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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.

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    The 5 most common travel emergencies in Thailand and how to be prepared

    Thailand is a popular destination known for its dynamic culture, stunning beaches, and bustling cities however, travellers can face unexpected travel emergencies that include medical issues, road accidents, petty theft, and natural disasters. To ensure a safe and enjoyable trip,...

  • Ranger killed in Pattani roadside bomb ambush

    Ranger killed in Pattani roadside bomb ambush

    One ranger has been killed after southern insurgents detonated a roadside homemade bomb to ambush his patrol unit in Pattani’s Panare district this morning. Police say the attack happened at 10.20am on the main road in Ban Rawor village in Tambon Krawa. 34 year old Ranger Damrong Thong-u was killed by the blast. Police say the explosion occurred when Damrong…

  • Thailand’s first Rabies death for the year

    Thailand’s first Rabies death for the year

    PHOTOS: PR Office The first death from rabies this year was in Surin, north of Thailand. The Public Relation Department today reported that Dr. Suwannachai Wattanaying- Charoenchai, Director-General of the Department of Disease Control says, “We were notified that a 32 year old man in Surin has died from rabies.” “Before he died he was being treated for fever and was…

  • Phuket’s recent rains allow PWA to restore mains pressure around the island

    Phuket’s recent rains allow PWA to restore mains pressure around the island

    The Chief of Phuket’s Provincial Waterworks Authority says that water pressure to most areas across the island has been restored (but The Thaiger is still getting reports from residents in Kamala and parts of Kathu about low flow or still no water mains pressure). Phuket Town recorded nearly 80mm of rainfall on Saturday night when heavy rains, the first for…

  • Aussie lifeguards and Navy conduct local lifesaver program

    Aussie lifeguards and Navy conduct local lifesaver program

    PHOTO: The HMAS Canberra and HMAS Newcastle sit off Patong Bay as Navy officers conduct the beach activities yesterday. Surf Life Saving Australia and the Australian Navy have joined with Phuket’s lifeguards for some marine safety training at Patong Beach. About 100 young people and teenagers from around the island joined in the training as part of the project ‘Australia…

  • Boeing 737 Max ‘sensor’ issues flagged 216 times to the US FAA

    Boeing 737 Max ‘sensor’ issues flagged 216 times to the US FAA

    A small sensor, sitting just outside the cockpit of the Boeing 737 Max jets, was previously flagged in more than 200 incident reports submitted to the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). But Boeing admits it did not flight-test the scenario which may have caused the crashes of two of its brand new jets – one in Ethiopia and one in…

  • Thai business sector drops 2019 export projections by 1%

    Thai business sector drops 2019 export projections by 1%

    The Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade are revising down Thailand’s 2019 export growth projections from 3.1% to 2.1%. They say several unfavorable external factors are contributing to the revised outlook. Thai PBS reports that Mr. Sanan Aung-ubonkul, vice president of TCC and BoT, says that, in order to maintain the 3.1% growth projection, the value of monthly…

  • Thanathorn says other MPs now in the firing line, including from Phalang Pracharat

    Thanathorn says other MPs now in the firing line, including from Phalang Pracharat

    PHOTO: Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit emerges defiant after spending six hours with the EC yesterday – The Nation by Kas Chanwanpen The political tactics of going after Future Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and other party members for alleged shareholdings in media companies, could come back to haunt the pro-junta camp after a similar allegation was made against one of its…

  • Netflix and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ production team announce cave rescue project

    Netflix and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ production team announce cave rescue project

    PHOTO: Yahoo.com Netflix, the most popular TV streaming service in Thailand, are teaming up with the producers of the hit film “Crazy Rich Asians” for a production about the rescue of the MuPa (Wild Boar) football team from Chiang Rai’s Tham Luang caves last July. The 12 young men and their coach were trapped in a flooded cave after going…

  • Indian man cut up after walking into glass door

    Indian man cut up after walking into glass door

    PHOTOS: Pattaya Update News An Indian tourist has walked into a glass door at his Pattaya accommodation earlier today, ending up with lots of cuts. Pattaya Update News reports that Sawang Boriboon Foundation rescue arrived at the property in Soi 6 on Pratumnak Hill at 4 am. There they found 28 year old Vishesh Goyal and broken glass scattered inside and outside…

  • Woman dies, girl injured in Krabi collision – VIDEO

    Woman dies, girl injured in Krabi collision – VIDEO

    VIDEO: Tankhao Krabi A female motorbike driver has died while the young girl passenger sustained serious injury after the motorbike tried a risky crossing on the road when it collided with a pickup in Krabi. Krabi City Police and Krabi Pitak rescue workers arrived to find the body of a woman who was later identified as 23 year old Wilaiwan…

  • Fake drugs, Bangkok raid

    Fake drugs, Bangkok raid

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning people about the use of unlicensed or fake treatments that could lead to serious or even fatal side effects. This follows the seizure of 2 million unlicensed pills worth 5 million baht from a Bangkok medication manufacturer. A police source says the confiscated medicines likely comprised corticosteroids, erectile dysfunction-treating medicine and sleeping…

  • 49 passengers on Bangkok-Phuket bus as it skids off road in Surat Thani

    49 passengers on Bangkok-Phuket bus as it skids off road in Surat Thani

    PHOTOS: Newshawk Phuket An express bus which was traveling from Bangkok to Phuket has skidded off the road in Surat Thani. 49 passengers escaped injury following the wayward bus careering off the main road into roadside gravel and bushes. Newshawk Phuket reports that, at 7.47am this morning, a bus travelling from Bangkok heading to Phuket skidded off the road in…

  • Baby dugong rescued in Krabi, taken back to its Trang home – VIDEO

    Baby dugong rescued in Krabi, taken back to its Trang home – VIDEO

    PHOTOS/VIDEO: DMCR A baby dugong, found on a Krabi beach, has been taken back to its home. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is reporting that yesterday the dugong was taken back to its home in Trang. “The dugong is aged around two to three years old. It is 120 centimetres long. No wounds were found on the dugong.…

  • Police continue investigation into French diplomat’s plunge from BTS station

    Police continue investigation into French diplomat’s plunge from BTS station

    Police say the investigation into the death of a French diplomat, believed to have deliberately jumped off a BTS train platform at the Saphan Taksin station yesterday, will continue. 56 year old Arnaud Jean-Claude Dubus died from head injuries after plunging from a platform at the elevated BTS station in the Sathon district at about 4pm. He was the deputy information chief…

  • Phuket Airport passenger arrivals dip

    Phuket Airport passenger arrivals dip

    by Bill Barnett, c9Hotelworks.com To date, 2019 is shaping up to be a slightly volatile year for tourism to the island. Passenger arrivals at Phuket International Airport rose 1% year-on-year in January, but took a step backwards in February with a substantial 6% decline. While we are still early in the year, overall visitor arrivals to Thailand on a country-wide…

  • New Japanese Emperor to ascend throne at 5pm today

    New Japanese Emperor to ascend throne at 5pm today

    Thailand’s not the only country with special royal occasions this week. For the first time in more than 200 years, Japan’s emperor will abdicate today. His son will ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne which ushers in a new era for the world’s oldest monarchy. The historic abdication has resulted in an unprecedented 10 day holiday for Japan marked as special days to celebrate…

  • Drunk man arrested after collecting parking fees in Phuket Town

    Drunk man arrested after collecting parking fees in Phuket Town

    PHOTOS: The Phuket City Police Police have arrested an intoxicated man who was collecting parking fees around a department store in Phuket Town. The Phuket City Police arrested the man, Adisak Rueathong, who had been collecting parking fees around Robinson Ocean Department Store in Talad Yai, Phuket Town. The arrest follows police receiving complaints last week that there was a…

  • Nakorn Pathom woman dies after centipede bite

    Nakorn Pathom woman dies after centipede bite

    PHOTO MONTAGE: Thai Rath A 54 year old Thai woman, Chutikarn Worachote, from Nakorn Pathom, just west of Bangkok, has died after being bitten by a centipede, or “takhap” in Thai. She was bitten in the right foot on Saturday and taken to hospital. She was administered an injection and given medication to take home to her accommodation in Samphran district.…

  • Kata Rocks launches new partnership with Singapore Yacht Show

    Kata Rocks launches new partnership with Singapore Yacht Show

    The Singapore Yacht Show 2019, was held between April 11 to 14 2019 for its 9th year, at the prestigious ONE°15 Marina Sentosa Cove. This year, the Kata Rocks Superyacht Rendezvous (KRSR) launched a marketing partnership with the SYS2019 giving the KRSR team a great opportunity to meet a full range of people. From existing partners to new ones, by…

  • EC dogged by new controversy after poll re-run in Nakhon Pathom

    EC dogged by new controversy after poll re-run in Nakhon Pathom

    Five times they counted and five times they got different results. The re-run of the election and the counting of votes in Nakhon Pathom, west of Bangkok, couldn’t have gone worse for the Election Commission, coming under fire from all directions over irregularities, forced recounts and hundreds of small errors in the counting process. The credibility has come under renewed…

  • Chon Buri marine officials take action against Sattahip tour guide – VIDEO

    Chon Buri marine officials take action against Sattahip tour guide – VIDEO

    PHOTOS/VIDEO: Go-Eco Phuket The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) officials have made an official report to Sattahip Police in Chon Buri after a video clip of a man, acting as a tour guide pulling up a sea flower where an Anemone Fish was hiding inside for tourists, became viral in social media yesterday. The video clip was posted…

  • Thailand’s Michelin Guide adds Chiang Mai

    Thailand’s Michelin Guide adds Chiang Mai

    Michelin say they’re extending The Michelin Guide in Thailand to cover the northern city of Chiang Mai with the new edition The Michelin Guide Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket & Phang Nga 2020. The extended foodie guide will be released at the end of 2019. This third edition of The Michelin Guide in Thailand will continue to showcase the country’s three unique and…

  • How the bike-share start-ups fell over

    How the bike-share start-ups fell over

    They were awful to ride and were the result of an even more toxic start-up culture in China. A few years ago the bike-sharing craze hit the tourist island of Phuket. It arrived amongst much flourish and ceremony. A year later the bike-sharing company bailed out. It was the same in many targeted tourist zones around the world. At the…

  • Coral off Phuket suffering from bleaching

    Coral off Phuket suffering from bleaching

    by Thai PBS Corals have started to bleach off the coast of Phuket. The problem is due to the warming of the sea, according to reports from the Phuket-based operations centre of the 2nd National Marine Park. Marine scientists at the centre conducted a survey of coral reefs off Nai Yang beach in the Sirinat national park last Thursday and…

  • IndiGo pulls non-stop flights between Phuket and Bengaluru

    IndiGo pulls non-stop flights between Phuket and Bengaluru

    ‘Commercial non-viability’ is the official reason given for the pulling of the twice-weekly non-stop flights between Bengaluru, India and Phuket by IndiGo Airline. The airline’s six weekly non-stop flights between Delhi and Phuket will continue. “Phuket is a key market for IndiGo and we see great potential in the growth of tourism between India and Phuket. We will explore various…

  • Cardboard box factory burns down in Ayutthaya

    Cardboard box factory burns down in Ayutthaya

    PHOTO: Matichon Online A cardboard box factory in the Wang Noi district of Ayutthaya has burned to the ground in a massive fire this morning. The Wang Noi police station was alerted at 2am that a blaze had broken out at the factory of Top Gold Products and Packaging on Phaholyothin Road in Tambon Sanab Theub.More than 20 fire units…

  • Boonrod heads to new home in Khon Kaen

    Boonrod heads to new home in Khon Kaen

    PHOTO: Vitisak Payalaw, Boonrod and Siraphan Ngampromwong of Watchdog Thailand at the Smile Dog House in Hat Yai – Facebook.com Thailand’s pooch-of-the-moment ‘Boonrod’ (meaning ‘survivor’ in Thai) has a new home in Khon Kaen. Definitely Thailand’s most travelled dog, Boonrod was fished out of the water earlier this month when he was spotted swimming aimlessly 220 kilometres off the Songkhla…

  • Australian navy ship HMAS Canberra visits Phuket for maritime exercises

    Australian navy ship HMAS Canberra visits Phuket for maritime exercises

    The Australian Navy ship and navy officers have arrived at Patong beach to join the annual maritime enforcement exercises for ‘Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2019’ today. The Australian Navy’s HMAS Canberra, which is carrying helicopters, and HMAS Newcastle arrived in Patong on Saturday to join the ‘Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2019’ . Air Commodore Rick Owen says, “We visited here to continue the good…

  • Man arrested with Cat 1 drugs and guns in Phuket

    Man arrested with Cat 1 drugs and guns in Phuket

    Officers have arrested a drug suspect in Cherng Talay, Phuket. The man was found with 20,666 methamphetamine pills, 339 grams of crystal methamphetamine (a third of a kilogram) and two guns. Phuket Administrative Officers and the Cherng Talay Police arrested 38 year old Komsan Prateep ‘Hug’ Na Thalang at an apartment in Cherng Talay. Police seized the methamphetamine pills and…

  • Tourists injured as minivan flips over in Krabi

    Tourists injured as minivan flips over in Krabi

    Indian tourists have sustained minor injuries after the minivan they were traveling in over-turned in Krabi on the way back to Ao Nang from Phuket. Ao Nang Police were notified of the incident on Nong Talay – Khao Thong Road in Mueang Krabi District yesterday at 10.30am. Police and emergency responders arrived to find the passenger van flipped over, on…