuket has uncovered widespread encroachment into protected forest areas and identified government officials as playing the key role in facilitating the theft of state property. Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission secretary-general Pol Col Dusadee Arayawuth, in Phuket as part of the investigation, yesterday told the press his office had identified…
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Phuket Poll: Which inbound market has highest growth potential?
PHUKET: By almost all accounts, 2011 was a banner year for Phuket tourism. With 2012 well underway, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and local tourism industry leaders continue to seek out promising new sources of tourists. Phuket tourism representatives tirelessly attend tourism trade shows at home and abroad to present the latest tourism products to the international market, and,…
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Phuket’s Kajonkiet stages “open house’ school
PHUKET: Kajonkiet International School celebrated its official opening on Thursday, with scores of proud parents joining the festivities. Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosutthirak officiated the opening ceremony, which marked the launch of the school’s three-day “Kajonkiet One Step Ahead” open house. The “open house” allows parents of prospective students to inspect school facilities and learn more about the opportunities it…
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Phuket sports: Laguna pillage the Village
PHUKET: Following Laguna CC’s recent loss, the Island Furniture League season was thrown wide open with the in-form Village Cricket Team holding all the cards going into the last round of matches. The fourteenth match of this season saw an undefeated Village team up against Laguna at the ACG on Sunday with the latter still licking their wounds from their…
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Phuket Bus Terminal 2 to open ‘after Songkran’
PHUKET: The Administrative Court in Nakhon Sri Thammarat has thrown out a complaint against work on the new turning in front of Phuket Bus Terminal 2, which the Land Transport Office now hopes to have in operation shortly after the upcoming Songkran holiday. Phuket Land Transport Office [PLTO] chief Teerayut Prasertpol told the Phuket Gazette he received a telephone call…
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Weird World News: Fox mugs man, kitesurfer stabs shark and nerds design robo-Cheetah
PHUKET: This has been a week of man taking on wild. From the cobbled and cold streets of England to the warm waters of the Red Sea and at a state-of-the art Massachusetts robotics lab, snarling and snapping animals coming face-to-face with man made headlines this week. Man ‘mugged’ by fox A BRITSH man claims he was mugged by a…
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Praying lizard crashes Buddhist ceremony
PHUKET: A NINE-INCH gecko is talk of the town in a village in the Northern province of Phayao this week – not for its size, which isn’t exactly unusual, but for its piety. On February 27, one of the village families invited a monk to their home to hold a Buddhist ceremony of renewal. The ceremony was interrupted halfway through…
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Phuket Heroines honored at “Battle of Thalang’ re-enactment
PHUKET: Those wanting to catch the re-enactment of the Battle of Thalang, from which the Phuket heroines “Jan” and “Mook” gained their fame, should clear their schedule from March 13 to 15. The official program of events for the annual celebrations will start on Sunday, but the re-enactment of the historic battle at Thalang Victory Memorial Field doesn’t begin until…
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QSI Phuket Fun Run all set for go tomorrow
PHUKET: Athletes across the island and families who just like enjoying walks are getting ready for the Quality Schools International (QSI) Phuket 10th Annual Fun Run on Saturday, March 10, starting at 9am and jogging on to 1pm. The traditional 1km, 6km, 12km individual and team runs are ready for the off, while food, drink and games will also be…
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Finn tourist killed in crash on Phuket’s Big Buddha Hill
PHUKET: The Finnish Embassy today named 32-year-old Tuomas Johannes Mustonen as the Finnish tourist who died in a motorbike accident on Big Buddha Hill on Wednesday. Mr Mustonen’s body was found by police patrolling the area of the Big Buddha on the evening of Makha Bucha Day. “While on patrol, officers came across a Yamaha Fino motorbike. Nearby, they discovered…
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Royal Thai Consul honors Krabi efforts after Chinese tourist drowns
PHUKET: The action by authorities following the drowning of a Chinese tourist in Krabi’s Than Bok Khorani National Park has drawn praise from the Royal Thai Consulate in Chengdu City, China.Chengdu Consul-General Narumit Hinshiranan on Monday visited Krabi Governor Prasit Osathanon in person to express gratitude on behalf of the people of Sichuan province for the assistance given to relatives…
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Body lotion bust uncovers Phuket motorbike, drug gang
PHUKET: Two shoplifters apprehended at a Phuket 7-Eleven store were later found to be involved in the theft of seven motorbikes and were dealers of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine), police announced yesterday. Staff at the 7-Eleven store near Phuket International Airport informed police that a man and woman were caught on the store’s CCTV system stealing items from the shop.…
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Phuket Gazette: Syria – First high-ranking official joins uprising
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Syria’s deputy oil minister defects from Assad PHUKET (News Wires): Syrian Deputy Oil Minister Abdu Hussameddin yesterday announced his defection from the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, becoming the first high-ranking civilian official to join the uprising which began a year ago. Hussameddin, 58, appeared in…
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Phuket Gazette: British Royal Navy submariner charged with ‘leaking’ secrets
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community ‘Leaky submarine’?: British Royal Navy crewman charged with communicating secrets PHUKET (News Wires): A British Royal Navy submariner was arrested in southwestern England earlier this week and is being accused of leaking classified information, police said on Thursday. He has been charged with breaching the Official…
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Phuket gears up for PIMEX 2012
PHUKET: The Phuket International Boat Show (PIMEX), to be held March 29 to April 1 at the award-winning Royal Phuket Marina, is set to showcase top global boat brands. The leading consumer boat show in Asia, PIMEX has the largest in-water boat display. More than 50 boats representing the leading boat brands from around the world, will be on display.…
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Phuket tourist electrocution brings probe, safety blitz
PHUKET: The electrocution of 45-year-old Russian tourist Fedor Samsonov at a high-end Phuket resort last night has prompted an investigation by police and a full-scale safety inspection of the resort’s electrical system. “This is very tragic and we feel very much for the family,” said Lars Ydmark of resort management company Tri-Asia, which manages the Dewa Karon Beach Resort. The…
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Phuket Crime: Dokset DNA results show human skull hit with heavy object
PHUKET: Preliminary results from forensics tests conducted on remains found at the home of Norwegian Stein Dokset have found that they are those of a human female. They have yet to be confirmed as those of Rungnapa Suktong, however, the Phuket Gazette has been told. The remains were found in the locked basement bathroom at Mr Dokset’s luxury villa in…
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Phuket Gazette: Four Troops killed in Thai bomb attack; Quick probe into criminal cases crucial
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Four troops killed, another injured in Narathiwat bomb attack PHUKET (The Nation): The unit was returning home after providing security to Buddhist devotees and monks at a temple in the evening of Maka Puja Day when the explosion occurred at 10:40pm yesterday. The explosion occurred on…
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Wet Phuket: blame La Niña
PHUKET: Unseasonably heavy rains along the Andaman coast are the result of the La Niña effect, a forecaster at the Southern Meteorological Center at Phuket Airport has confirmed. The forecaster, asking that his name not be used, told the Phuket Gazette that this was the second year running that La Niña had brought heavy rainfall during what are typically Phuket’s…
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Phuket workers have new hospital option under social security
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) Hospital is accepting applications from workers who want the new hospital to be their primary healthcare provider under the Social Security insurance scheme. The OrBorJor hospital, located on the east side of Phuket Town, has been actively courting new patients since its opening in May last year. Darawan Jinda, who heads the hospital’s…
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Phuket Gazette: Huge solar storm to hit Earth
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Huge solar storm to hit Earth – could disrupt power grids, satellite navigation systems and plane routes PHUKET: The BBC has reported a strong solar storm is expected to hit Earth shortly, and experts warn it could disrupt power grids, satellite navigation systems and plane routes.…
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Phuket Police to start patrols with the “All Blacks’
PHUKET: Phuket Police will soon be patrolling the streets of Phuket in brand-new all black Mazda2 cars. The 10 new patrol cars were bought with 5.9 million baht provided by Royal Thai Police headquarters in Bangkok, said Phuket City Police administrator Charturong Laddayam. “The new patrol vehicles are expected to improve our international image and help our relations with tourists,”…
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Phuket Gazette: Seventh person executed in the US this year
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Texas executes man for killing estranged wife, her boyfriend PHUKET (News Wires): A Texas man was executed yesterday for murdering his estranged wife and her new boyfriend in the Houston area in September 2001, officials said. He is the seventh person to be executed in the…
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Phuket Gazette: Expert says Western lifestyle spawns ‘global public health disaster’
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community UN expert says globalization of Western lifestyle spawns ‘global public health disaster’ PHUKET (News Wires): A United Nations independent expert on Tuesday said an international public health disaster persists as undernourishment and overweight problems have spawned from the globalization of western lifestyles. UN Special Rapporteur on…
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Phuket Gazette: Bomb kills six British servicemen
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Roadside bomb kills 6 British troops in southern Afghanistan PHUKET (News Wires): Six British service members were killed on Tuesday when insurgents detonated a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan, Britain’s Ministry of Defense confirmed yesterday. It is the worst day for British troops in Afghanistan since…
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Phuket Convention Center project up in the air – again
PHUKET: Efforts to build a world-class convention and exhibition center in Phuket remain mired in red tape, and a recent visit to the proposed project site by two Government advisers raises little hope that the work will begin any time soon – if ever. The latest twist in the decades-old saga came with a visit to the proposed project site…
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