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Phuket Impact: British couple fights Bangkok airport extortionists
BANGKOK / PHUKET: A British couple who were falsely accused of shoplifting at Bangkok’s Suvarnaphumi airport and were forced to pay £8,000 (approx 450,000 baht) in bribes to secure their release, are to take legal action for compensation. London’s Times Online reported today that the couple were the victims of an extortion racket that has ensnared other foreign travelers at…
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Fire engulfs Patong beach road building
PATONG, PHUKET: In the latest fire to hit the beach road in Patong, an Indian restaurant, a tailor shop and a pharmacy were gutted in a pre-dawn blaze Thursday morning. The fire broke out at about 3am at a two-story building on the corner of Soi Post Office, just north of McDonald’s. Five fire engines from Patong Municipality were able…
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Phuket Airport staff sing for victory against swine flu
PHUKET CITY: Sing “Happy Birthday” to combat swine flu. Bizarre as it may sound, this was one of many pieces of advice given by public health officials during Phuket International Airport’s (PIA’s) “Big Clean Day” [sic] yesterday. But there is, in fact, method in the apparent madness. As one Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) officer explained to PIA staff, the…
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12 donate land for new Phuket Airport Road project
PHUKET CITY: A provincial plan to build a second airport road took a small step forward earlier this week, thanks to 12 private landowners who donated land for the project. The handover took place on Monday night at the Ban Prujumpha School in Tambon Thepkrasattri, where the landowners personally handed over land title deeds and related documents to Phuket Governor…
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Phuket exit strategy: German youth to plead guilty
PHUKET CITY: The German teenager arrested in Phuket in March on child sex charges will plead guilty when he appears in court next month, the Gazette has learned. German Honorary Consul Dirk Naumann said the German mission has looked at the young man’s legal situation “from all angles”. They now believe the Thai legal system does not permit someone in…
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Beach football competition in Phuket
KARON, PHUKET: Karon Municipality is organizing a five-a-side beach football tournament in early August with 74,000 baht in prize money up for grabs. The competition, being held to celebrate HM Queen Sirikit’s birthday on August 12, will kick off on August 1. The competition is also aimed at encouraging healthy lifestyles and keeping children off drugs. Match play will take…
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Phuket may benefit, but free visas backfire on honorary consulates
PHUKET CITY: The future of honorary Thai consulates around the world is in doubt following the Thai government’s move to waive tourist visa fees until March 2010. The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday announced that as of today all foreigners applying for single-entry tourist visas at Thai embassies, consulates and honorary consulates will be exempt from fees. Some…
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Fire in Kata after vigilante smoke-out
PHUKET: Wasteland opposite Kata Night Bazaar was ablaze last night following attempts to smoke out a suspected thief on the run. At 7.30pm, eyewitnesses reported seeing a Burmese man snatch a mobile phone from another Burmese male outside a tailor’s shop on the busy Thai Na Road in Kata. The man then ran off in the direction of Kata Beach.…
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Free visa plan backfires on Thai honorary consulates
PHUKET CITY: The future of honorary Thai consulates around the world is in doubt following the Thai government’s move to waive tourist visa fees until March 2010.The Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday announced that as of today all foreigners applying for single-entry tourist visas at Thai embassies, consulates and honorary consulates will be exempt from fees.Yet some honorary Thai…
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Patong bars to close July 7, Asarnha Bucha Day
PATONG, PHUKET: All entertainment venues in Patong will close on July 7 to observe the Buddhist holiday of Asarnha Bucha. Sompetch Moosopon, president of the Patong Entertainment Business Association (PEBA), said the PEBA committee met at the Baan Sukhothai Hotel & Spa on Tuesday to discuss plans for Asarnha Bucha Day, which is a public holiday in Thailand. It was…
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Turk becomes latest Phuket drowning victim
PATONG, PHUKET: A Turkish man is Phuket’s latest foreign drowning victim. The drowning happened at about 5pm on Wednesday, on the stretch of Patong Beach opposite the Yee Teng Complex shophouses along the beach road. Witnesses said the Turk, later identified as Deniz Coban, was at the beach with his wife and friends when he ignored the red warning flags…
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Phuket’s Tah Chat Chai to go hi-tech
PHUKET CITY: In a bid to crack down on crime, Phuket province wants to set up an automatic license plate recognition (LPR) system and other high-tech security equipment at the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint. Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop on June 17 attended a demonstration of the LPR technology put on by representatives from Secom and the National Electronics and Computer…
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Pregnant woman gunned down in Krabi
PHUKET CITY: Police in Krabi are investigating the murder of a heavily pregnant woman gunned down in her home on Saturday night.Inspector Santhi Kongsiri of the Khao Panom Police identified the deceased as 19-year-old Sunee Phukaoluan. Also killed in the attack was her unborn child, only one month from full term.The killings follow a wave of violent crimes in Phuket,…
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When relatives stay too long…
AYUDHAYA: Every family has its own unique customs, but a family in Phak Hai District recently caught national attention when it was discovered keeping the corpse of a long-dead relative in the front room of the family home. Current guardian of the coffin, 36-year-old Samreng Yingyong, told reporters the body was that of his great-great uncle Phuangthong Lidkaho, who died…
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Phuket Immigration crackdown announced
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Immigration this morning held a press conference to announce measures aimed at improving compliance with immigration law, including the requirement that owners of all hotels, guesthouses and rental homes report foreigners on their premises to immigration within 24 hours of arrival. Phuket Immigration Superintendent Chanatpol Yongbunjerd told the press that the crackdown follows the recent arrest of…
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Phuket star among Miss Italia nel Mondo finalists
PHUKET / ITALY: Phuket resident and upcoming Thai-Italian star Maria Giulietta Consentino is representing Thailand in this year’s Miss Italia nel Mondo pageant currently underway in Veneto, Italy.Miss Consentino is one of 50 participants that have made it to the 2009 finals and who are currently being judged by a panel that includes Miss Italia nel Mondo 2008.As the pageant…
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Phang Nga trawler tragedy: 1 dead, 5 missing
PHUKET CITY: One man is dead and five still missing following a collision between a Phang Nga-based fishing trawler and a cargo ship off the coast of Chonburi. Kiattipong Parnsa-nga, 28-year-old captain of the trawler Sangjaroern 10, said the 21-meter vessel capsized after suddenly being struck by a cargo ship at about 2am yesterday. The accident occurred as the crew…
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Japanese yachtsman safe in Phuket after solo voyage
PHUKET: Sailing the Pacific Ocean, literally single-handedly with the use of only one arm, solo Japanese sailor Akio Yonago arrived in Phuket earlier this month, more than five weeks after setting off from the Seychelles on a solo voyage in his yacht EMU II.Mr Akio’s arrival in Phuket on June 8 was a relief to the international yachting community, and many…
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Good news for Phuket: swine flu infection rate falling
PHUKET CITY: In a sign that Thailand might be winning the war against swine flu, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) today announced a lower number of daily new cases, 43, compared to earlier this week. Disease Control Department Director Dr Somchai Chakrabhand believes the falloff in new cases, by almost half, is a sign that preventive measures in schools…
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Phuket impact: Gov’t should waive duty on luxury goods
PHUKET: A major retailer’s suggestion yesterday – that import duties be removed on luxury products – could draw more tourists to Phuket and boost Thailand’s economy. The measure was part of proposals made by Thailand ‘s largest retail conglomerate, Central Retail Corporation (CRC), along with with major suppliers who are seeking government support for retail and related industries. The priority…
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Phuket Q1 tourism figures down
PHUKET CITY: Although Thailand has seen a significant drop in tourist arrivals in the first quarter of 2009, Phuket is faring better than many other parts of the country, the head of the local tourism development office has said. Statistics released by the Office of Tourism Development showed an overall drop in international arrival figures nationwide from 5.5 million in…
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Phuket students fall ill from spoiled milk
PHUKET CITY: Seven Phuket City schools have stopped serving UHT milk purchased under the government’s “free milk for schoolchildren” program after 48 students at one school fell ill after drinking the milk yesterday. Sixteen children from Piboonsawaddee School in Phuket City were hospitalized after drinking the milk, while a further 32 students became ill but did not require hospital treatment.…
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Phuket’s premier viewpoint to get palms, paths
RAWAI, PHUKET: The beauty of Phuket’s famous Phromthep Cape is on the decline, the Mayor of Rawai warned yesterday. The death of palmyra trees and the trampling of grass by tourists have left the promontory scarred by patches of dry, yellow earth, Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos said. Mr Aroon met with Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop yesterday to discuss ways of…
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Software Park Phuket opens tomorrow
WICHIT, PHUKET: Software Park Phuket is to officially kick off services from its first phase of development with an opening ceremony tomorrow. Director Kongkiat Kespechara said the soft opening is intended to demonstrate the readiness of the park’s facilities and its business-incubation center. The first phase of development has cost about 25 million baht. The park has 1,250 square meters…
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Strong rains, heavy seas in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: The Meteorological Department (MET) has issued an advisory of strong monsoon conditions in Phuket over the next few days resulting in unusually rough seas and scattered showers with the possibility of torrential rain at times. In its national weather advisory issued earlier today, the MET reported that a trough of low pressure lies across the North and upper…
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Phuket beaches finally get lifeguards
PHUKET: It will come as little consolation to the families and friends of those who drowned off Phuket’s beaches in recent weeks, but lifeguards are finally in place on 12 of the popular local strands. New signs have also been erected at the beaches alerting tourists to the dangers of swimming during the monsoon season. A spokesman for the Phuket…
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Swine flu update: seven confirmed cases in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: There have been seven cases in Phuket of the viral infection that causes swine flu, but the situation is “under control”, health officials say. PPHO Office Director Dr Pongsawas Ratanasang told the Gazette that the first confirmed case was that of an Australian tourist who visited Phuket before moving on to Hong Kong, where he developed flu symptoms…
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Five-star hotel chef gunned down in Kathu
KATHU, PHUKET: A chef at a five-star resort in Phuket was gunned down in the early hours of yesterday morning. Kanchai Yoksri, 31, was found dead with two bullet wounds to the chest in front of the police radio monitoring station on Wichit Songkhram Road in Kathu. Tung Tong Police received a report of the shooting at 1am and rushed to…
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British, US warships on R&R in Phuket
CAPE PANWA, PHUKET: One of the largest and most revered ships in the British Royal Navy, the HMS Bulwark, docked at Phuket Deep Sea Port yesterday morning flanked by the USS Mitscher, an Arleigh Burke class destroyer. The 22,000-tonne HMS Bulwark – made famous for transporting 1,300 British escapees from Israeli air-strikes in Beirut in 2006 – has been operating…
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Phuket property worst hit at “high end”
PHUKET: More than 10 residential projects with a combined market value of nearly 10 billion baht remain “on hold” in Phuket, because demand from both domestic and foreign buyers – especially for luxury homes – has fallen to less than half of last year’s level. Wanwipa Horbut, deputy managing director of luxury property developer Surin Hill Development, said demand for…
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