Northern Thailand News
Northern Thailand news, Chiang Mai news, business, tourism, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and travel insights from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pai, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Northern Thailand news source.
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Power bank suspected after fire rips through home in Buri Ram
Fire tore through a two-storey home in Hin Khon subdistrict, Lam Plai Mat district, Buri Ram, yesterday, March 8, before firefighters could bring the blaze under control, with the suspected cause later linked to a power bank explosion. Fire engines from the local area were dispatched after the report of a house fire in the subdistrict. By the time firefighters…
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Octopus ride malfunction in Nakhon Ratchasima injures two girls
An octopus ride malfunction at the annual Thao Suranari Victory Celebration in Khon Buri district, Nakhon Ratchasima, left two 14 year old girls injured on March 4, leading local officials to stop ride operations while inspections and repairs are carried out. The incident happened at about 8pm, at the fairground area in front of the Khon Buri District Office, where…
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Man arrested over public masturbation near Udon Thani museum
Police in Udon Thani responded yesterday, March 4, after reports that a man had allegedly exposed himself and masturbated in public on Pho Si Road outside the Udon Thani City Museum. After receiving the report, officers from Mueang Udon Thani Police Station went to the scene to inspect the complaint. Upon arrival, they found a man exposing himself and publicly…
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Drug suspect’s revenge plan cut short, shot dead by Nan police
Police in Nan fatally shot a drug suspect during a gun exchange on a rural road in Tha Wang Pha district at about 5.30pm on Wednesday, February 25, after he threatened to kill a police officer who previously arrested him. The incident was reported on the Na Noon–Sop Khun Rural Highway No. 4022. The deceased was identified as 36 year…
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Surin armoury fire triggers explosions before crews bring flames under control
A fire broke out at an arsenal in Surin province last night, February 24, triggering repeated explosions and a major emergency response. One officer was reported injured, with the cause still unknown. At about 7:30pm, the fire started at Border Patrol Police Subdivision 21 in Chaniang subdistrict, Mueang Surin district, followed by a series of explosions. The first blast was…
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Man held in Udon Thani after roof climb, claims aliens targeted him
An early-morning rooftop disturbance in Udon Thani yesterday, February 23, ended with police taking a man into custody after he said he was searching for signals from aliens and tried to remove a satellite dish he believed was disturbing him. At about 5.30am, police from the Na Kha police substation received a report of a man acting erratically on the roof…
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Udon Thani teacher accused of sexually assaulting four schoolboys
A group of families from Udon Thani sought help from the Pavena Foundation for Children and Women today, February 23, after alleging that four schoolboys were sexually assaulted by a male teacher at the teacher’s residence. One family said the incident occurred on February 11, when the four boys (pseudonyms A, B, C, and D) went to watch a mor…
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Khao Kho veteran found homeless after online post draws attention
A Facebook user revealed, on February 21, that a former paramilitary ranger who fought at Khao Kho is now living on the streets in Nakhon Ratchasima, after returning from years of combat without a pension or a veterans’ card. In his post, Korakot Ketkaew wrote that the man previously served as an assault trooper with Ranger Company 920 and spent…
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Lost wallet leads to 25,000 baht ATM withdrawals in Udon Thani
A food vendor in Udon Thani filed a complaint today, February 19, after she said her wallet was lost at a market and later used to withdraw 25,000 baht from her bank account. The woman, identified only as 35 year old Nang, attended Mueang Udon Thani Police Station with her husband, 42 year old Chalermphon. She told investigators the wallet…
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Nurse seeks help over Marine ex-husband’s 600,000 baht van debt
On February 17, a nurse in Udon Thani asked a local news page operator to help reach her former husband, a Royal Thai Marine in Sattahip, Chon Buri, after she said a hire-purchase van debt of more than 600,000 baht was being sought from her as the guarantor. Phanumart Jitwasinkul, owner of the “เฮียเปี๊ยกช่วยด้วย” Facebook page, said he received the…
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Phichit cemetery screens films for ancestors on Chinese New Year
An outdoor film screening was held at a cemetery in Phichit at 8pm yesterday, February 17, in a tradition they say is intended to honour ancestors and bring merit to those who have passed away. The event took place at the cemetery next to Wat Mun Lek, in Khlong Kachen, Mueang district, which is overseen by the Phichit Samakkhi Foundation.…
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Monitor lizard invasion in Korat sees 200 to 300 reptiles gather
Safety concerns are rising in Nakhon Ratchasima after hordes of water monitor lizards turned up along the city moat and wandered into the nearby market, prompting residents to call for agencies to manage the animals. Today, February 17, reporters visited the moat area behind Municipal Market 5, known by locals as Talat Pratu Phi, within Nakhon Ratchasima municipality, after reports…
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Earthquake hits Chiang Rai, no damage or injuries reported
An earthquake was recorded in Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district at 9.37am today, February 16, with residents in some areas reporting brief shaking, while district officials said there were no reports of serious damage or injuries. The tremor occurred at a depth of about three kilometres and was recorded at coordinates 20.304 degrees north and 99.957 degrees east. The time…
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Illegal tour operators in Loei arrested at Ban Khok Phai checkpoint
Tourism Police and officials arrested two men at Ban Khok Phai border checkpoint in Loei province today, February 16, over allegations they operated an unlicensed tour business selling trips for Thai tourists to Laos. The arrests were made at the Ban Khok Phai border checkpoint in Pak Chom subdistrict, Pak Chom district, Loei province. Police identified the suspects as two…
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Over 200 students call for election recount in Maha Sarakham
Over 200 university students gathered last night, February 9, at the Election Commission’s District 1 coordination centre in Maha Sarakham province to demand a recount of the recent election results. The protest, which stemmed from concerns over vote tally discrepancies, began around 9pm at the polling centre located within Rajabhat Mahasarakham University. Demonstrators, mainly local students and youth leaders from…
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Worker killed in Buriram after concrete wall collapses mid-renovation
A construction worker died at the site of a commercial building renovation in Buriram’s Mueang district yesterday, February 9, after part of a concrete wall collapsed and crushed him during demolition work. Police from Mueang Buriram Police Station said they were alerted to the incident at a two-and-a-half-storey commercial building in the Isan subdistrict. Officers responded to the scene with…
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Two men caught hunting protected wildlife in Salawin National Park
Two men were arrested on February 4 in Mae Sariang district, Mae Hong Son province, after they were caught illegally hunting protected wildlife inside Salawin National Park during a routine patrol aimed at preventing wildfires. The incident took place around 7.30pm when park rangers from the conservation and protection division of Salawin National Park were conducting an active patrol in…
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Wild elephants alarm locals and campers in Nakhon Nayok and Tak
Officials in Nakhon Nayok and Tak provinces were called into action today, February 5, after wild elephants emerged from nearby forests and startled both residents and tourists in two separate incidents. In Nakhon Nayok, residents of Moo 8 in Nong Saeng subdistrict, Pak Phli district, alerted wildlife officials after a large male elephant known locally as “Phlai Thongkham”, roughly translated…
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Japanese man clashes with vendor over birdcage in Udon Thani
A Japanese man caused a scene at Udon Thani’s city pillar shrine yesterday afternoon, February 3, after a misunderstanding with a flower vendor escalated during a merit-making ritual involving the release of birds. Police were called to the shrine on Athipbodi Road at around 4pm after reports of an argument between the man, later identified as 37 year old Yamaguchi,…
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Wild elephant dies during relocation operation in Khon Kaen
A wild elephant that previously killed two locals in a Khon Kaen community died early this morning, February 4, during a government relocation effort involving over 200 officials. The elephant, a 15 to 20 year old male known as “Phlai Sidor Hoo Phap”, roughly translated to “folded ear”, had been roaming farmlands and national park areas near Muang Kao Pattana…
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Man hears voices after drug use, stabs teacher at Chiang Mai school
A knife-wielding man who had allegedly taken drugs entered a border patrol police school in Chiang Mai yesterday, February 2, and later stabbed a teacher outside the school. The incident occurred at around noon at a Border Patrol Police School in Ban Mae Kho, Chiang Mai. Teachers inside the school recorded a video showing a young man wearing a black…
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Massive elephant herd emerges near Thap Lan National Park
A herd of at least 40 wild elephants was spotted near the forest border of Thap Lan National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima, prompting park officials and local villagers to step up overnight patrols to protect farmland and communities. Last night, February 2, dozens of locals from Prong Sanuan village in Lam Phiak subdistrict, Khon Buri district, gathered to help authorities…
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Udon Thani monk loses control, challenges officials at forest temple
A monk in Udon Thani caused a commotion last night, February 2, at a forest temple, allegedly shouting at local officials, damaging property, and challenging them to a fight, prompting residents to call the police. The village headman of Ban Nong Ta Klai, Moo 7 in Sroi Phrao subdistrict, alerted Subdistrict Headman Sirisak Khaisaengchan about a disturbance involving a monk…
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Chiang Rai man arrested for stalking TikTok star and issuing death threats
Police arrested a Thai man in Chiang Rai province for stalking a female TikTok star and issuing death threats against her and her family. The arrest took place on Saturday, January 31, following a complaint filed by the victim and her parents. The victim, a 19 year old TikToker identified only as A, along with her parents, reported the case…
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Chiang Rai family exhumes body after ‘dead’ son walks back home
A Thai man believed to be dead returned to his home in Chiang Rai province on January 24, leaving his family stunned and forcing them to exhume a body they had already buried, only to discover it was his friend, not him. Rescuers from the Thap Yang Sataranakusol Foundation were asked to assist a family in the Mae Fah Luang…
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Two dead after Royal Thai Air Force plane crash in Chiang Mai
Two pilots were killed after a Royal Thai Air Force training aircraft crashed into a forested area in Chiang Mai’s Chom Thong district this morning, January 29, with authorities recovering the bodies only after bringing the wreckage fire under control. The crash occurred at around 10.50am on January 29 in a remote area near Ban Huai Muang Fang Sai in…
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Family says Buriram woman fled abuse, not child abandonment
A woman accused by her partner of abandoning their two year old child in Buriram after receiving a 5,000 baht aid payment has responded through her family, who deny the allegations and say she left to escape domestic abuse. Yesterday, January 28, a 49 year old van driver from Nong Waeng in Buriram’s Lahan Sai district alleged via Facebook that…
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Buriram man claims wife left toddler and vanished with aid money
A man from Buriram’s Lahan Sai district claimed on Sunday, January 28, that his wife disappeared with a 5,000 baht aid payment intended for families affected by border conflict, leaving him alone to care for their two year old child. The incident was brought to public attention through a Facebook post, in which the man shared a photo with his…
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Man seriously injured after crashing through Udon Thani hotel window
A man was seriously injured after smashing through a glass window and falling from the 11th floor of a hotel in Udon Thani early yesterday morning, January 27, with police saying the cause remains unclear. Police from Mueang Udon Thani station were alerted at about 6.30am by staff at a popular hotel in the city centre, who reported that a…
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Chiang Rai inmate escapes during rehabilitation programme
A male inmate escaped from the Doi Hang temporary prison facility in Chiang Rai last night, January 26, prompting a coordinated search by police, prison officials, and local authorities. The escapee, identified as 37 year old Danuphat, is an ethnic Lahu man originally from Mae Ai district in Chiang Mai. He had recently been transferred from Fang Prison in Chiang…
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