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How much is Thai health insurance?
Health insurance in Thailand is essential for expats and locals, providing financial protection and access to quality care. Costs depend on age, health, and coverage level, with basic plans being cheaper but limited and comprehensive plans offering more benefits at...
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Phuket official stabbed by accident
PHUKET: A municipal official who tried to break up a lovers’ quarrel on Patong Beach yesterday evening is being treated in a Phuket hospital for a stab wound after his stomach was accidentally sliced open by an enraged young woman. Patong Municipality officer Prakij “Oh” Phenjun was on Patong Beach at about 7:30pm yesterday when he heard a young man…
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Pitch invasion fail!
PHUKET: Memories of Eric Cantona’s attack on Crystal Palace supporter Matthew Simmons – when he jumped into the crowd kung-fu style – came flooding back at a Dutch KNVB Cup match on Wednesday evening.With seven minutes remaining in the first half during Ajax and AZ Alkmaar’s last 16 cup tie, a home fan evaded security, ran on to the pitch…
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Bagged testicle puts Scott Dann out of action
PHUKET: “Our physio [Dave Fevre] cannot believe it. He has two players [Dann and Givet] out with problems he has never come across before in all his years of experience.”Blackburn Rovers manager Steve Kean explains that striker Scott Dann has sustained a ruptured testicle while putting the ball in the back of the net during the Rovers’ painful 2-1 defeat…
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MMA fighter Junie Browning surrenders to Phuket Police
PHUKET: Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter Junie Browning turned himself over the Chalong Police yesterday afternoon. Mr Browning walked into Chalong Police Station at about 2pm with his lawyer and filed a counter-complaint against Australian Simon Menzies. Mr Menzies had already filed a complaint against Mr Browning after the pair became involved in a brawl in a bar in Karon.…
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Young dad dies in high-speed Phuket crash
PHUKET: A young father died instantly in a high-speed single car crash yesterday after his car spun out of control while he was rushing to pick up his child from school in Phuket Town. Tung Tong Police Duty Officer Watthanathon Bamrungthin told the Phuket Gazette that 28-year-old Boonrit Aphithammawong was on his way from Patong, where he worked as a…
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Phuket Media Watch – Indonesian protests; flash flooding
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Dozens of Indonesians sew mouths shut in deforestation protest Phuket GazetteA group of Indonesian protesters have sewed their mouths shut in a protest against deforestation which took place in front of the parliament building in the capital this week, the Jakarta Globe reported today. Ten more…
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Phuket blitz on booze in New Year gift baskets
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Public Health Office (PPHO) yesterday launched a series of raids on major retailers selling New Year gift baskets to ensure that they do not contain alcoholic beverages. “I have informed all major retailers that New Year gift baskets may not contain alcohol,” said PPHO chief Dr Sak Tanchaikul. “The PPHO have right to report to the…
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Tsunami no longer a factor in Khao Lak tourism: Survey
SPECIAL REPORTby Bill Barnett PHUKET: Phuket and other provinces along the Andaman Coast are currently making preparations to mark the seventh anniversary since the tsunami struck on December 26, 2004. However, a market survey just released by brand agency Quo Global has concluded that memories of the 2004 tsunami no longer negatively affect decisions to travel to the Thai resort…
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Pornthip Phuket packaging takes to world stage
PHUKET: Pornthip (Phuket) Co Ltd, the island’s most recognized food-gift brand, submitted two of its award-winning products to contest in the AsiaStar Awards 2011, also known as the “Packaging Oscars of Asia”. Having recently achieved national recognition at the ThaiStar Packaging Awards 2011, Pornthip’s Andaman and Sino-Portuguese gift sets will now join the regional ranks along with 54 other submissions…
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Phuket’s labor shortage critical
PHUKET: Industry analysts describe the labor shortage in the Phuket tourism industry as “critical”, with as many as 4,000 vacant hotel positions as the island enters its annual high season for tourism. Bhuritt Maswongsa, a vice president of the Phuket Tourist Association, said, “The lack of hotel employees has now reached a crisis point with 3,000 to 4,000 unfilled positions.…
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FC Phuket unable to fend off Elephant Cavalry charge
PHUKET: FC PHUKET were defeated 1-0 by Suphanburi FC last night in front of a somewhat rowdy home crowd at Surakul Stadium in Phuket Town. The game’s only goal came in the 30th minute by the visitor’s Cameroonian import, Ronald Kufoin Djam, who initially flicked the ball to the back post from a corner kick by Santi Chaiyaphauk. The ball…
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Border agreement reached by Thailand and Cambodia; Burma and Thailand economic co-operation
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Agreement reached to withdraw troops from border The Nation / Phuket Gazette Thailand and Cambodia agreed yesterday to comply with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) order to withdraw troops from the disputed border area near the Preah Vihear Temple following a meeting of the General…
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Second Phuket incinerator ‘onstream by March’
PHUKET: The second trash incinerator currently under construction at the Saphan Hin facility is expected to be operational by March. Chief Prachum Suriya, Phuket City Municipality, Environmental Division, detailed the progress made so far in the construction of the incinerator, which started in 2009 and is now about 80 per cent complete. The new incinerator is expected to have the…
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FC Phuket call for massive support tonight against Suphanburi FC
PHUKET: FC Phuket players and coaching staff are appealing for a flood of fan support for tonight’s league match against Suphanburi FC, also known as the “Elephant-back Warriors”. Assistant Coach Apichart “Mo” Mosika asked the Phuket Gazette to encourage FC Phuket fans to be at Surakul Stadium tonight for the team’s 31st game of the 2011 Division One schedule. “It…
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Phuket Media Watch – Russian oil rig sank; Helicopter crashes in Siberia
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community More bodies found after oil rig sinks in southeastern Russia Phuket Gazette Nearly a dozen more bodies were found on Monday after an oil rig sank in southeastern Russia on Sunday, local media reported on Tuesday. Dozens more remain missing and are feared to have been…
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Machine gun seized in Phuket meth raid
PHUKET: Police conducting drug raids on three houses in Mai Khao, at the northern tip of Phuket, today seized a slew of guns, including a .45 Thompson submachine gun. Armed with search warrants, officers from Tah Chat Chai Police Station first searched the home of 38-year-old Chaicharn Kao-ian, where they found 60 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills hidden in his washing…
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Phuket Gov to give ‘key to City’ away for Red Cross Fair
PHUKET: This year’s Red Cross Fair will be held from December 29 to January 8, 2012 at Saphan Hin central stage in Phuket Town. The opening ceremony, starting at 6pm on December 29, will feature a fireworks show, and performances by nationally-renowned acts will be staged every night. As in years past, the most anticipated event will be the charity…
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Phuket Business: Bad investments – a fiscal toy story
PHUKET: I often write about things which I think may or may not be worth considering as an investment. Today I would like to try and get my readers to understand some things which generally are considered as bad investments. Professionals in my industry usually will vary greatly on their opinions of what is a good investment at any one…
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Live Wire – Fourth 3G supplier to aid Phuket
PHUKET: May I present some good news, some not-so-good news, and some news that keeps crawling out of the mailbag, like a gift from Santa that can’t be returned. We’ve waited years for 3G wireless internet service in Thailand. Now, suddenly, over the course of the past six months, we’ve got 3G coming out of our ears, in a wide…
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Phuket Media Watch – Man confesses to setting elderly woman on fire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Man confesses to setting elderly woman on fire in NYC elevator Phuket GazetteA 47-year-old man has confessed to killing an elderly woman by setting her on fire in a New York City elevator during the weekend, local media reported on Monday. Jerome Issac turned himself in…
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Phuket Town hotel raises stink over fish factory smell
PHUKET: The Silver Hotel in Phuket Town has complained to the province that odor from a nearby seafood processing plant is costing them up to 400,000 baht monthly in lost revenue. Phuket Vice Governor Somkiat Sangkaosuttirak met with Silver Hotel Managing Director Monluck Tantipornsawat on Thursday to discuss the issue. The formal complaint followed an inspection of the nearby Phuket…
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Expert panel to lead Phuket tsunami memorial activities
PHUKET: A panel of experts led by Dr Smith Dharmasaroj, former head of the National Disaster Warning Center, will stage a public discussion on disaster management as part of the tsunami memorial services on December 26 this year. Dr Smith, also a former head of the Thai Meteorological Department, is renowned as the man who warned the Thai government to…
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Phuket hotel reimburses robbed Aussie tourists
PHUKET: The management of a Phuket hotel agreed to pay some 150,000 baht in compensation to an Australian couple who claimed their room safe was robbed of 255,000 baht. Australian tourist Jim Nagi, 44, said he first noticed cash missing from the safe in his hotel room at the Andaman Beach Suites Hotel in Patong on December 8. “At first,…
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Phuket Media Watch – Death toll nears 1,000 in the Philippines
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Death toll nears 1,000 after Tropical Storm Sendong hits the Philippines Phuket Gazette The death toll after Tropical Storm Sendong hit the southeastern Philippines over the weekend has surpassed 950, emergency officials said on Tuesday morning. Dozens more remain missing. Sendong made landfall over the northeastern…
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Don’t judge Thorpe… yet.
PHUKET: “It’s not a concern now. Maybe later, but now it’s too premature. I’m in training at the moment. I don’t look at where I come in the race.” Ian Thorpe, former Olympic and world swimming champion, said it was much too early to judge his recent comeback results in Italy. Thorpe finished 16th overall in the 100m freestyle and…
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Dispute between Phuket expats may lead to charges of extortion
PHUKET: Police yesterday arrested a restaurant owner in Phuket’s busy tourist town of Patong, on Phuket’s west coast, after he visited another Patong restaurant owner and threatened him if he didn’t “repay” 7 million baht. Lt Col Tammasan Boonsong told the Phuket Gazette today that he arrived at Orient Restaurant at 7pm last night with a squad of police officers…
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Villagers mourn death of Plai Sang, 67
PHUKET: Villagers of Lam Tab District in Krabi, a 40-minute boat ride across Phang Nga Bay from Phuket, are mourning the death of one of their most respected members – 67-year-old Plai Sang. The bull elephant was caught in 1956 and is believed to have been a sibling of Plai Pra Sawet, a highly respected elephant that was caught and…
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Chalong Marina ready in 2012
PHUKET: Work on the 70-million-baht Chalong Bay Marina project is now about 90% complete and should be finished early in the new year, officials say. Phuriphat Teerakulpisut, Chief of the Marine Department Region 5 office in Phuket Town, said opening of the 44-slip facility will improve the island’s ability to accommodate the growing number of yachts that port in Phuket…
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MMA bar brawler Junie Browning: “not in Phuket’
PHUKET: Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter Junie Browning, who is wanted by Phuket Police for his role in two serious brawls, has contacted the Phuket Gazette with his detailed version of events. At the time of posting, the Gazette was seeking comments from people and institutions mentioned in Mr Browning’s version of events. In his email below, Mr Browning did…
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Yvon Van Eyersen cremated in Phuket
PHUKET: A small group of friends and Red Cross officials gathered at Wat Saen Suk on Wednesday for the somber cremation ceremony of long-time Phuket resident Yvon Van Eyersen of Belgium. Mr Van Eyersen passed away early Tuesday morning, immediately after staff at Vachira Phuket Hospital turned off his life support apparatus. The Belgian suffered a stroke early some time…
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