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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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VIDEO Report: Phuket officials unveil “drive-thru’ preview of Patong Tunnel
PHUKET: The Expressway Authority of Thailand (EXAT), commissioned to roll out the Patong Tunnel project, has released a video highlighting the preferred route the tunnel will take through the Phuket hills separating the Kathu valley from the beachside resort town of Patong. The preferred route was chosen after a panel of experts investigated three major factors in the selection process,…
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Phuket gold shop gives B170k to fiancee of slain man
PHUKET: The fiancee of the man shot dead trying to stop a gold shop robbery in Phuket in April received 170,000 baht from the shop owner on Monday. Surasak Wattananawin, owner of the C.P. Gold Master & Jewelry store, had promised to donate the money shortly after the murder of Apichet Choo-kliang, 32, and had already made one donation of…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Turkish patience runs out; Greek tragedy; Cabbie stabber confesses; Swiss banks shaken
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Skirmishes in Turkey after police storm Istanbul square Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Turkish riot police fought running battles with pockets of protesters overnight after storming a central Istanbul square in a show of force that risked ratcheting up tensions almost two weeks after anti-government demonstrations began.Prime Minister…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Businessman murdered; Drug dealer wanted by FBI arrested; F1 in Phuket; Size not important
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Driver admits killing Ekkayuth, police say The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The chauffeur of missing businessman Ekkayuth Anchanbutr admitted to his murder last night, former police spokesman Pol Lt General Prawut Thavornsiri said on his Twitter account.Two other suspects who allegedly helped Santiparb Pengduang are on the…
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Phuket tour company robbed after staffer makes bank withdrawal
PHUKET: Police are searching for a thief who robbed a small Phuket tour company of almost 70,000 baht this morning.“We questioned all four of the staff at Nonthasak Marine Co Ltd,” said Phuket Provincial Police Commander Choti Chavalviwat.Pornpirom Junthong, a human resources staffer at the company, told police she went to a bank with a friend to withdraw 69,239 baht…
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Phuket flood warning issued as Patong hospital, police station access hampered
PHUKET: The torrential rains across Phuket this morning caused more flooding in Patong, with access routes to the Patong Hospital and Patong Police Station under water. The downpours this morning saw 56.2mm of rainfall recorded within just three hours in Phuket Town, from 7am to 10am, while the weather monitoring station at Phuket Airport recorded 14.4mm from 4am to 7am…
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Phuket Police suspect arson in three-truck fire
PHUKET: Three pickup trucks burned early this morning in a fire police believe was caused by a faulty liquid gas tank (LPG) tank or arson.Police responded to a report just after 1am that a vehicle was ablaze at a commercial building near the entrance to Wat Manik in Srisoonthorn, Thalang.Firemen took 30 minutes to put out the fire, which appeared…
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PHUKET FINANCE: Don’t let a ‘wall of worry’ cut you off from a bull market
PHUKET: Although the economic numbers coming out of the United States are not exactly impressive, the S&P 500 has been hitting all time highs and at the end of April, was up some 14.5% since the start of the year, while gold, the ultimate investment of market contrarians, plunged the most in 33 years. In other words, the US stock…
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Prison products to hit Phuket streets
PHUKET: The 10th annual Southern Prison Products Fair gets underway at Saphan Hin this evening and continues to June 17.The fair showcases products made by inmates in the 14 southern provinces.“There are many handmade products for sale at fair prices, including good quality furniture,” said Phuket Prison Chief Rapin Nichano.“The project is excellent for prisoners because 50 per cent of…
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Phuket International Boat Show 2014 sponsorship opportunities
PHUKET: A number of commercial sponsorship and partnership packages are now available for the next Phuket International Boat Show (PIMEX), which will celebrate its eleventh anniversary next January. Sponsorship experts, Paul Poole (South East Asia) Co Ltd, will represent PIMEX 2014 in its drive to attract new sponsors and partners, offering several package tiers (click here for site). Andy Dowden…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Supercar crackdown looms; Bangkok raid nets prized wildlife; Transgender ID photos approved
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community DSI tells luxury car owners to keep valid documents ready The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: People who own or possess 488 luxury cars, whose domestic prices start at Bt4 million each – mostly senior police and military officers, businesspeople and politicians – are required to produce relevant…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Egyptian war talk; Rains leave 40 dead; Thwarted Taliban attack; Mandela still serious; Suspected Taliban behead boys
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Egypt “war” talk raises Ethiopia Nile dam stakes Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Egypt does not want war with Ethiopia but will keep “all options open”, President Mohamed Mursi said yesterday, turning up the heat in a dispute over a giant dam Addis Ababa is building across the…
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Swedish domino effect nets another Phuket drug dealer
PHUKET: Two gun-stashing drug dealers were scooped up on Friday in the wake of a drug bust that netted a Swedish national in Karon last month. Hasachai Khaokhem and Suvimon Chaikhun were arrested on Friday when police recognized them from a description given last month by drug dealer Nattharin Dansathaporn, 29. Mr Nattharin was found based on information supplied by…
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Laguna Phuket International Marathon sees fun and fund-raising
PHUKET: Michael Page of the UK won the eighth Laguna Phuket International Marathon (LPIM) when the annual running festival took to the island’s roads over the weekend. More than 4,000 entrants of all ages and abilities from 45 countries competed on a variety of distance courses in an atmosphere of community fun and charity fund-raising. Page finished the 42 kilometer…
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Drunk looking German busted for meth in Phuket
PHUKET: A German national whose inebriated driving style caught police attention on Saturday was arrested in Patong after he failed a drug test and confessed to having drugs in his hotel room. The 44 year old was stopped by Phuket Immigration officer Capt Angkarn Yasanop at about 1:30am. “We were on patrol as usual,” said Capt Angkarn. “When we arrived…
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V for Thailand unmasks Phuket unrest
PHUKET: Thousands of Phuket residents donned white Guy Fawkes masks and joined anti-government group “V for Thailand” to protest the current administration’s running of the country. “We are not a mob, we have gathered to let the government know that their management of Thailand has failed,” said a statement issued under the name of V-Phuket to the media during the…
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Weather warning for Phuket, Andaman as Patong’s streets flooded
PHUKET: The flood waters from last night’s deluge have cleared from Patong’s streets, but the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) has issued a weather warning for Phuket and the Andaman region forecasting more heavy rain until at least Friday. A two-hour torrential downpour last night flooded major streets in Patong, including the party district of Soi Bangla, to depths of half…
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Phuket Gazette World News: NSA leak Snowden seeks refuge in Hong Kong; Germany evacuates as Elbe floods; Nazi diary undusted; Tanks in Beirut
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Ex-CIA man says exposed U.S. spy scheme for better world Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: A former CIA employee working as a contractor at the U.S. National Security Agency revealed in an interview published on Sunday it was he who leaked details of a top secret U.S. surveillance…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: DSI seizes 20 luxury cars; Anti-Thaksin tycoon feared abducted; Deep South peace talks hit YouTube
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community More luxury cars snared in tax scam raids in and near Bangkok The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Department of Special Investigation yesterday impounded 20 luxury cars on suspicion their owners had not paid proper import taxes. The high-end cars were seized pending tax clarification…
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UK’s Page wins Laguna Phuket Marathon
PHUKET: Michael Page of Great Britain won the Laguna Phuket International Marathon 2013 this morning, completing the 42km circuit in 2 hours 41 minutes and 2 seconds. Officials have yet to confirm the results, but according to the preliminary times posted by official timekeeper Championchip Thailand (click here), Page crossed the finish line 10 minutes ahead of Yasuhiro Saito of…
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British national busted for dealing heroin on Phuket
PHUKET: A Phuket Marine Police sting operation last night busted a British national with 6.1 grams of heroin smuggled onto Phuket from Koh Samui. John Robert George Cawley, 22, was caught in a Rassada rental room at about 11:30pm in possession of the category 1 drug stuffed into seven plastic bottles, said Phuket Marine Police Inspector Chatchai Sakdee. Marine Police,…
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Hundreds of Phuket residents come together for World Ocean Day 2013
PHUKET: Nearly 500 local students and other participants joined together at the Phuket Aquarium in celebration of World Ocean Day 2013 this morning. “For this special day we encourage people to become more aware of the problems facing our oceans, and the need for them to take action,” Sombat Poovachiranon of the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) said. The United…
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Phuket hotel manager, truck take 50-meter fall
PHUKET: A hotel manager lost control of his truck at the Khao Khad Viewpoint (map here), plummeting 50 meters down the treacherous hillside yesterday afternoon. Police received a report of the incident at about 4:50pm and rushed to the scene with Kusuldham Rescue workers to find Korean national Don Yeol Seo alive, but trapped in the overturned vehicle. “Mr Yeol…
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Video Report: Phuket slams the brakes on tour bus neglect
PHUKET: The dramatic crash of a tour bus that plowed into a home in Patong on Tuesday night has prompted the Phuket Land Transportation Office (PLTO) to warn that under new measures tour bus companies found to repeatedly fail safety requirements stand to have their commercial passenger permits revoked permanently. “This includes tour companies and independent operators hired by tour…
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Phuket Sports: Monaco, Montreal, modifications – F1
PHUKET: A crash laden Monaco was good for Mercedes; Nico Rosberg, now probably their number one driver, led from start to finish. This is not a harbinger of things to come in 2013; Monaco is a special race. Monaco, Spa and Suzuka are often quoted as the three tracks where driver skill can overcome technical differences between their cars. But…
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Phuket Football: Islanders face uphill battle
PHUKET: Phuket FC’s inconsistent start to the season continued after they beat their Phang Nga Bay rivals Krabi 2-0 on May 29 in front of a raucous crowd: The team then traveled to Saraburi and lost 1-0 after Mario Neto scored a late winner. The Islanders are in fifth place, three points behind Bangkok FC in the last automatic promotion…
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Phuket Health: Exploring island fitness
PHUKET: Thousands of long-distance runners are starting to get the butterflies ahead of the eighth annual Laguna Phuket International Marathon (LPIM), which takes place early tomorrow morning (click here for story) To help prepare, if not calm some nerves, fitness contributor, Hayden Rhodes, has provided some more training tips and advice in this article, which will elaborate on last week’s…
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Special Report: Breaching walls for Phuket tsunami safety
SPECIAL REPORT: Tsunami evacuation drills have become part of Phuket life since the devastating waves struck our shores in 2004. But has familiarity bred contempt for safety in the west coast village of Kamala? The Phuket Gazette reports. PHUKET: Phuket recently hosted a full-scale tsunami drill (story here), with rescue workers practicing the actions they would take should a wall…
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Phuket Opinion: Coordinate manpower to corral illegal taxis
Manaporn Likitmanon, a 31-year-old Songkhla native, was a Police Investigator at Samut Sakhon Immigration from 2008 to 2012 before returning south last year to become a Highways Police Inspector covering the tri-province area of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi. Here he talks about how to solve the problem of metered and illegal taxis in Phuket. PHUKET: We have received many…
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Phuket bank stabbing witnesses confirm murder-suicide
PHUKET: The two women present in the Bank of Ayudhya meeting room yesterday watched when Phonthakorn Teerabenjakul, 51, pulled out a knife and stabbed Piboon Vachwanichsanong, 71, to death, and then killed himself, police say (story here). “The women saw the whole thing,” Phuket City Police Inspector Yongyuth Kongmalai told the Phuket Gazette today. “They said there was no fight…
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