Northern Thailand News
Stay updated with the latest Northern Thailand news at The Thaiger, your ultimate source for regional information. Keep informed on local events, business developments, and lifestyle stories in popular locations like Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, and Pai.
Our in-depth coverage includes famous monuments such as the White Temple and Doi Suthep. Whether you’re a resident or a visitor, The Thaiger’s Northern Thailand news page is your essential guide to exploring this culturally rich region. Delve into the vibrant community and diverse culture with our expertly curated content, designed to keep you connected and well-informed.
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UPDATE: Divers rescue monk stuck in flooded cave in northern Thailand
Update: The monk was safely rescued from the flooded cave at around 11:30am today. Divers say the monk was fatigued and had a low fever. Original story… Rescue workers are attempting to free a Buddhist monk who has been stuck in a flooded cave in northern Thailand for at least 4 days. The monk, named in a Pattaya News report…
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16 Thais busted running 10 illegal online gambling sites
16 web admins are in custody today after being arrested around the Buriram province today for allegedly operating 10 illegal online gambling websites. The group of Thai nationals are accused of renting a house where they secretly operated a string of websites where people could gamble online including sajoker123.com. Police received a number of complaints in March from neighbourhood residents…
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Northern Thailand summer storms damage almost 3,000 homes
Almost 3,000 homes are damaged after northern Thailand summer storms wreaked havoc in 11 provinces. The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department says Pichit, Phitsanulok, Sukhothai and Nan are among the hardest hit. 1 death was also reported in Nan province when a tree branch fell onto a woman’s car, killing her. 5 others were injured in Nan, Pichit and Surin.…
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Thai man arrested after beating and killing dog for being “mangy”
A 24 year old Thai man has been arrested in northeastern Thailand’s Udon Thani province, for beating and killing a dog because it appeared to be “mangy.” Watchdog Thailand, posted a graphic video clip on Facebook of the man assaulting the dog several times with a knife and pipe in front of its owner’s house. Later that day, the dog’s owner…
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Senior official arrested in north-east Thailand on 2 million baht bribery charges
A senior Thai official in the north-eastern province of Mukdahan has been arrested, along with his assistant, on bribery charges. The provincial chief of the natural resources and environment office, Suradet Akkarach, and Ms Pan Saengviroon, are accused of receiving 2 million baht for facilitating the return of confiscated Siamese Rosewood timber to a merchant from Laos. The timber, housed…
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Monk kicks Thai teenager in face after he refuses to buy him food
A monk in northern Thailand’s Lampang Province has allegedly taken matters into his own hands by kicking a Thai teenager in the face after he refused to travel 5 kilometres to buy food for the monk. According to the 16 year old boy’s mother, her son was visiting a young monk at the local temple and was playing games with…
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Thai man confesses to cutting wife’s throat and dumping her body in a pond
A northeastern Thai man has allegedly confessed to killing his wife by cutting her throat and then dumping her body into a public pond. The man allegedly told a relative what he did, who says she initially didn’t believe him. So she and her other relatives went to check it out, finding the woman’s body partially covered by a sack…
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Investigation launched into boy scout drowning in north-east Thailand
Officials in the north-east province of Kalasin have launched an investigation into the drowning of a school student while partaking in boy scout camp activity. 15 year old Thongnoppakao Sitha died on Tuesday, after a teacher allegedly instructed him to dive into a pond. The activity was part of a mock war, in which the teachers threw rocks at the…
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Officials tracking down foreigners with fake IDs opening up illegal businesses in Chiang Rai
Thai news site TNA is reporting that the Department of Special Investigation is investigating 255 foreigners who are allegedly in possession of fake Thai IDs in the Wiang Kaen district of Chiang Rai. The report also claims that they were operating illegal businesses. One of the suspects is Chinese but carried a Thai ID saying that he was a Thai…
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Hospital allegedly offers a meager 5,000 baht initially to dead patient’s family after neglecting him for hours
A northeastern Thai hospital is allegedly offering a meager 5,000 baht to a patient’s family after he died while waiting to be treated. The Bua Yai Hospital director, Charnchai Boonyusays, says he feels “regret” over the 46 year old’s death after hospital staff allegedly neglected to treat him for hours. Sompong Sammor, was admitted to the hospital with a swollen…
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Chiang Mai hotels slash prices amid ongoing slump in tourism
Hotels in the northern province of Chiang Mai have been forced to cut their rates by up to 90%, in a desperate bid to attract more domestic tourists. According to a Bangkok Post report, La-Iad Bungsrithong, from the northern chapter of the Thai Hotels Association, says with tourists mainly favouring the southern beach destinations this month, hotel operators in the…
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Hospital in northern Thailand closes to visitors after 2 patients test positive for Covid-19
A hospital in the northern province of Tak has had to shut its doors to visitors after 2 patients treated at the facility subsequently tested positive for Covid-19. Nation Thailand reports that Mae Sot Hospital is now closed to visitors until Monday. It’s understood that 19 staff members have had contact with 2 patients who tested positive for the virus.…
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Thai Public Health Ministry starts cannabis cultivation project in Buri Ram
A cannabis cultivation project is being launched by Thailand’s Public Health Ministry in the Isaan province Buri Ram. 6 cannabis plants will be given to each member of the local Non Malai Community Enterprise as a pilot project on commercial cultivation of cannabis, according to the director of the ministry’s cannabis research group, Kitti Losuwannarak. Cannabis flowers and buds will…
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Man arrested in northeast Thailand, accused of producing fake bank notes
Police in the north-eastern province of Si Sa Ket have arrested a 37 old man accused of producing counterfeit currency. Phichaphob Phankham was detained at a property in the Nong Phai district as part of an investigation into a trail of fake 100 baht notes in circulation in Si Sa Ket and neighbouring provinces. Police say his arrest follows the…
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Mae Sot schools close after just 1 hour reopening when 5 students were found infected
All 15 schools in Mae Sot district of Tak province have been ordered to close again just 1 hour after the first day of school reopenings in the province, as 5 children tested positive for Covid-19. Mae Sot City Municipality Office issued an urgent order to close all schools in the district after a vendor tested positive for Covid-19. At…
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North East aviation college faces funding shortfall and allegations of corruption
Almost 200 million baht has “disappeared” from the bank account of the International Aviation College, part of the Nakhon Phanom University. They’ve now approached the Thai government for support to help tackle its liquidity problems. Without an injection of cash the aviation college may have to close down. The IAC has trained thousands of Thailand’s commercial pilots in one of the…
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Air pollution reaches “unhealthy” levels in Thailand’s north and northeast
18 provinces in Thailand’s north and northeast are being hit by a wave of smoke and air pollution as the burning season kicks in for the country’s agricultural sector. The next 2 months are the peak of the burning off season for agricultural waste as farmers prepare their land for the next crops of corn, rice and sugar and use…
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Ring road collapses leaving at least 10 injured in Nakhon Ratchasima
An elevated section of a ring road in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima has collapsed, leaving at least 10 workers injured. The incident occurred on Sura Narai Road in tambon Khok Sung in Muang district at around 2pm today. The injured included 1 Thai and the others Cambodian and Burmese nationals. Most had cuts on their bodies while some…
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Son lights himself on fire after asking mom for lottery money
A woman’s 32 year old son, in northern Thailand’s Phrae Province, is in critical condition from lighting himself on fire after falsely believing that his mother had won the lottery and would not share her winnings with him. Police at Denchai Police Station were alerted of a man who burned himself in Ban Mai Jua, Denchai District and notified a…
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800+ people found in close contact with an infected food vendor in Nakhon Phanom
Local disease control workers are continuing to track and trace Covid-19 infections at several villages in the That Phanom district of Nakhon Phanom, north eastern Thailand. The areas were locked down after a 51 year old local food vendor tested positive for Covid-19 and more than 800 people were reported to have had contact with the infected person. According to…
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Police raid Isaan farm, arrest 2 people allegedly involved in illegal horse meat trade
A 44 year old Thai woman was arrested for allegedly trafficking and selling horse meat illegally after police in the Isaan province Khon Kaen raided a farm and found 44 horses that – they say – were about to be slaughtered. Reports say the farm owner was also arrested, but did not give any additional information. The horse meat was…
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A wild elephant kills 80 year old camper in Khao Yai
A wild elephant killed an 80 year old man camping in Khao Yai National Park early this morning. Park officials believe the bull elephant was in musth, which is when the elephant has rise in reproductive hormones and becomes aggressive. 80 year old Prayot Jitbun was sleeping in his tent when the elephant attacked. Other nearby campers alerted park officials…
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Wildfires hit Mae Hong Son’s Pai district
Several wildfires have broken out in Mae Hong Son’s Pai district in Northern Thailand. The governor says he believes that several blazes happening in the area are a result of the dry season arriving earlier than usual. Using the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer system, the local forest fire control centre detected 155 so-called “heat points” in the Pai district from…
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Thai brothers charged with trafficking Thai women to Brunei for prostitution
3 people, including 2 brothers, have been arrested on charges of sex trafficking, accused of sending women to Brunei for prostitution purposes. Brothers Somchai Sukson, 55 years of age, and 49 year old Rachen Suksorn, were detained under an arrest warrant issued by the Criminal Court, charged with a sex trafficking operation involving over 3 people. Following the arrest of…
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Schools and lottery market in Loei close after family tests positive for Covid-19
Schools and a lottery market in the Northeastern province Loei were ordered to close after a family tested positive for Covid-19. The province is marked as a “yellow zone” under high surveillance with a total of 6 reported Covid-19 infections. Schools will be temporarily closed from today until 24 January, while the lottery market will be closed from today onwards.…
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500 kilograms of methamphetamine found hidden in phone booth call boxes
Police found 500 kilograms of methamphetamine and other illegal drugs hidden in 154 phone booth call boxes at a home in the Isaan province Khon Kaen. Officers from the Narcotics Suppression Bureau raided the home yesterday and arrested 6 people who are suspected of being members of a major drug trafficking operation in the Northeast. Along with half a tonne…
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3 people summonsed after allegedly attacking world-renowned Buri Ram dancer
3 young men are being summonsed in connection with the assault of Nopparat Boonrat, a world-renowned dancer and Buri Ram native. Buri Ram is a north eastern province. The men, aged 20-23, whose names have been withheld at this stage, are accused of severely injuring Nopparat last Wednesday night at a restaurant in Lahan Sai district in this northeastern province.…
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Thailand non-profit offers Zoom calls with Santa and his elephant friends
Santa Claus isn’t at the North Pole this year. He’s in Northern Thailand. And he’s not with elves. He’s mixing in with some of Thailand’s beloved elephants. Don’t believe it? Give him a Zoom call. Zoom calls on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with “Santa & his Elves” are offered by the Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort and the…
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Festival-goers claim event shut down over pro-democracy content, not Covid-19
Social media users are accusing officials of shutting down a music festival in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima due to its pro-democracy content. The claims follow a statement from governor Wichian Chantaranothai, who says the festival was terminated early due to Covid-19 risks. He accuses organisers of failing to implement adequate preventative measures, saying there was no limit on…
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Returnees from Myanmar account for 9 of 17 new Covid infections today
Today, Thailand has reported 17 new cases of the novel coronavirus found in people entering Thailand from other countries, with 9 infected returnees coming from Myanmar through the Mae Sai district in northern Chiang Rai. All 9 were women who had worked at nightspots in Tachilek, the Burmese border town, featuring the now infamous 1G1-7 Hotel, which was the site…
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