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The best luxury pool villas in Phuket, Koh Samui, and Bali to book this summer
Phuket, Koh Samui, and Bali share several things in common: vivid blue oceans, beautiful beaches, and lush tropical landscapes. Alongside these natural beauties, they also house luxury pool villas for rent that provide the perfect setting for a dream vacation....
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Phuket gears up for Christmas and New Year festivities
Phuket Police have put on a show of force to assure locals, tourists and expats that they’re set up and ready for Christmas and New Year public safety. The Phuket Provincial Police Chief of Operations, Col Kittisak Prasertpon says, “We are ready to look after residents and tourists safety during festival.” He made the remarks yesterday at the Phuket City Police…
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Imam shot in Christmas Day shooting outside Pattani mosque
An Imam has been shot dead in front of a Pattani mosque today. Police report that the shooting happened in front of Ban Tha Rab Mosque in Muang district and identified the victim as 45 year old Sama-ae Jehma. Pol Captain Sirisak Wangkulam said Sama-ae led prayers and delivered sermons this morning. He then went to leave the mosque when someone…
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Fire damaged an embroidery shop in Phuket Town, put radio station off air
A fire has damaged an embroidery shop in Phuket Town yesterday afternoon. The damage bill is estimated about many hundred thousand baht. The Thaiger 102.75 FM has its transmitter and tower on the same building. The radio station was off air until 11am this morning as the power had been cut as a precaution. Firefighters were notified of the fire…
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Toll rises, officials warn of potential for more tsunamis
Dateline: Tuesday, December 25, 9am (Local Time) A threat looms of more potentially deadly tsunamis in between the island’s of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia, this according to the country’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency. 5,600 people are now reported as officially displaced. That’s on top of 373 killed, 1,459 injured and 128 missing. The toll continues to rise as searches…
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Political parties urged to push for lifting of media gag
PHOTO: Thai Journalists Association The Thai Journalists Association (TJA) has issued a statement urging all political parties to join its campaign for the revocation of four executive orders issued by the NCPO that have imposed restrictions on press freedom and freedom of expression. Even though NCPO have already rescinded some of the executive orders to pave the way for political…
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“Prayut unfit to be the PM” – ex Cabinet colleague
The Thai PM and the recently formed pro-junta political party are on the defensive as the chains are off other parties criticising them in the lead up to next year’s election. A Government Spokesman, Buddhipong Punnakanta, has been wheeled out to speak to the media over the allegations made by a former Cabinet member citing the Junta chief’s indecisiveness, aggressiveness…
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With a ‘whoosh’ his village was gone – Tsunami Update
Asep Sunaria says he heard a loud “whoosh” just moments before a wall of water pushed him off his motorbike. The surging waters swallowed up his house and the village he called home until the Saturday night calamity. new.yahoo.com reports that rescuers hunted for survivors of the volcano-triggered tsunami that killed at least 281 people along Indonesia’s coast. At the…
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Defence volunteers robbed of their guns in Pattani
by Pares Lohasan Police a hunting for six males suspected to have seized guns and bullets from 10 village defence volunteers assigned to guard a local school in Pattani province’s Sai Buri district last night. The suspects made off with four shotguns and 20 bullets. Sai Buri police superintendent Pol Colonel Montri Khongwatmai led forensic police to inspect Ban Seu…
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PR Model claims ex boyfriend kidnaps father for third time
PHOTOS: Pailin Yokklin (FB) Pailin Yokklin, a 23 year old model from Kanchanaburi, is filing a police report against her ex boyfriend Sukhum Manaim as he has allegedly kidnapped her father three times now. Sukhum will be charged with ‘confinement’. He has previously tried to stop Pailin from working at her PR job due to jealousy. Pailin claims the man…
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Bangkok blanketed by smog for at least another day
Bangkok and inner city suburbs continue to be covered in smog for the fifth straight day. The Pollution Control Department (PCD) reported that the amount of particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5) in 19 roadside areas exceeded the safety limit of 50 micrograms per cubic metre, while nine other places had levels that could negatively impact health. The BMA…
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Elephants help search for missing Burmese boy
PHOTO: Thairath The latest update in our recent coverage of the missing boy in Suphan Buri is that four elephants have joined the search party, which now includes, police helicopters, drones, sniffer dogs, and frogmen. Police, military personnel, local administration officials and private rescue workers make up the 300 strong search party. The missing 2 year old Burmese boy is…
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No tsunami warning system for Sunda Strait
by The Jakarta Post – Asia News Network The Indonesian government says, following a “volcanic tsunami” in the Sunda Strait on Saturday evening, the country did not have any early warning system for tsunamis not caused by earthquakes, since 2012 when vandalism rendered the system inoperative. Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman, says was no warning…
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Warnings of more seismic activity around Sunda Strait
A young boy has been pulled from rubble as experts warn that another tsunami could strike Indonesia at any time. The warning comes two days after 280 people were killed and more than 1,000 people injured by a wave triggered after a volcanic eruption. The death toll is expected to rise today as searchers reach more remote areas. Richard Teeuw…
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Chinese parents present four life insurance policies to Kamala police
“They believed that Zhang didn’t have money of his own.” Chinese parents have presented four life insurance policies, valued at almost 100 million baht, to Kamala police after their daughter was murdered in Phuket in October. A Chinese man, who allegedly murdered his wife, ‘Xiaojie’ (not her real name), remains in custody at the Phuket Provincial Court. The Kamala Police…
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Last Full Moon Party for 2018 attracts 30,000
Authorities claim over 30,000 tourists flocked to Hat Rin on Koh Phangan for the Saturday night (well, Sunday morning really), monthly full moon party, the final party for 2018. The party kicked off at 1am on Sunday morning and wound up at 7am. Most of the local hotels were full with highly inflated prices for the monthly gathering whilst many…
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Water cannons brought out to add humidity as authorities struggle with BKK smog
Bangkokians have at least another day to inhale unhealthy levels of air pollution after Sunday, the fourth consecutive day the city has been shrouded in smog. On Sunday morning the measure of particulate matter in Tambon Pak Nam in Muang Samut Prakan was 93 micrograms per cubic metres, approaching what the WHO describes as ‘unhealthy’. The Nation reported that Samut…
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Thailand now in world’s top 100 most expensive places to live for expats
Singapore and Thailand are among the fastest risers in a survey of most expensive locations in the world for expats. Asian Correspondent is reporting that multinational human resource consultants ECA International, in its recent Cost of Living survey, revealed that Thailand rose 32 places this year to enter the top 100 most expensive locations in the world. Lee Quane, the…
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AOT gives green light to new Suvarnabhumi terminal
Following a few hiccups, the board of the AOT has now given the green light for the construction of the second passenger terminal at Suvarnabhumi international Airport. In past months there have been demands from leading architects and engineers for the project to be scrapped. AOT managing director Nitinai Sirimatthakarn says that after the board’s approval of the project, the company…
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UPDATE: Indonesian tsunami: Toll reaches 168, more expected – VIDEO
• Hundreds of buildings have been destroyed by the waves • Current death toll stands at 168 people, more expected • “I just prayed and ran as far as I could” A tsunami following a volcanic eruption killed at least 168 people when it slammed without warning into popular beaches around Indonesia’s Sunda Strait on Saturday night, cutting a swathe…
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UPDATE: Indonesian Sunda Strait tsunami
“168 dead and ‘many missing’ after Anak Krakatoa erupts” Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the spokesperson for the Indonesian disaster agency has confirmed the Saturday evening tsunami has left at least 168 dead, 745 injured with 30 missing. But he says he expects the death toll to rise since not all the areas which were hit have been reached yet. The worst…
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Road toll drops but still 60 deaths a day
The good news is that Thailand is no longer in the top couple of countries for road death tolls in the world. The bad news is the toll is still horrendous with an average of 60 deaths every day. Thailand has seen fewer road casualties this year and is now listed as the world’s ninth-most dangerous nation when road accidents…
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OPINION – The devil is in the detail. Phuket tourism
“Last year Phuket International Airport hosted a record number of passenger arrivals both on overseas and domestic flights exceeding 8.4 million.” – Bill Barnett, c9hotelworks.com An article appeared this week providing a misleading, dare I say ‘fake’, impression about the current tourist situation in Phuket. Given the highly selective and well-timed photos you would think that Phuket has been deserted…
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Happy ending for Malaysian tourist at Betong immigration
What appeared as a bad end to the holiday of a Malaysian tourist has ended up with a much happier ending. Immigration police have returned a wallet with cash and credit cards to the Malaysian tourist on yesterday after he dropped it in front of an immigration counter on Friday night. The tourist, Low Han Ben, reclaimed his purse at…
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UPDATE: Indonesian tsunami – toll rises to 62
PHOTO: EPA-EFE • Hundreds of buildings were destroyed by the wave • At least 584 people injured and twenty reported missing across three regions The latest in the rising roll from Indonesia’s tsunami that hit the Sunda Strait last night. The toll in deaths, injuries and missing is expected to rise throughout the next few days. A tsunami following a…
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Bangkokians advised to stay inside until smog clears
• Bangkokians warned that cheap face masks are useless • Weather Bureau says the current smog should clear in a few days PHOTO: Framepool The hazardous ultra-fine dust that has been sweeping through 20 districts of Bangkok will last for a few days, City Hall’s Environment Department warned on Friday. The Bangkok Post say that the warning corresponded with dust levels measured…
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20 Indonesian volcanoes showing activity
• 20 volcanoes with above normal levels of activity • The PVMBG is coordinating with tourist area managers The Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Centre (PVMBG) notes that there are 20 volcanoes with above normal levels of activity across the country. “One of them has the status of ‘awas’ [danger], two are on ‘siaga’ [watch] and the remaining 17 mountains are on ‘waspada’…
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TSUNAMI: “There were two waves” – Norwegian volcano photographer
PHOTO: The Jakarta Post The toll remains at 20 dead and 165 injured as the morning provides light for searches after last night’s tsunami that hit the coastline around the Sunda Strait in Indonesia. The Strait separates the islands of Java and Sumatra. Authorities say the tsunami was caused by an undersea landslide after the remnants of the Krakatoa volcano…
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More than 300 involved in search for missing two year old
• 300 officers and volunteers involved in search for missing two year old • Police haven’t ruled our kidnapping as a motive in the disappearance PHOTO: vaaju.com More than 300 people have been involved in a search for a missing two year old as they scoured a 200 rai plantation in Suphan Buri, north west of Bangkok. The boy has…
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Phuket’s most romantic dinner at Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa
A Unique Experience – Amy Bensema Looking for a memorable dining experience while in Phuket? Today, we had the chance to dine at Nakalay Beachfront Dining by Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa. The dining experience offers up the chance to enjoy a unique romantic beachfront dinner in an idyllic setting. Perfect for couples seeking a romantic evening by the…
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Orient Express luxury brand announces first hotel in Mahankhon
The King Power Mahanakhon Building in Bangkok, Thailand’s tallest, will have the world’s first Orient Express Hotel. At 78 storeys high, the Mahanakhon Building is currently the tallest building in Bangkok, pushing the slightly shorter Baiyoke Tower into second place. Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, CEO of King Power Group, said they spent over 100 million baht on the new hotel. The new…
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