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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Sponsored Digital nomading in Chiang Mai? What US$1,000 a month really gets you
Chiang Mai has become a popular destination for digital nomads due to its low living costs, rich culture, and active remote work community. The city offers affordable housing, tasty food, reliable internet, and many co-working spaces, making it a great...
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1 person dead, 4 remain missing after boat capsize on reservoir near Laos border
One person has drowned whilst four others remain missing, presumed dead, after their boat struck an obstacle, probably a tree stump, that was submerged under the surface. The boat capsized on Sirikit Reservoir in Thailand’s northern province of Uttradit, near the Laos border. Rescue workers have been able to retrieve five other passengers and the boat’s captain from the reservoir,…
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North eastern villagers protest fishy smells from seafood factory wastewater
Villagers in the northern Khon Kaen province are complaining of a seafood “factory” that has been dumping foul smelling wastewater into public drains. Hundreds gathered in the Mueang Kao subdistrict’s Sirirat Village to plea for help from local agencies. The smelly black water spills out from the drains, stinking up homes, and has even travelled into locals fields. Thousands of villagers…
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Tour bus crash in northern Thailand injures 8
Eight people are injured, one seriously, after a tour bus crashed in northern Thailand’s northern Nan Province yesterday morning. The bus skidded into a mountain slope at a curve in the main city district. Thai media report that the bus was found lying on its side when police and rescue workers arrived at the scene. The 32 year old driver, Yutthapong…
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6 million baht lottery winner goes on drug-fuelled rampage, tries to burn down house
A man who won a six million baht lottery prize in June is now in police custody in Sisaket, northeastern Thailand. His mother reported to police that “he’s become a berserk drug addict”. Police told Thai media that 56 year old Kom Poka called police to arrest her 32 year old son Chainarong in Sisaket after he went on a…
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Buri Ram gold and jewellery thief arrested whilst trying to flee the province
A man was arrested in his car yesterday in the northeastern province of Buri Ram after allegedly stealing gold valued around two million baht from a shop at a local department store over two weeks ago, on the night of December 28. 22 year old Prawit Chaikheenee was arrested whilst sitting in his on the Buri Ram-Nang Rong Road while…
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Poor air quality in Bangkok and northern Thailand today
Poor air quality and persistent haze is plaguing much of Thailand’s north today, with the worst pollution in Lampang province, just south of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Meanwhile, a bit further south, Bangkok residents had more of the fine-dust particles, aka. 2.5 microns, in eight of the city’s districts yesterday. The Pollution Control Department in the north has reported unsafe…
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Mother and daughter busted for selling meth pills in Thailand’s north east
A mother and daughter are currently in custody after their arrest for selling ‘yaba’, or methamphetamine pills in Kalasin, north east Thailand. The 54 year old woman, named only as Sang, and her 25 year old daughter Tarnthip, were arrested at their home in the northeastern city of Kalasin with 13 yaba pills and the 280 baht cash used in…
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“Run Against Dictatorship” events blocked in two Thai provinces
This Sunday’s planned “Run Against Dictatorship” anti-government protest event in Bangkok has spawned copycat campaigns across Thailand, which have now been prohibited in at least two provinces. Organisers of the Bangkok event have tried to clarify that they are not involved with the planning for any runs planned elsewhere in the country. The campaign’s Thai name, “Wing Lai Lung” (วิ่งไล่ลุง) literally…
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New road projects around Thailand in 2020
PHOTO: Nation Thailand The Thai Department of Highways plans to spend 124 billion baht during the next 12 months with five of the projects already budgeted and ready for the tender process. Contracts are expected to be signed in May for those projects. There will be a 16 kilometre eastern bypass around Nong Khai, just south of Vientiane and the…
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Over 400 arrested for drink-driving in Kalasin province during holiday campaign
PHOTO: 200 drink-drivers ended up in court after being arrested on NY Eve – INN News More than 400 people have been arrested for drink-driving in the northeastern province of Kalasin alone over the holiday period. This, an appalling result during the first four of Thailand’s “7 Dangerous Days” safety campaign over the Christmas/New Year holidays. The drivers were caught…
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Freak hailstorm causes blackouts, damages homes in Chiang Rai
PHOTOS: Thai PBS World Heavy rains and hail have damaged homes and caused widespread blackouts in the northern province of Chiang Rai. Strong winds knocked down trees in several districts, blocking traffic. Officials say the sudden storm, which struck Mae Sai, Chiang Saen and Mae Chan districts, lasted about 30 minutes and damaged several houses. They say the relief operation was hindered…
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2 million baht of gold stolen in Buri Ram, police suspect inside job
A thief has made off with 2 million baht in gold necklaces, rings and bracelets from a gold shop at a Buri Ram department store. Police examined CCTV footage showing a man wearing a cap entering the shop in the early morning on Saturday before ransacking several areas. Officers took fingerprints at various locations including the gold shop. Thai media report…
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Two drug smugglers killed by soldiers in Chiang Rai, drugs seized
Two drug runners have been shot and killed by soldiers in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai. They were shipping 600 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine (ice) which was seized in the operation. The men were killed during a gunfight between a group of drug runners and border police after the Pha The Muang military task force detected 15-20 men…
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Woman injured by ‘exploding’ manhole cover in northern Thailand
PHOTO: sanook.com A manhole cover has exploded in the northern province of Lampang, seriously injuring a 22 year old delivery woman, who was knocked unconscious. Thai Residents reports that the incident took place in Lampang city yesterday afternoon as the woman, “Nun”, was going to collect a customer’s order. CCTV shows the manhole cover exploding as the delivery woman drove by…
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Burmese migrants are chasing months of back-pay from Chiang Rai plantation
FILE PHOTO 45 legally registered Burmese migrant workers in Chiang Rai are seeking assistance from the local labour office to conduct an inquiry into unpaid salaries over a couple of months, some up to six months. The workers have been engaged at a banana plantation in the Phaya Mengrai district. The workers rallied at the provincial offices on Monday, some claiming they…
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Worst drought in 40 years means tough times for Thais
The lowest rainfall ever recorded in Thailand was in 1979. Now, Thailand’s Meteorological Department is forecasting an even worse drought and dry season saying it will last until May 2020. Forty-three provinces in the north, northeast, and central regions will be the most affected. Some are already in the grip of critical water shortages with farmers being asked to swap their…
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4 dead, 47 injured in Loei bus crash
PHOTOS: มะเขือขื่นข่าวเชียงคาน Just two days after 14 Singaporean tourists were injured in a tour van crash, 4 people have been killed and at least 47 people injured, some seriously, after a tour bus from Buriram lost control last night. “Brake failure” has been given as the reason for the crash. The bus, which was carrying mainly elderly Buriram residents, ended…
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Paroled Thai serial killer “Jack the Ripper” spotted by two students before arrest
PHOTO: Alleged killer of his sixth victim on Sunday, Somkid Pumpuang (front centre), during his arrest in 2005 for five other murders Police arrested the paroled serial killer Somkid Phumphuang on a train in northeastern Thailand yesterday. He was wanted as a suspect in the killing of a woman in Khon Kaen province on Sunday. Police discovered Somkid, asleep next to…
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15 year old Buriram girl forced to sell drugs for her boyfriend
PHOTOS: Sanook.com Police in Buriram north east Thailand, have rescued a 15 year old girl and arrested her 33 year old boyfriend after he threatened her with a gun to deliver drugs for his gang. The girl, known only as “Aum,” called her father, who told police his daughter was being kept locked in a rented room in Nang Rong…
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Fugitive ‘serial killer’ Somkid arrested on Bangkok-bound train
Police have arrested the convicted killer Somkid Poompuang, who has been nick-named in Thai media as “Jack the Ripper” and “Kid the Ripper” this morning. He was on the run since a murder in Khon Kaen last Sunday. 55 year old Somkid was on a train at a railway station in the Pak Chong district of Nakhon Ratchasima province in north…
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Thai Immigration Chief softens stance on tourist and expat visas
#shutdoorafterhorsehasbolted The head of Thai Immigration has told his department not to be too strict on tourists and scare them away from returning to Thailand. According to PattayaOne, the Chief has asked for his staff to “show some humanity”. Lt-Gen Sompong – also known as Big Oud, after his predecessor was nicknamed Big Joke – was doing a presentation during a…
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Driver sees red, smashes window of car parked in disabled zone
PHOTO: Thai PBS World A driver who’s had enough of able-bodied people parking in disabled parking bays has vented his frustration by smashing the car window of one such offender. The incident is understood to have taken place in the parking lot of a Big C in Chiang Rai, with the man posting about it on social media, saying he…
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Stray bullet hits minivan, kills female passenger
PHOTO: sanook.com A 27 year old woman has died after a stray bullet hit the minivan in which she was travelling and penetrated the right-hand side of her body. The incident appears to be an accident. Thai Residents reports that the shooting took place around 1.30am yesterday morning. It’s understood the woman was travelling from Buriram in Thailand’s north east, to Bangkok…
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British diver’s lawyer claims jury blundered in Elon Musk defamation trial
PHOTO: Getty Images “That is a serious problem. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a bullying billionaire or a penniless troll, that behaviour is destructive.” – Vernon Unsworth’s lawyer, Mark Stephens Elon Musk could face a retrial in his defamation case after a lawyer for the British cave diver Vernon Unsworth, based in Chiang Rai, claimed the jury blundered. The Tesla founder…
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Kind-hearted coffin seller turns a blind eye to repeated theft
PHOTO: MCOT “A coffin maker, who supplies Jamnong, says the store is left open at night, often with no staff in attendance.” The kind-hearted owner of a coffin shop in Buriram, north-east Thailand, has admitted he regularly has to deal with coffins being stolen from his premises, but can’t bring himself to file police reports against the perpetrators, as he…
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Jealous boyfriend arrested over triple murder in Chiang Rai – VIDEO
SCREENSHOT: YouTube Chiang Rai police have arrested a man for the murder of his girlfriend and her parents, all found shot dead. 27 year old Nawaratorn “Nuan” Kunasangkam is currently in custody over the murders. The victims were Udom Kimsi, his wife Nutcha Kimsi, and their 26 year old daughter Saowarot Kimsi, all from Chiang Rai. Their bodies were found by…
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Couple realise they’d won the lottery when driving back to hometown in the north-east
PHOTO: Sanook A husband and wife were driving back to Yasothon Province in the north-east from Bangkok when they checked Sunday’s draw of the twice-monthly Thai Government lottery. They’d won the first prize! 6 million baht. The couple work as vendors at the Sampeng Market in ChinaTown, Bangkok. The winning numbers were 453522. 23 years old Methinee and her 34…
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Government donates tents to Korat traders in wake of devastating market fire
PHOTO: Prasit Tangprasert Following a fire on Sunday night that ripped through the Mae Kim Heng market in Nakorn Ratchasima (Korat), north-eastern Thailand, the provincial government has provided tents for over 100 affected vendors. The Nation reports that the blaze started in a flower shop near the front of the market, where a large volume of foam blocks, used in floral…
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Tourists head to the spectacular Red Lotus Lake in Udon Thani
PHOTO: The Nation Local and foreign tourists are flocking to the Nong Han Lake, aka Red Lotus Lake, in Udon Thani to catch the spectacular display of natural bright pink lotuses blossoming. The phenomenon occurs each year during December and January. The lake, located in Kumphawapee district, Udon Thani, is famous for its annual natural carpets of water lilies floating…
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Former Chiang Rai Governor says “The Cave” wrong in some places
Chiang Rai’s former governor Narongsak Osottanakorn, says he’s disappointed in Tom Waller’s movie “The Cave”. He said the film does not depict all the details of the real-life drama and is “wrong in some places”. Narongsak went to a special premiere of Tom Waller’s movie “The Cave”, along with members of the team involved in the rescue, on Monday night. The…
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