News
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Sponsored 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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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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30th King’s Cup Regatta sets sail under “Heritage of Passion’
PHUKET: Fair winds were afoot on Sunday for the launch of the 30th annual Phuket King’s Cup Regatta, which this year is under the theme ‘Heritage of Passion’, in memory of the late HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej and in honor of Thailand’s new monarch HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun. Held at the Kata Beach Resort December 3-10 under the auspices…
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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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Homeless man blamed for Phuket Town fire
PHUKET: A mentally unstable homeless man is suspected to have started a fire that burnt down a house in Phuket Town about 5am today. The two-storey house located on Thepkrasattri Road, about 500 meters from Satree Phuket School, was enveloped by flames and smoke when firefighters and officials from the Phuket City Municipality Disaster Prevention (PMDP) Department arrived at the…
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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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Alleged extortionist flown back from US to face charges
PHUKET: An American man, who returned to the United States in 2013 after allegedly extorting a fellow countryman in Phuket, was flown back to Thailand, escorted by Royal Thai Police officers, this morning. “The suspect, named Shawn Abraham, was handed over to Royal Thai Police to face legal charges in Thailand as per an arrest warrant issued against him on…
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Police officer unstable after crashing into Heroines’ Monument barrier
PHUKET: A police officer was seriously injured late last night when he crashed his car into one of the steel pillars around the Heroines’ Monument in Thalang. Thalang Police received a report of the crash just before midnight and arrived at the scene to find the driver, Pol Lance Corporal Thanakorn Jimjuan of Phuket City Police, lying on the sidewalk.…
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Unlicensed hotels given two months to register
PHUKET: Unlicensed hotels in Phuket have been given a two-month deadline to become legally registered or face consequences. Phuket Governor Chokchai Dejamornthan said on Thursday, after a meeting with provincial officials, that more than 1,300 establishments currently operating in the province as hotel-like accommodation had until January 31 next year to properly register as hotel accommodation; otherwise, legal action would…
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Phuket King’s Cup marks 30th anniversary
PHUKET: This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta Under Royal Patronage since its inception in 1986. What has become one of Thailand’s most prestigious sailing events was launched after a number of the country’s yachting fraternity met to discuss what they could do as a special tribute for His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s forthcoming Fifth…
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Seasonal mushroom picking turns profits
KRABI: Krabi locals are cashing in on a wild cash crop of mushrooms which only appear for about three months a year between October and early December. The fungus found in palm plantations in Krabi at this time of year is locally known as the ‘June’ mushroom and fetches between 250 and 300 baht per kilogram. Residents of Klongtom Sub…
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King Rama X proclaimed
BANGKOK: HIS MAJESTY King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun was proclaimed yesterday as the 10th King of the Chakri Dynasty after he accepted the invitation made by the president of the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) in accordance with His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s will, the Constitution and Palace Law. “I accept the invitation in order to follow His Majesty King Bhumibol’s will…
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Canadian tourist robbed of $4,000 by Bangla ‘companion’
PHUKET: A hapless Canadian tourist yesterday filed a complaint against a Thai woman, claiming that she made off with about 130,000 baht in cash from his hotel room. Alexander Ryan, 31, told police that he had met the woman on Bangla Road in Patong on Tuesday night, and then invited her back to his room at the Holiday Inn hotel…
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Facebook coral dealers arrested in Krabi
KRABI: Two women involved in the illegal sale of coral on Facebook were apprehended in Ao Luek yesterday evening. The arresting officers found more than 20 kilograms of coral in their possession. They had been dealing in coralline algae, sea pens and various other coral used in jewelry. A joint “task force” of 30 personnel [yes, thirty] comprising Krabi Marine…
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Two arrested for mobile snatching in Phuket
PHUKET: Two men were apprehended after they snatched an iPhone from two Chinese tourists in Patong last night. The suspects were named as Sarawuth Rattanaprasert, 21, and Thanawuth Hirankakorn, 19. “We received a report of a robbery on Sai Nam Yen Road about 7pm. Patrol officers in the area immediately took action when they saw the two victims chasing Mr…
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EU ‘Green card’ for Thailand expected over IUU fishing
THAILAND: The Kingdom should expect to receive a ‘green card’ from the European Union for its efforts to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, once the EU realizes the real progress the government is making in this regard, according to Steve Trent, executive director of the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF). Mr Trent said the EJF had seen the progress…
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Motorcyclist’s death finally prompts action to fix airport road
PHUKET: Following the death of a 22-year-old motorcyclist who broke his neck Thursday night ramming into a concrete blockade on the road alongside the Phuket Airport runway, authorities have requested a 72 million baht budget to fix and widen the road. The road was blocked off with four heavy-duty blocks four months ago after heavy rains caused a landslide (story…
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Missing Russian turns up, can’t remember a thing
PHUKET: A Russian tourist who went missing after diving into the sea while drunk at Kamala Beach late Monday night resurfaced yesterday afternoon with no recollection of the incident. Officials and rescue workers spent several hours searching for Mikhail Korneev after he was reported missing by a friend early yesterday morning (story here). The search – which also involved local…
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Foreign fishing boats seized for faking nationality
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Navy yesterday afternoon seized seven tuna fishing boats at Tha Sri Thai pier in Rassada for faking nationality documents to enter Thailand. The investigations are being conducted by a joint task force of the Navy, Immigration, the Marine Office, the Employment Office, the Marine Police and other officers, and led by Vice Admiral Suraphol Kuptaphan, commander…
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Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn to become King Rama X
BANGKOK: The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) president Pornpetch Wichitcholchai convened a special meeting today and has now announced acknowledgment of the Cabinet’s resolution to invite HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn to accede to the throne. “The NLA, which now functions as the Parliament, has received the Cabinet’s resolution. The NLA president will now invite the Crown Prince to accede to…
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Russian missing after drunken midnight plunge
PHUKET: Police are searching for a Russian tourist who reportedly went missing after diving into the sea in a drunken state at Kamala Beach late last night. The man was named as Mikhail Korneev, 39, by a friend who reported the incident to police a little after midnight, adding that Mr Mikhail had been drinking heavily that night. “The incident…
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Top officials discuss major Phuket woes
PHUKET: Five of Phuket’s most influential lawmen met at Phuket Provincial Hall this morning in order to discuss what they named as the top five issues plaguing the island. The officials included Phuket Governor Chokchai Dejamornthan; Vice Admiral Surapol Kuptaphan, commander of the Royal Thai Navy Third Area Command; Maj Gen Akom Pongprom, commander of the 41st Military Circle; Phuket…
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Busload of Russians injured as ‘brakes fail’
PHUKET: Three Russian tourists were seriously injured, and 39 others less so, when the bus they were taking to Phuket ended up in a ditch in Phang Nga yesterday. Lt Thavorn Thongkam of Takuathung Police received reports of the incident from Kok Kloi District, Phang Nga at 2pm. The driver of the bus belonging to MKR Transport, Nithakorn Jamrasklang, 26,…
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Man on the run after shooting boss in the head
PHUKET: Police are searching for a man suspected of shooting his employer in the head in Koh Kaew early this morning. “We found Pisekpong Oonwan, 38, behind the Isuzu showroom in the area, bleeding profusely from a head wound. He had a .22mm bullet lodged inside his head,” confirmed Lt Col Naruebadin Pangleesen of Phuket City Police. “He was taken…
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Tim Reed triumphs in Phuket’s Foremost Ironman 70.3
PHUKET: Australian athlete Tim Reed was the overall winner of the Foremost Ironman 70.3 held at Bangtao Beach yesterday, crossing the finish line with a time of 3 hours 48 minutes and 33 seconds. The grueling course comprised a 1.9km swim, followed by a 90km bike race from the beach up to the Sarasin Bridge and back, and then a…
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On Deck: Ready for a wet ‘n’ wild year end?
PHUKET: Are you ready for the busiest time of the year? Not Christmas and New Year, but the six or so weeks of marine industry madness that is upon us. Kicking things off is the Ocean Marina Pattaya Boat Show. From 24th to 27th November, eyes are on the Gulf of Thailand as boat brands from around the world join…
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Opinion: Taking care of society’s unwanted
PHUKET: Noppadol Poungpun is the Project Manager of the Life Home Project Foundation, a non-profit organization with the goal of offering children, women and patients suffering from HIV (Human Immuno-deficiency Virus) and AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) a more dignified life. Originally from Surat Thani, Mr Noppadol has lived in Phuket and worked for the foundation since 2002. He graduated…
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