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    Siam Paragon celebrates 'A Prosperous Chinese New Year 2025'

    Siam Paragon, in collaboration with KASIKORNBANK, is hosting a spectacular Lunar New Year celebration, Siam Paragon A Prosperous Chinese New Year 2025, from today until February 2, at Parc Paragon. This year’s event is inspired by the rich heritage of Dunhuang,...

  • Phuket Gazette World News: Jordanian ambassador seized in Libya

    Phuket Gazette World News: Jordanian ambassador seized in Libya

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Jordanian ambassador seized in Libya, kidnappers demand prisoner release Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Jordan’s ambassador to Libya was kidnapped on Tuesday by gunmen who demanded an Islamist militant be released from a Jordanian jail in exchange for the diplomat’s freedom. The masked gunmen shot and…

  • 3 injured as water truck flips in Phuket

    3 injured as water truck flips in Phuket

    PHUKET: A water truck flipped and crushed a motorbike, injuring three people when its brakes allegedly failed while descending a small hill in Kata. Police and rescue workers rushed to the scene on Patak Road at about 1:50pm. “The water truck was heading to Karon, and its brakes failed on the small slope there. When it flipped, it crushed a…

  • Former police volunteer tests positive for drugs, case goes to Phuket public prosecutor

    Former police volunteer tests positive for drugs, case goes to Phuket public prosecutor

    PHUKET: Drug test results came back positive for former tourist police volunteer Garry Halpin, who has spent the last four months in Phuket Provincial Prison. The drug test results were the last piece of evidence the police needed before sending the case to court (story here). It has now been handed over to the public prosecutor. “The prosecutor will formally…

  • Phuket Songkran road toll stands at 1 dead, 17 injured

    Phuket Songkran road toll stands at 1 dead, 17 injured

    PHUKET: After four days of the Songkran Seven Days of Danger national road safety campaign, Phuket’s death and injury toll stands at one dead and 17 people injured in 17 accidents. Five accidents which resulted in five people being admitted to hospital for treatment of injuries occurred in the 24 hours ending at midnight last night, the Department of Disaster…

  • Baby sea turtles wash back to shore after annual turtle release

    Baby sea turtles wash back to shore after annual turtle release

    PHUKET: Two baby sea turtles washed ashore two Phuket beaches on Sunday afternoon shortly after a turtle release took place in Mai Khao. “Villagers in Mai Khao and Karon called the Phuket Marine Biological Center [PMBC] after they found the stranded baby turtles on the beach,” an officer from the Marine Endangered Species Unit of the PMBC told the Phuket…

  • Phuket Gazette World News: Nigerian bus station bombing kills 71 on edge of capital

    Phuket Gazette World News: Nigerian bus station bombing kills 71 on edge of capital

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Nigerian bus station bombing kills 71 on edge of capital Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A morning rush hour bomb killed at least 71 people at a Nigerian bus station on the outskirts of the capital on Monday, raising concerns about the spread of an Islamist…

  • Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran death toll hits 161; Red shirt Ko Tee cut adrift; Gen Prem urged to resolve crisis

    Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran death toll hits 161; Red shirt Ko Tee cut adrift; Gen Prem urged to resolve crisis

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Drunk driving ramps up Songkran road death toll The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Some 161 people have been killed and 1,640 injured in 1,539 road accidents in the first three days of Songkran – with most accidents the result of drink driving, the Road Safety…

  • Phuket Gazette World News: Obama blasts Russia in tense call with Putin over Ukraine

    Phuket Gazette World News: Obama blasts Russia in tense call with Putin over Ukraine

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Obama blasts Russia in tense call with Putin over Ukraine Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: U.S. President Barack Obama told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday that Russia’s actions in Ukraine were not conducive to a diplomatic solution of the crisis in that country, and the…

  • Ghost rider becomes first Phuket fatality in Songkran Seven Days of Danger

    Ghost rider becomes first Phuket fatality in Songkran Seven Days of Danger

    PHUKET: A woman speeding on a motorbike in the wrong lane has become Phuket’s first recorded fatality during this year’s Songkran Seven Days of Danger national road-safety campaign. Nannika Boonchorn, 27, from Chaiyaphum, died after she collided at high speed with a motorbike with a sidecar at about 4pm yesterday. The accident happened on Baan Thungkha – Kuandindaeng Road, which…

  • DNA results confirm body of missing Russian kidnap victim

    DNA results confirm body of missing Russian kidnap victim

    PHUKET: Unofficial DNA results and dental records confirm that the decapitated body found in Cherng Talay on March 29 is that of missing Russian Alexey Slabinskiy, Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Arun Kaewvatee announced on Saturday. “We’ve heard unofficially from the Forensic Office in Surat Thani that the remains are those of Mr Slabinskiy, and the teeth found in the…

  • B320mn wastewater plant project at Bang Tao Beach stalls

    B320mn wastewater plant project at Bang Tao Beach stalls

    PHUKET: As black water continues to spill over Bang Tao Beach in Cherng Talay, local officials report that the 320-million-baht wastewater-treatment project scheduled for completion next year has stalled. “Our big wastewater treatment project is only 30 per cent complete, but construction has now stopped,” Ma-ann Samran, president of the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor), said on Saturday. “The…

  • Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran spirit soaks nation; Koh Tee harbored in Isarn, say Dems; Road toll hits 102

    Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran spirit soaks nation; Koh Tee harbored in Isarn, say Dems; Road toll hits 102

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Thais forget their woes The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Songkran festival appears to have cooled down Thai politics, at least for a short while, given the reduction in political violence, and a break in politicians’ activities during the five-day holiday, which began on Saturday.…

  • Search begins for missing Phuket toddler

    Search begins for missing Phuket toddler

    PHUKET: Police have launched a search for a missing three-year-old boy last seen near the family home in a construction camp in Rawai late Thursday afternoon. Kongpob Chuerket, nicknamed “Nong Gorya”, was wearing a blue singlet emblazoned with an Angry Birds motif and light blue shorts when he disappeared, said Lt Kraisorn Boonprasop of the Chalong Police told the Phuket…

  • Phuket police praised as excellent, inspiring

    Phuket police praised as excellent, inspiring

    PHUKET: In Phuket to review safety measures for the Songkran holidays, deputy national police chief Gen Aek Angsananont has praised the Phuket Police as “excellent” and “inspiring” in preserving the safety of tourists. Gen Aek explained that Royal Thai Police Commissioner-General Adul Saengsingkaew had issued a special directive for officers across the country to boost their efforts to eradicate crime…

  • Sponsor can’t prevent Phuket kratom arrest

    Sponsor can’t prevent Phuket kratom arrest

    PHUKET: Amid the bustle of holiday travellers at Phuket Bus Terminal 2 yesterday, officers arrested a man after confirming that the box he retrieved from a bus contained kratom leaves. The arrest of Polawat Jay-yeng, 25, occurred after a tip-off to Suthee Sirianant, Chief Administration Officer of Phuket City District Office. “Mr Polawat picked up a Sponsor drink box from…

  • Speed, seats and safety targeted in Songkran bus blitz

    Speed, seats and safety targeted in Songkran bus blitz

    PHUKET: Extra buses, drug and alcohol tests for drivers and GPS to monitor speeds have been ordered to ensure that holiday travelers make it home safely for the Songkran holidays. Ten extra buses were on standby at Phuket’s Bus Terminal 2 yesterday to cope with the 50 per cent increase in travelers as officials rolled out new disciplinary regulations for…

  • Travel a la carte

    Travel a la carte

    PHUKET: When I first came to Thailand, I came to travel. I went north and south, south and east. Sadly, since I moved here permanently, I find myself lacking the time to explore this country, and if I manage to secure some time off, I travel abroad. Luckily, there is a way to travel even when short on time and…

  • Phuket double jeopardy: too much, too fast

    Phuket double jeopardy: too much, too fast

    Former Phuket Senator Tunyaratt Achariyachai, 59, represented Phuket in Thailand’s Upper House for six years. She graduated with a master’s degree in public administration from Manila University in the Philippines. Here, Ms Tunyaratt identifies her proudest achievements during her term as senator and what she still sees as the critical issues facing Phuket. PHUKET: When I was voted into office,…

  • Phuket Gazette World News: African exodus to Europe continues

    Phuket Gazette World News: African exodus to Europe continues

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Libya’s coastguard detains more than 400 immigrants en route to Europe Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Libya’s coastguard has detained more than 400 immigrants, mostly from the Horn of Africa, in its waters in the past two days as they tried to illegally cross to Europe…

  • Phuket rental shops send passport pictures to Bangkok via smartphone application

    Phuket rental shops send passport pictures to Bangkok via smartphone application

    PHUKET: Nearly one-third of rental shops in Patong have started to send photos of renters’ faces and passports to the Interpol branch in Bangkok via the messaging application Line in an effort to identify stolen passports and protect against passport theft on the island. The push for tighter security follows the news that two passports stolen in Phuket had been…

  • Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Yingluck ditches Prem; Suthep welcomed at Health Ministry; 9 killed in Songkran drive

    Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Yingluck ditches Prem; Suthep welcomed at Health Ministry; 9 killed in Songkran drive

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PM misses Prem meeting The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Caretaker Prime Minister and Defence Minister Yingluck Shinawatra was absent yesterday from a gathering to pay their respects to Privy Council President General Prem Tinsulanonda, leaving only commanders of the Armed Forces with him. Supreme Commander…

  • Financial distress prime suspect in Phuket man’s suicide plunge

    Financial distress prime suspect in Phuket man’s suicide plunge

    PHUKET: Police investigating the death of a man whose body was found in the carpark of a public housing estate in Rassada this morning have determined the man leapt to his demise. Officers were called to the Karn Keha estate near Soi Kingkaew at about 9am. “We found the body of Pongsak Pitchapan, 47, on the ground in front of…

  • Baby found abandoned in Phuket pickup

    Baby found abandoned in Phuket pickup

    PHUKET: Police are searching for the mother of a newborn baby boy found abandoned in the bed of a pickup truck in front of a luxury Phuket resort last night. The baby is healthy and is being cared for at Vachira Phuket Hospital, said Wichit Police Deputy Superintendent Jakkawat Boontaweekulsawat. Hotel staffer Anchalee Singsoon, 39, discovered the infant in the…

  • Another Phuket beach befouled by wastewater, again

    Another Phuket beach befouled by wastewater, again

    PHUKET: Dirty, smelly water is flowing across a Phuket beach again, not in the south this time, but in Bang Tao in the north, causing health and economic problems for local boat operators. The source of the problem, say the boatmen, is local hotels dumping untreated wastewater into the Bang Tao Canal, which spills it onto the beach and into…

  • Jagota sponsors three new international music and theater events in Phuket [video] | Thaiger

    Jagota sponsors three new international music and theater events in Phuket [video]

    PHUKET: Phuket’s burgeoning events scene received a boost this week with the announcement that leading food supplier Jagota Brothers has signed an agreement with Events International [EI], organizer and promoter of the Phuket Gazette’s series of “Headline Events”, to sponsor three upcoming musical and theatrical performances on the island. The agreement will see Jagota as the title sponsor for these…

  • Phuket Governor offers safe Songkran blessings

    Phuket Governor offers safe Songkran blessings

    PHUKET: Governor Maitri Inthusut hosted more than 300 people, including the island’s three vice governors, at his official residence in Phuket Town this morning for a traditional Songkran water blessing to start off the Thai New Year holiday. Vice Governor Sommai Prijasilpa led the first blessing of Governor Maitri. “Thank you for your support and for helping us develop our…

  • Phuket Police under fire: Chalong Police face cleanup under new station chief

    Phuket Police under fire: Chalong Police face cleanup under new station chief

    PHUKET: Officers of the Chalong Police have found themselves under tight scrutiny from their new chief, the recently reinstated superintendent Col Sirisak Wasasiri, following a blockade of the police station on Monday. All officers must now provide daily reports of their activities, inform Col Sirisak each time they leave the station on police work and provide the results of their…

  • Phuket governor lends muscle to lake-filling investigation

    Phuket governor lends muscle to lake-filling investigation

    PHUKET: Governor Maitri Inthusut yesterday lent the weight of his office to the investigation of a lake-filling project in Samkong with the aim of assisting Rassada Municipality to file a police complaint. The project, at Srisuchart Grandview housing estate, began as a municipality-ordered anti-erosion measure at the lake, but has become a noisy, dusty public nuisance and health threat, according…

  • Special Report: Flaws hinder Thailand’s human-trafficking crackdown

    Special Report: Flaws hinder Thailand’s human-trafficking crackdown

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Special Report: Flaws hinder Thailand’s human-trafficking crackdown Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: After a two-hour trek through swamp and jungle, Police Major General Thatchai Pitaneelaboot halts in a trash-strewn clearing near Thailand’s remote border with Malaysia. “This is it,” he says, surveying the remains of a…

  • Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran ‘Seven Days’ begins; Police issue safety tips for South; Malaysian ATM skim gang at work

    Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Songkran ‘Seven Days’ begins; Police issue safety tips for South; Malaysian ATM skim gang at work

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Songkran holiday ‘Seven Dangerous Days’ safety campaign begins The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: With the festive Songkran mood in the air, organisations from various sectors have come together to make the upcoming holiday “safe and happy” for everyone. Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday expressed…