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Phupanee and Yunsuwan crash out of Phuket Open Volleyball
KARON: Crowd favorites Orradee Phupanee and Aunchalee Yunsuwan of Thailand crashed out in straight sets (21-16 and 21-15), losing to the more experienced Swedish pairing of Tora Hansson and Camillia Nilsson yesterday in the Swatch FIVB Phuket 2008 Women’s Open volleyball tournament. The Swedes, seeded sixth, won the match in straight sets in just 27 minutes. At 16 years of…
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Bus crash claims 2, injures 30
MAI KHAO (NBT): A fully-loaded bus headed for Satun overturned and crashed at about 9 pm Sunday night, killing two people and injuring at least 30 more. The state-run Andaman News service reported that the accident occurred on the outbound lane of Thepkasattri Rd, in the Ban Maak Prok area of Mai Khao Village 1. Tah Chat Chai Police Superintendent Sakchai…
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Laguna Phuket turns to China, Middle East as Europe stays away
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket, the giant five-star resort complex on Bangtao Beach, Phuket, says it plans to look more and more towards China and the Middle East next year to compensate for a continuing plunge in bookings from European tourists. The operators expect the global financial crisis and domestic political unrest to continue affecting international arrivals next year, particularly Europeans, long…
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Stress taking a toll
BANGKOK (The Nation): Heads of families or breadwinners in urban areas in Bangkok and 18 other provinces are suffering from stress due to political turmoil and economic woes, an Abac poll revealed yesterday. The poll was conducted from October 10 to November 1. Of 3,293 respondents surveyed, 59 per cent said they were ‘stressed out’ by the country’s ongoing political…
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Alarm over HIV infection among gay men
BANGKOK / PHUKET: While the overall figure for people living with HIV/Aids is declining, new infections among men who have sex with men have been increasing drastically during the past few years, causing grave concern at the Public Health Ministry. Dr Somchai Chakrabhand, Director General of the Disease Control Department, said yesterday that a recent survey of gay men across…
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Flushed condoms trigger sewage catastrophe
PATHUM THANI: Most people have been warned at some point not to flush condoms down the toilet for risk of blocking the outflow pipe and having a nasty overflowing toilet to deal with. But who has ever seen it actually happen? The management of one short-time hotel in Muang District discovered, to its chagrin, that a steady input of second-hand…
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Central gets its HomeWorks done
WICHIT: After a year under construction, the 1-billion-baht HomeWorks home improvement mall opened its doors to the public for the first time on Saturday, October 25. Built by the CRC Power Retail Company Limited, one of the many arms of the massive Central Retail Corporation, the bypass road’s latest mega-retail outlet is located at the Darasamuth School Intersection, right across…
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AOT launches “Lucky Flight’ promo at Phuket Airport
MAI KHAO: The Airports Authority Of Thailand (AOT) launched its three-day “Lucky Flight by AOT” promotion on Monday, when some of the 250 passengers arriving aboard Thai Airways flight TG 1205 won presents in a lucky draw held upon their arrival at 11 am. Manager magazine’s on-line Thai language news service quoted Phuket International Airport (PIA) deputy director Sucheeb Sansiripan…
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Big Buddha gets big bell
KARON: Work on the the enormous Buddha image in the Nakkerd Hills is now about 90% complete and a huge bronze bell was installed at the site to mark King Chulalongkorn Memorial Day on Thursday.The one-million baht bell, which weighs one metric ton, was a gift from the Rassada Cooperative Credit Union. Work on the image, officially known as Phra…
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Regional haze pollution may diminish this year
CHERNG TALAY: In one of his first official acts as Governor, Dr Preecha Ruangjan represented the province at a multinational meeting aimed at reducing forest fires and haze in the region. The gathering, the Sixth Meeting of the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Trans-boundary Haze Pollution, was hosted at the Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket Resort on October 22. The…
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Man suspected of journalist killing turns himself in
NAKHON SRI THAMMARAT: A man wanted on suspicion of involvement in the killing of Matichon journalist Athiwat Chainurat handed himself in to authorities in Nakhon Sri Thammarat on October 22. Lamduan “Kop” Kaowsisot, 25, from Bang Khan District gave himself up to Amnuay Jaritngam, headman of Village 1, Tambon Ban Lamnao, Bang Khan District after learning that a warrant for…
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Copulating couple cause culture shock
UTTARADIT: Government officials in Uttaradit have been put on high alert after a teenage couple was caught having sex right outside the culture office in the Provincial Hall on the afternoon of September 20. On that day, the town was packed with people coming to watch a festival being held in Phraya Phichai Dap Hak Sports Stadium, opposite the hall.…
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Police to launch traffic law crackdown
PHUKET CITY: In an attempt to reduce road accidents, Phuket Provincial Police have vowed to get tough on traffic violations under a new road-safety program, the state-run Andaman News service has reported on the NBT network. The National Police Bureau will reactivate a traffic and road safety center in a bid to stem the alarming number of deaths resulting from…
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Preecha Ruangjan installed as new governor
PHUKET CITY: Preecha Ruangjan took office as the new Phuket Governor at Provincial Hall on Monday. Gov Preecha, who comes to Phuket after serving as governor of his home province of Phichit, paid his respects to the statue of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in front of Provincial Hall, then accepted flower baskets from many top officials and department heads. Tomorrow,…
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Chai-Anan elected Kathu mayor
KATHU: By exactly 1,000 votes, Chai-Anan Suttikun beat rival candidate Somkid Choosawat in the October 12 election for Mayor of Kathu, Phuket Election Committee (PEC) Director Supap Akkam has confirmed. Mr Chai-Anan, representing the Rak Kathu (Love Kathu) party, garnered 4,815 votes, while Mr Somkid from rival party Kathu Pattana (Kathu Development) secured 3,815 votes. The result makes Mr Chai-Anan…
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Man charged with Tesco midnight robberies
TAH CHAT CHAI: Stepped-up security at the Tah Chat Chai police checkpoint has resulted in the arrest of a man wanted for stealing merchandise valued at more than 100,000 baht from the Tesco-Lotus store on the bypass road. At a press conference led by Phuket Provincial Police Commander Apirak Hongthong on Friday, the suspect was identified as Manorom Aksorniem, from…
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Truck gone wild, but nobody hurt
PHUKET: A truck crashed through a roadside wall and careened down a steep embankment after its brakes failed this afternoon. No one was hurt in the accident, which occurred at about 5pm on Ake-Wanich Rd where nearby hillside land is being cleared for the construction of several apartment blocks.
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Two survive family “wipeout’ attempt
SAKOO: Police are investigating two possible motives for the shooting attack that left two rubber tappers dead and a third critically injured high in the Layan hills on Friday afternoon. Tah Chat Chai Police Inspector Somkid Khaosang identified the two deceased as Suppachai Nuan-eung and Boonrit Inthong. Both men were found dead at their hillside home, located off Layan Rd…
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Salang revives threat
BANGKOK (The Nation): Police General Salang Bunnag yesterday revived his threat to “retake” Government House from the anti-government protesters, saying that his planned operation would begin after a religious ceremony to be held nearby on Wednesday. Salang, a former deputy police chief, said he would lead more than 1,000 inactive or retired policemen to retake the compound and return it…
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Google Maps launched for Phuket businesses
PHUKET: The Gazette Guide, Phuket’s local business directory (yellow pages), has today announced the availability of Google Maps to its roughly 4,000 listed businesses. Users of the online version of the directory can now pinpoint precisely where a business is located – a major benefit in a community where postal addresses are often more confounding than enlightening. An example of…
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Committee reverses decision on bypass U-turn
WICHIT: The U-turn on the bypass road in front of Phuket International Hospital (PIH) will remain open until a new set of traffic lights is completed further to the north, a provincial committee on traffic and road safety has decided. In a letter published in a local Thai-language newspaper on October 13, Phuket Governor Niran Kalyanamit announced the committee’s decision,…
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PAD protest on National Police Day
PHUKET CITY: Ceremonies on Monday morning marking National Police Day had some unexpected guests, when some 300 People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protesters turned up to express their anger at the death of two PAD protesters who died from injuries sustained in clashes with police outside Parliament in Bangkok on October 7. Despite the unexpected guests, the ceremony got underway…
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Ruling party tense after PM Somchai’s royal audience
BANGKOK (The Nation): Repoters and People Power Party MPs were scrambling last night to try to verify claims that Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat might dissolve Parliament. A grim-looking Somchai was tight-lipped upon his return from a royal audience with HM the King in Hua Hin, saying only that he gave the monarch “a normal report” on government work. When asked…
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Governor Niran to be transferred to Bangkok
PHUKET: After serving eight years in Phuket, Governor Niran Kalayanamit will now leave the province, the state-run NBT news agency has announced. Governor Niran was initially transferred to Phuket as a vice-governor and was promoted to governor on November 1, 2006. His request to be transferred to his native Bangkok has been approved, where he will take up the post…
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New reservoir filling up
THALANG: Work on Phuket’s second major reservoir at Bang Neaw Dum in Srisoothorn is almost complete, with one million cubic meters of water already being held behind the dam. Supinyo Hoonpadungrat, head of the Phuket Provincial Irrigation Office, said that work on the earthen dam, spillway and associated waterworks is now “about 97% complete”. Mr Supinyo expects about 3.5 million…
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Province launches mobile “anti-poverty” clinic
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Province this morning launched a “Mobile Anti-Poverty Clinic” aimed at eliminating poverty in the province in accordance with government policy. The opening festivities took place on the grounds in front of Phuket Provincial Hall this morning, with Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha presiding. Naep Sinthong, who heads the province’s community development services unit, said the project is…
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Bangkok Airways gears up for high season
BANGKOK: Bangkok Airways will increase frequency on its Bangkok-Phuket and Phuket-Samui routes during the high season with a new schedule that starts on October 26, the carrier has announced. For the Bangkok-Phuket route, flights will leave Suvarnabhumi Airport at 8.10 am, 11.45 am and 5:30 pm. Flight time is just under 1.5 hours. For its Phuket-Samui route, flights will leave…
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Chalong Police step up patrols
CHALONG: In an effort to step up security at the south end of the island, Chalong Police on October 4 set up checkpoints on all five roads leading to Chalong Circle and increased night-time patrols in the Rawai Beach area. On October 8, a duty officer told the Gazette that no more muggers were caught, but two foreigners were found…
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Kamala beachfront shops destroyed
KAMALA: In an effort to beautify the beach front at Kamala, nearly 50 illegally-built businesses were bulldozed away on October 7 creating more walking space for tourists. Santi Atthasap, Vice President of the Kamala Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor), told the Gazette that the move was in line with a provincial policy to keep beaches tidy and attractive. The temporary structures,…
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