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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Sponsored 5 best wine bars in Bangkok offering rich and quality wine
It’s wine o’clock! Whether you’re all about fruity reds, sweet whites, or funky naturals, Bangkok has many great spots to sip your favourite varieties. But with an array of options to choose from, and the constant rise and fall of...
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King awards rescuers of Mu Pa football team
His Majesty the King has awarded 187 people, including 115 foreigners, with The Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn for the rescue of the Mu Pa football team last July. The announcement in the Royal Gazette reads the government recognises that those people who helped those in peril performed good deeds and deserved to be honored. They will be granted the…
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Mu Pa football team helps recover equipment from Tham Luang Caves
PHOTOS: The Chiang Rai PR Office The 27 year old Coach Aek (left), and other members from the Mu Pa (Wild Boar) football squad, were on hand to help recover equipment from the Tham Luang Caves this week. Chiang Rai’s Tham Luang caves, the scene of the international cave rescue last July, remains closed to all visitors since February 19 to…
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100 houses damaged after storm hits Nakhon Ratchasima districts
by Prasit Tangprasert A tropical storm has left more than 100 houses damaged after it hit Nakhon Ratchasima province, north-east of Bangkok, yesterday. Nakhon Ratchasima’s Governor Wichian Chantanothai says… “We are in the process of surveying damages.” He made the comment as he was handing out relief items to storm victims in Sikhiu district. He said authorities planned to ask soldiers…
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Cabinet waives tolls for 8 days over Songkran break
Thailand’s cabinet has decided to waive tolls on the Bangkok-Pattaya and Bangkok-Bang Pa-in-Bang Phli motorways starting April 10 until midnight on April 18. This takes in the main Songkran break between April 12 – 14 and the annual ‘seven days of danger’. A Cabinet spokesperson say that a large number of people are expected to leave Bangkok for the provinces…
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Specialist clinics for pollution-related symptoms to be set up around the country
The Public Health Ministry says they are now preparing to set up specialised clinics to treat patients suffering from pollution-related symptoms in the northern parts of the country. “At present, we have just one such clinic in the country. So, we have decided to introduce many more,” according to permanent secretary Dr Sukhum Karnchanapimai. He made the pledge in response…
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Female killed, 24 passengers injured in Korat bus crash
PHOTOS: Thai RathAn inter-provincial Khon Kaen-Bangkok bus slammed into the back of a truck on a Nakhon Ratchasima road early this morning. The collision killing the bus hostess and injured 24 passengers. It is the latest in a series of inter-provincial bus crashes over the past week. The Pak Chong police station was alerted at 2.30am to the accident on…
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TAT expects 2.3 million tourists for this year’s Songkran
The Tourism Authority of Thailand is expecting more than 2.3 million local and foreign tourists will join the various Songkran celebrations this year. They say that should generate 20 billion baht+ in revenue for tourism and tourism-related services. TAT’s Governor Yuthasak Supasorn says 300,000 international arrivals are expected to celebrate the five day festival starting April 12, along with two…
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Surin train runs over homeless man
A homeless man has been killed after being hit by a passenger train in Surin’s main city district early today. Surin is north- east of Bangkok on the Cambodian border. A policeman on duty at the Surin station was alerted at 5.48 am that the man, who police report appears to be in his 50s, was killed as the train…
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Plastic waste fire smothers village in acrid smoke
by Prasit Tangprasert Firefighters are struggling to control a major fire at a plastic waste-separating factory in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Noen Sung district which began on Wednesday afternoon and is still not completely completely extinguished. Nakhon Ratchasima is the gateway to the north-east, heading out of Bangkok.Villagers in Ban Don Ree and Ban Som say they are worried about the health…
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Northern haze to go onto ‘national agenda’
by Chularat Saengpassa – PHOTOS: The Nation Flights cancelled, schools closed, locals visiting hospitals in record numbers and the visual proof is overwhelming. Some of Thailand’s most beautiful areas and popular locations are shrouded in a dense smog and an equally hazy list of solutions. Calls for the government to tackle the problem of serious air pollution as a vital part…
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PM concerned over public safety in northern areas because of tropical storm warnings
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says he’s concerned over public safety in risk areas of tropical storms that have been forecast for the northern regions up until next Tuesday. He’s instructed all authorities to promptly take preventive and relief measures against potential damage. Deputy government spokesman Lt. Gen. Werachon Sukondhapatipak says the PM is concerned over the welfare and safety of…
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Two men, 14 buffaloes killed in Phayao truck crash
Two men and 14 water buffaloes have been killed when a truck transporting 20 buffaloes lost control and overturned in Phayao’s Muang district, east of Chiang Mai.Police say the incident happened at 4.48am on the Ban San Khajao-Huay Nam Khao road in Tambon Tha Wang Thong, Phayao. The truck driver, Kitisak Phanphon and his passenger Kamphol Srikham, both 30 years…
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Chiang Mai has world’s worst air quality as fires rage in the north
This morning Chiang Mai had the world’s worst air quality.In the WHOLE world! Thailand’s northern city was ranked the #1 most air-polluted city on earth with a 209 air quality index score on airvisual.com. The air worsened to an AQI of 233 around noon. Meanwhile the Pollution Control Department reports the average 24 hour level of PM2.5 dust particulates had…
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Northern provinces choking on toxic haze and air pollution again
by Kriangkrai Rattana, Panwich Yoodee, Nathawat Laping Northern provinces are again choking from dangerous levels of PM2.5 dust particles, air pollution and smog. The harmful haze is being worsened by smoke from forest fires on the other side of the Myanmar border, with a satellite images showing 1,035 hot spots in the neighbouring country, and another 516 in Thailand (123…
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From Moto GP to Weed Fest, Buriram leads the way
PHOTO: A Pan Ram supporter can’t wait for the ‘cannabis festival’ next month in Buriram province – Khaosod English They pulled off the MotoGP event with flair and great organisation. Now Buriram is bracing for a very different crowd heading for the next big event. Taking advantage of the new liberalisation of laws governing marijuana and cannabis, the north-east festival…
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Chiang Rai motorcyclist flees police leaving behind a bag with 200,000 meth pills
FILE PHOTO 200,000 methamphetamine pills have been seized following a road chase in Chiang Rai’s Thoeng district but, again, the suspect managed to flee. A unit of rangers from the 31st Ranger Taskforce staked out at a bypass road along the Thai-Lao border in Ban Khun Huay Krai village. They say they spotted a speeding motorcycle at 9.30pm last night…
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Where there’s fire, there’s smoke – Lampang mountains
Adding to the air pollution woes of the north, bushfires have been keeping state firefighters and volunteers busy trying to control the outbreaks in the mountains east of Chiang Mai and north of Lampang. The efforts yesterday were to battle a front of multiple fires in Doi Phra Baht forest in Lampang’s Muang district. Fires have been erupting in multiple…
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250,000 northerners seek help for smog-related conditions
Up to 250,000 northerners are seeking medical treatment for four different illnesses that have flared up amid the intense air pollution between February 17 and 23. The Office of Disease Prevention and Control 1 in Chiang Mai has put the figure of affected residents at 248,618, including a high numbers of respiratory complaints among children under four and cardiovascular concerns…
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Tham Luang cave diver John Volanthen awarded medal by Queen Elizabeth
PHOTO: Evening Standard One of the cave divers who helped to rescue the 13 Thai footballers has been awarded the George Medal by Queen Elizabeth II for showing “great courage”. John Volanthen was honoured in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace in London. Diver John Volanthen and his colleague Richard Stanton were the first to find the stranded team, which led to…
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74 year old German arrested for alleged murder of teenage Thai wife in 2010
A 74 year old German, accused of stabbing his much younger wife to death, has been arrested after nine years on the run. Siam Rath reports that Heinz Jurgen Theil has been arrested in Chiang Rai province and is now in custody, charged with murder. Police say Theil is accused of stabbing his 17 year old wife, Janjira Jantapool, in…
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Air quality in 9 northern provinces worse in March-April
Smog problems in nine of Thailand’s northern provinces is forecast to get worse during the next two months due to forest fires. This is despite a complete ban on the open burning of vegetation or trash. Chongklai Worapongsathorn, deputy director-general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation spoke to local fire fighters before they are sent to…
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Lemon-sized hailstones hit 700 homes around Udon Thani
by Seksanti Kalayanawisut “Some of the hailstones were as big as a lemon.” Udon Thani provincial authorities have inspected around 700 homes in Mueang, Phen, Ban Phue, Si That and Kumphawapi districts that were damaged in a freak hailstorm last night. At Tambon Nikhom Songkhro in Mueang district, Udon Thani deputy governor Pramote Thanyapheud led officials to check out damage…
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Rain-making efforts will continue until end of month in Khon Kaen
The Northeastern Royal Rainmaking Operation Centre is extending the royal rainmaking operation period, as part of air pollution reduction efforts, until the end of February. The Director of the Northeastern Royal Rainmaking Operation Centre, Wassana Wongrat, says the Department of Royal Rainmaking and Agricultural Aviation set up a rapid deployment unit to conduct royal rainmaking operations to improve the air…
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19 year old mother slashes three year old son’s throat in Yasothon
WARNING: This story may be shocking to some readers PHOTO: Sanook A 19 year old mother has used a kitchen knife to slash the throat of her three year old son in Yasothon in Thailand’s north-east. Thairath reports that Yasothon Police were notified of the incident at the woman’s lodgings last night at 7 pm. Police and rescue workers arrived…
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Usable water level in Khon Kaen’s main dam dangerously low
One of the north-east’s largest dams is running dry. And the dry season has just begun. About a year ago, Khon Kaen irrigation officials were discharging excess water through Ubol Ratana Dam (pronounced Ubonrat) to increase reservoir capacity to ease flood problems in Thailand’s northeastern province of Khon Kaen. Now, the same officials are urging people in the province to…
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Snakes! 2,000+ snakes seized in Thai-Laos border sting
182 baskets containing 2,730 rat snakes and cobras – worth 1 million baht in total – have been intercepted as they were about to be smuggled out of Thailand and into Laos. Mukdahan Wild Animals Checkpoint officials were joined by personnel from other agencies in confiscating the reptilian cache. Mukdahan is located on the far north-eastern Thai-Laos border Following a tip-off…
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Air pollution: Cabinet asked to allocate 6 billion baht to help buy sugarcane harvesters
Thailand’s Finance Ministry was asking cabinet for approval of a 6 billion baht budget to help the government tackle the northern and north-eastern smog and air-pollution problems. The funds would be distributed by the state-run Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives to help farmer cooperatives and farming communities to buy sugarcane harvesting machines. BAAC manager Mr. Apirom Sookprasert says that…
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Tham Luang caves closing for retrieval of all rescue equipment
Chiang Rai’s Tham Luang caves, the scene of the international cave rescue last July, will close to all visitors from February 19 to allow Thai Navy SEALs to enter and recover equipment left in the cave after the rescue mission. The mission, which captured the attention of media around the world and changed the young men’s lives forever, extracted 13…
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UPDATE: Kalasin shooting. Husband dies after shooting.
A Kalasin private school executive, shot in the head after a Valentine’s Day fight with his wife, has died in hospital as a result of his injuries. The death of 45 year old Ratthasart Panichpongsapak has prompted police to file a murder charge against the man’s 44 year old wife Mayura Panichpongsapak. Mayura was initially charged with attempted murder and…
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Husband shot after wife questions “mystery” phone call
A man in Kalasin was seriously wounded with a gunshot to the head early this morning. Kalisan is in the north-east of Thailand. Daily News reports that the man’s wife says she was ‘furious’ after her husband refused to explain a mystery phone call during a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner. Somdej police arrived at the two storey house after the local Asoke…
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