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Is tap water in Thailand safe to consume?
Wondering if you can drink the tap water in Thailand? From brushing your teeth to filling up a bottle, it’s helpful to understand a few basics. Tap water safety in Thailand varies by location, and while some people use it...
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Phuket student chases down bag snatchers
PHUKET: A brave university student kept her cool and chased down a couple of bag snatchers in Phuket Town yesterday afternoon, leading to one robber’s arrest, as well as the retrieval of her belongings. The victim, named by police as Chompoonut Noparat, was riding a bike on Phang Nga Road in Phuket Town when a man and a woman on…
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Two more Chinese tourists badly injured in Phuket taxi crash
PHUKET: Two Chinese tourists on their way to Phuket airport in a taxi this morning were severely injured when their driver slammed into the back of a parked 18-wheel truck on the bypass road at 5:40am. The taxi driver was attempting to overtake another car on the inside lane when he hit the parked truck an eye witness told police.…
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Phuket’s new marine chief talks safety
PHUKET: Surat Siriasaiyas is currently the chief of the Phuket Marine Office. He was appointed to the post after six months of Phuket having only an acting head, since ex-chief Phuriphat Theerakulpisut was transferred to Nonthaburi in February. Here, he talks about his major concerns regarding marine safety and management in Phuket. The hot issues in the marine industry in…
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Phuket officials warn locals against eagle attacks
PHUKET: Officials have issued a warning to Kamala locals to beware of an eagle that has attacked four people since Sunday. Details of the incidents were shared on social media by Seree Lapmak, deputy president of the Kamala OrBorTor. “I believe that the eagle was either released or escaped from somewhere. There have been four injuries so far, with some…
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Island View: Train road workers in Phuket
PHUKET: Travelling in my car along Thepkrasattri Road at dusk from Thalang the other day, I hit a strip of the three-lane highway that was being resurfaced. The roadwork crew had enough forethought to put a grimy 40km/hr speed limit sign on the median strip, just before motorists hit the edge of the freshly gouged surface, as well as a…
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Another Korean couple’s honeymoon ends in tragedy
PHUKET: A newly-married Korean couple’s honeymoon came to a tragic end when the man drowned while snorkeling at Koh Hei this morning. The 33-year-old tourist, named as Jeong Yong Soo, had arrived in Phuket with his wife on Saturday after their wedding. The tourist police received reports of the incident from Vachira Phuket Hospital representatives at about 10am. “The tour…
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True breeze brings King’s Cup Regatta to a close on high note
PHUKET: The final day of racing off Kata Beach for the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta on Saturday saw all classes of boats competing in only one race each, making the most of good winds in the afternoon after light conditions earlier in the day. A royal award ceremony presided over by HE Air Chief Marshal Chalit Pukbhasuk, personal representative of…
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Police crash victim succumbs to head injury
PHUKET: A Phuket City Police officer involved in a collision in Thalang on December 1 succumbed to his injuries on Saturday, after fighting for his life for nine days at the Intensive Care Unit at Vachira Phuket Hospital. The 23-year-old officer, Lance Corporal Thanakorn Jimjuan, suffered a severe head injury after crashing into a metal barrier surrounding the Heroines’ Monument…
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Man found dead at home, roommate missing
PHUKET: A construction worker was found dead in his room in Patong yesterday afternoon. Police are looking for his roommate, who disappeared after he was seen drinking with him Thursday night. “We received a report at about 12:30pm of a dead man in a room on Pisitkoranee Road,” said Lt Sirinat Cherdchutrakulthong of the Patong Police. “When we arrived, we…
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Man arrested for stealing 80,000 baht in coins
PHUKET: A Thai man who robbed a Patong exchange booth of 80,000 baht in coins on Wednesday evening was apprehended in Thalang last night. The suspect, named as Promma Seesuree, had broken into the unmanned booth on Rat-Uthit 200 Pi Road and escaped with the loot. “We received a complaint about the incident and collected evidence from the day of…
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Relief kits distributed to flood-hit southern provinces
PHUKET: The provincial Public Health Office yesterday morning sent relief packages of food and medical supplies to flood-hit southern provinces including Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani, Trang, Phatthalung and Songkhla. Residents in Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Pak Phanang district have urged state agencies to help drain floodwater from the Pak Phanang River Basin before their farms, including rubber, oil palm and…
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Compromise reached with new site for Patong vendors
PHUKET: The long-standing dispute between Patong Municipality and Loma Park vendors regarding expiration of rental contracts and alleged violation of beach management rules was concluded after both parties reached an agreement yesterday afternoon. A meeting between the two parties held on November 1 was chaired by Phuket Governor Chokchai Dejamorthan and lasted several hours. It ended in a deadlock, however,…
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Phuket social club asks for donations for flood victims in Nakhon Sri Thammarat
PHUKET: A social club in Phuket representing people from Nakhon Sri thammarat has called for donations to help flood victims in their hometown, over 100 schools have been closed and more than 261,000 residents affected (story here). Phuket Provincial Public Relations Chief Busaya Jaipiam also reiterated the donation request yesterday morning. Club members have asked for uncooked rice, dried foods,…
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Ministry of Farang Affairs: Riding the Songthaew
The Ministry of Farang Affairs is a one-stop shop where foreigners in Thailand can learn all they need to know about living here. No, we’re not talking about work permits, visas or taxes. We’re talking about day-to-day life in the Land of Endless Shocks and Riddles, of Blur, Befuddlement and the Bizarre. Stay tuned for weekly insights from Minister Stephff.…
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Monk demands that bank hand over missing money
PHUKET: An elderly Buddhist monk baffled Krungsri Bank staff this morning at a branch on Thepkrasattri Road when he insisted on withdrawing 20,000 baht from his account – an amount he had withdrawn the previous day. A security guard at the bank called in ‘reinforcements’ from Phuket City Police to handle the precarious situation that ensued, as the monk dropped…
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Krabi locals selling palm seeds to boost income
PHUKET: Krabi locals have managed to find a new way to fill up their pockets with extra cash every month by collecting palm seeds (look chok) from nearby forests. Originally earning a regular income from rubber plantations, an additional income of 15,000 baht per month comes by collecting look chok and using them to make and sell desserts in their…
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Australian tourist hurt in parasail fall at Patong Beach
PHUKET: An Australian tourist was hospitalized after she plunged five meters into the sea while parasailing in Patong yesterday afternoon. Sally-Ann Popovic, 26, reportedly fell out of the harness and plunged into the water below shortly after launching in front of the Banthai Resort on Patong Beach. Police questioned the boat driver, Wissanu Srabua, and his assistant, Weerachart Hon, who…
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Lackluster winds delay day 3 regatta races
PHUKET: Little wind off Kata Bay yesterday delayed racing on day three of the Phuket King’s Cup with boats not setting sail until the afternoon. The course was shortened and fewer races were run in each class to make up for the late start. Winners of the IRC2 races were the Australian team on Judy, led by April Jorgensen. In…
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Indonesian earthquake tremors felt in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga felt tremors of an earthquake that shook parts of Indonesia about 5am today. The earthquake measured 6.5 on the Richter scale, occurring 377km away in the Indian Ocean near Aceh, North Sumatra. Several deaths were reported and dozens of people were hospitalized with injuries. Many locals and expats in Phuket took to social media…
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Stern winds make for tough sailing on day 2 of King’s Cup Regatta
PHUKET: Stern winds, choppy seas and a spirit of competition on day two of the Phuket King’s Cup made for a fast and very tough day’s sailing Tuesday. Kevin Whitcraft’s THA72 team scored a double win, beating rival Ray Roberts and team by two clear minutes in the first race of the day (IRC0). In the IRC1 class, Mandrake III…
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Austrian tourist dies while snorkeling in Krabi
PHUKET: A 75-year-old Austrian tourist ended up dead yesterday while snorkeling at Koh Rok, Krabi. His body arrived by boat this morning. “We received reports that the man’s friends were bringing his body to Chalong Pier early in the morning today. I notified the Austrian Consulate and told rescue workers and Chalong Police to receive the body and take it…
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Navy officers rescue Polish tourists in distress
PHUKET: A pair of Polish tourists were rescued from the waves by off-duty navy officers at Koh Pu yesterday. Officials of the Royal Thai Navy Third Area Command were making their way back after finishing their duty at the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta when they the saw tourists in the water waving for help. The pair had been swimming in…
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Head-on collision kills two more tourists in Phuket
PHUKET: A head-on collision at Chao Fa West Road early this morning has left two more tourists dead. Police arrived to find a 38-year-old Korean woman, named as Hyemi Lee, standing by her car in shock at the scene in front of Dibuk Hospital. Her car had collided with the tourists’ motorcycle, which was jammed under its front right wheel.…
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Island View: Safety needs more than lip service
PHUKET: The province has seen an alarming number of road accidents and deaths this month. While these incidents aren’t isolated or unusual, they got me thinking about what efforts were being made to alleviate the situation, which led me to think of the helmet safety campaign implemented in January this year. The ‘one district, one road with 100 per cent…
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High-surf, storm warnings issued for Phuket
PHUKET: A high-surf warning has been issued for Phuket beaches, particularly the West Coast ones, by the Surin-Bangtao Surf Lifesaving Club this morning. Starting Wednesday, an unusually powerful and extra-seasonal storm is predicted to affect Phuket and to continue over the next seven to ten days, the “Club” announced today. The beaches named in the advisory are Nai Harn, Kata…
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Floods claim 11 lives in South
PHUKET: Eleven people drowned, two others were injured and two people are missing due to flooding in southern Thailand over the past four days, Mr Chatchai Promlert, director-general of the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said yesterday. He said the floods affected 157,580 families in 68 districts in the 10 southern provinces of Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Krabi,…
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Polish tourists beaten, robbed by Phuket teenagers
PHUKET: Phuket police yesterday evening apprehended four teenagers who brutally attacked and robbed two Polish tourists at Karon viewpoint on Thursday night. Karon Police arrived at the scene of the crime to find the tourists injured and scared. The victims told police that four young boys came up behind them while they were walking. One of them smashed a glass…
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Finance: Where to invest after Trump victory
PHUKET: As the world learned that Trump had won, equity futures plunged – only to turn positive just minutes after the market opened the next day, with the rally lasting the rest of the week. The fact that the Dow and small cap US stocks shot up by 10 per cent to a new high shows that the market has…
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Ministry of Farang Affairs: Same menu as Thais
The Ministry of Farang Affairs is a one-stop shop where foreigners in Thailand can learn all they need to know about living here. No, we’re not talking about work permits, visas or taxes. We’re talking about day-to-day life in the Land of Endless Shocks and Riddles, of Blur, Befuddlement and the Bizarre. Stay tuned for weekly insights from Minister Stephff.…
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Opinion: Handing over the sails to Phuket’s next generation
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette is pleased to welcome sailing enthusiasts from across the region to Phuket for Asia’s premier sailing competition, the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta. As this year’s competition marks the 30th anniversary of the event, this week is an ideal time to reflect on the three decades of the event’s development, as well as to consider ways to…
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