News
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Chinese tour van crashed, kills two in Phang Nga
A Chinese tour van crashed this morning in Kokkloy, Phang Nga, just north of Phuket, into a 18-wheel, truck resulting in two casualties and seven injuries. The van, full of passengers, was traveling from Phuket to a pier in Phang Nga. At the scene, the truck was making a U-turn and the van crashed into the back of the truck.
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Australian engineer says he’s ‘found’ MH370 – Malaysian search team says ‘no’.
A report has emerged saying that Malaysia Airlines MH370 has been found. The official MH370 Response Team says the reports are ‘unfounded and baseless’. Malaaysia’s Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, also head of the Malaysian Civil Aviation Authority, say the team has read the stories in a number of junk UK media, Daily Star, The Sun Daily and The Star, express.co.uk and…
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THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, March 20
MH370 has NOT been found | Bar owner in Pattaya bashed unconscious | 10 million baht worth of marijuana seized in Chumpon | Officials concerned over damage on Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao | Nok Air being asked to ‘please explain’ over poor on-time record | 103 ‘practice bombs’ found near Vachira Hospital Bangkok.
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Marine rescue workshop underway in Phuket
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Phuket Office, held a marine rescue workshop at the Dara Hotel in Kathu this morning (March 19) chaired by Deputy Secretary General of the ministry, Santi Pawai. The workshop was aiming to teach attendees about methods to deal with divers and customers in case of emergency, both underwater and on the surface, in the…
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Migrant workers registered with iris scan technology
Five southern coastal provinces with large numbers of migrant workers have pioneered the use of iris scans in the registration procedure, the governor of Samut Nakhon announced today (Monday). Prapas Malakan said labourers on fishing trawlers, at fish and seafood processing factories and at related industrial establishments had undergone the scans in his province and in Samut Prakan, Rayong, Ranong…
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Car thieves arrested in Soi Namtok in Kathu
Police received a report from Weeraporn Khamyindee that her Toyota Vios had been stolen inside Soi Namtok, Kathu, on March 17. After checking local CCTV cameras, police found that two thieves, 36 year old Prakarn ‘Aek’ Sangsawang from Prachinburi and 27 year old Seksan ‘Ton’ Ountan from Phuket. The two were arrested on March 18 at a hotel on Kra…
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Dual pricing. Fair or price gouging?
Photo TIT – This Is Thailand Facebook page Thailand’s dual pricing policy continues with, it seems, a completely random application of the system. In some places flashing your Work Permit might get you an exemption so you can pay local price but there is no consistency. What are your experiences with dual pricing? Do you think it’s fair? If we’re…
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Chiang Mai – the sixth worst air pollution in the world
Air pollution in the North continues to be critical, with small dust particles of 2.5 microns in size (PM2.5) exceeding safe limits at almost every air-quality testing station. The Pollution Control Department (PCD) revealed on Sunday that although PM2.5 levels had dropped from the previous day at almost every station, the amounts were still higher than safe standards. On average,…
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From Thaksin to Thanathorn – 20 years of political soap opera
COMMENT by Tim Newton New political parties are being registered at break-neck speed following the easing of the Junta’s ban on political activities. Most of the new parties will falter at the start line, unable to come up with the required minimum membership or capital to fund their campaigns. As new parties, they’re all going to have to fight for…
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Tourism set to rise 18% for this year’s Songkran
Songkran is on the way. That means water fights in the main tourist destinations around the country and Thais fleeing the cities and work locations to head back to their homes ‘upcountry’. With the official Songkran break starting on a Wednesday this year you can be assured that many will take the Monday and Tuesday off in that week and…
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More wi-fi hotspots and ‘tourist tags’ – Phuket Smart City
Phuket will increase the number of hotspots for free Wi-Fi Internet connection to 1,000 around the island as part of its ambition to turn the island into a “smart city”, according to Thailand’s digital economy minister. The province may also develop an electronic wristband system for foreign tourists so their identity and location would be known in case of untoward…
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Now, a SEVEN metre python!
A video posted on YouTube shows Pathum Thani snake catchers round up a seven metre long, almost 100 kilogram, python from near the yard of a PTT gas depot in Khlong Luang district, just north of Bangkok. Amnat Saengsawang said it was the biggest snake he has captured in 30 years of doing the job. Click to watch the video…
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Storm warning for central and north-east next week
After storms battered parts of the north-east at the start of this week, affecting more than 200 homes, the Thai Meteorological Department has issued another summer storm warning. They say storms are expected to hit northeastern and eastern regions from next Tuesday followed by the central and northern regions, including Bangkok, on Wednesday. They say the forecast bad weather is…
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7-11 rolling out facial recognition in its 11,000 Thai stores
Smile, you’re on camera. Your friendly, neighbourhood convenience store, 7-Eleven store is rolling out facial recognition technology. The Japanese-owned franchise has 11,000 stores in Thailand. The convenience store chain says they’ll will roll out the technology in a number of different ways, including to identify regular and loyal customers, monitor stock levels of products and better analyse customer traffic trends.…
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Russian tour bus crashes in Krabi
A tour bus transporting 36 Russian tourists crashed this morning (March 16) after trying to avoid a motorcycle, which cut in front of it abruptly, according to the driver. After avoiding the motorbike, the bus crashed into a tree on the side of the road in Krabi. Police found that it has fallen into a 1 metre drain and its…
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Porsche Panamera blaze during battery charge
A 10 million baht Porsche Panamera caught fire while its battery was recharging in Bangkok’s Taling Chan district early Friday and the flames also damaged the owner’s luxury home. Police and firefighters were summoned at 6.30am and arrived to find the sports car already engulfed and fire in the living room of the house. After the blaze was extinguished, homeowner…
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THAIGER TODAY Friday, March 16
Six confirmed human deaths from Rabies | ‘X-Ray Outlaw Foreigner’ crackdown | Prawit gets another extension to explain himself | Burmese man drowns off Maithon Island | Thais are discussing ‘final solution’ to stray dog problem | Storms flatten homes in north-east.
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Fatties in Thai Business Class? Mai dai!
Passengers intending to fly business class on Thai Airways’ new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft will have to first pass the waist test (that’s ‘waist’ not ‘waste’!). Flight Lieutenant Pratthana Pattanasirim, THAI’s director of security and flight standard division, says that a passenger with waist bigger than 56 inches (142 cm) cannot fly business class on the fleet’s Boeing 787-9 aircraft.…
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Another drug courier arrested at Phuket Gateway
A 41 year old from Nakhon Si Thammarat, Yuthana Ponsud, has been arrested yesterday (March 14) at the Phuket Gateway at Thachatchai Checkpoint while carrying 1,957 amphetamine pills with a street value of 350,000 baht, to Phuket. The police at the gateway found him during a routine search of a Trang to Phuket bus. He seemed suspicious so police asked…
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Boat sinks off Maithon Island. Burmese man drowns.
A fishing boat sank after its anchor was stuck in a reef near Maithon Island three days ago (March 13), a Burmese fisherman downed in the incident. Phuket Marine Police received a report that a fishing boat ‘Chok Ubon’ sank at the north side of Maithon Island before another fishing boat came to their rescue and found a 38 year…
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Police inspections – What are your rights?
There are many stories about bad police planting evidence or fake police trying to misrepresent themselves to shake down an innocent person. What should you do if a person claiming to be a police officer comes up to you and wants to inspect your person or belongings? The primary duty of the police is to protect people and property and…
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THAIGER TODAY Thursday, March 15
Dog and cat registration may become compulsory | Premchai shows up to acknowledge charges | ONE…BIG…SNAKE | BKK Japanese restaurants reject fish from Fukushima | Mercedes invests in local electric car plant | Thanathorn’s new ‘Future’ party launched this morning.
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21 year old arrested over assault on 82 year old following Facebook campaign
A young motorcyclist surrendered to police last night (Wednesday) evening following a Facebook campaign, which saw a reward of 60,000 baht being raised for his arrest, after he was recorded on video kicking and hitting an elderly man in Bangkok. 21 year old Narathorn Sodetiyung reportedly admitted that he had assaulted 82 year old Jaroon Maneephan after the latter knocked…
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Monster python caught and released in Nakhon Si Thammarat
Snake catchers in Nakorn Sri Thammarat have caught a monster python. The reptile was 5.5 meters long and weighed 100 kilograms. It took ten people to hold it for the video. As you can see the python wasn’t too happy about being in the selfie. It was spotted by a rubber worker who saw it curled up by a termite…
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Phuket thief arrested after robbing Cherng Talay convenient store
A 50 year old local man, Jamlaeng Thatiebthong, has been arrested by Cherng Talay police after robbing a convenient store using a fake gun yesterday (March 13). After checking the CCTV camera, police were able to track the route he took with his motorcycle, which is Ban Don – Ban Ya – Ban Pon – Thepkasattri – Koh Kaew –…
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Phuket drugs dealer arrested
A 42 year old local woman, Wattanee ‘Nong’ Hansamut, has been arrested with 5,043 amphetamine pills and 666.40 grams of methamphetamine, which are worth about 2 million Baht on the street. Wichit Police received a report on March 11 that Wattanee, who lives in the Phuket Villa Suanluang house project, was taking and selling drugs to small retailers in Phuket.…
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Only a tiny fraction of BKK pets registered as being vaccinated against Rabies
Only 5,193 of Bangkok’s 1.136 million stray and pet dogs and cats are registered as having been vaccinated against rabies, a senior Agriculture Ministry official said this morning (Wednesday). Ministry spokesman and inspector-general Sorawit Thanito said only 6,233 pet cats and dogs were registered with authorities in the capital and 1,266 of them had been sterilised. But most owners by…
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THAIGER TODAY Wednesday, March 14
Rabies situation ‘under control’ | Motorbike driver lucky to walk away from accident | No toilets at tsunami museum | BKK motor tollways free over Songkran | Prosecution case ready over Toyota Thai Football League match-fixing | FBI attempts to interview ‘sex-therapist’ couple who ‘know things’ | Indian man and Thai accomplice arrested over visa scam.
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“Your white handsome man is really a dark skinned scammer!” Tourist police warning
The Thai tourist police have produced a Facebook warning for Thai women about Romance Scams. One of the frames shows a cartoon white man who they say is handsome and rich. But towards the end the police say that he is more than likely dark skinned and after your money. The advice says that middle aged and middle class Thai…
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Kratom delivery kills two
A car transporting Kratom leaves crashed into an innocent pedestrian then careered into a drain, killing both victim and driver this morning (March 13) in Krabi Province. A 31 year old man from Sadao, Songkhla, Kusol Kaewrattana, lost control of his Toyota Fortuner that was transporting 30 sacks of Kratom leaves and crashed into 68 year old Lek Sae-Iew, who…
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