News
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Sponsored 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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Bt3.8m toilets completed at Phuket’s Laem Phromthep
PHUKET: A new restroom costing 3.8 million baht at Phuket’s landmark tourist attraction Laem Phromthep is now complete, but not yet ready for business. The men’s toilets feature six cubicles and eight urinals, while women’s facilities are served through 11 separate chambers. A ceremony to mark the transfer of the new toilets from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports’ Office…
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Call for action over illegal Burmese workers in Phuket
PHUKET: The Phuket Chamber of Commerce (PCC) is demanding that action be taken to deal with the the large and growing population of Burmese in Phuket. Dr Sirichai Silapa-archa, chairman of the PCC and also a deputy director at Vachira Phuket Hospital, told the Gazette that the number of newborns at Vachira alone ranges from about 60 to 100 a…
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Art Village Weekend at Royal Phuket Marina
PHUKET: Art lovers will want to visit Royal Phuket Marina (RPM) on September 18 and 19, designated “Art Village Weekend”. The weekend includes several forms of art and music, including paintings, sculptures, mixed media, handmade products, batik apparel, postcards, tattoos, performance art, shadow puppet shows as well as performances by local bands and other talented artists. All are invited to…
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Phuket convention center should open mid-2014
PHUKET: Work on a world-class conference and exhibition center for Phuket should begin next year and be ready to open by mid-2014, project consultants told two recent public hearings. The meetings about the proposed Phuket International Convention and Exhibition Center (Phuket-ICEC), planned for the island’s northern tip, met with no serious opposition, but some concerns over environmental impact and infrastructure…
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Thai attitude to foreign labor needs urgent fix
BANGKOK: If Thailand is to move forward as a nation, we have a moral obligation to be fair. In what is billed as the largest human-trafficking case ever brought by the US federal government, six contractors have been accused of a scheme to hold 400 Thai workers in virtual slavery on farms in Hawaii and Washington State. Global Horizons Manpower…
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Phuket Surf Lifesaving Carnival a hit with tourists
PHUKET: The Surf Lifesaving Carnival was in full swing today as spectators, bands, surfers and VIPs gathered on Patong Beach for some fun in the sun. The event, organized by the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization and sponsored by the Phuket Gazette, began at 9am with competitive events with age categories ranging from under 15s to over 50s. Among the numerous…
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Phuket primed for tsunami warning drill
PHUKET: The National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) has confirmed the precise times the NDWC will sound the tsunami warning towers in the six Andaman provinces, including Phuket, during the full-scale evacuation drill on Monday. Dr Somsak Khaosuwan, director of the NDWC’s warning system management team, this morning told the Gazette that the tsunami warning towers will sound at four times:…
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Phuket Punchline Comedy returns in October
PHUKET: Following the success of its sell-out show in June, the Phuket Punchline Comedy Club will return to the Holiday Inn Resort in Patong on October 13 with three more top-class comedians. Set to take the stage this time are Englishman Pierre Hollins, Australian Darren Sanders and Philberto from Portugal. Pierre Hollins claims the only “proper jobs” he’s ever had…
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U-turn scheme planned to solve Phuket bus woes
PHUKET: Hopes are being pinned on a novel approach to traffic control to solve the problem of how cross-country buses will head north after departing Phuket’s new provincial bus terminal on Thepkrasattri Rd southbound in Rassada. How buses will head north is one of two crucial issues facing the new terminal, which has been sitting idle since its completion in…
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Tsunam drill puts Phuket students on alert
PHUKET: Some 350 primary school students in Patong ran for higher ground today in a tsunami drill organized by the Phuket office of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket). At 1pm yesterday, the students at Baan Sainamyen School in Patong were split into two groups and educated about tsunamis by DDPM-Phuket officer Thanakuan Pinthong. After the information session,…
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Diesel salvage mission off Phuket still on hold
PHUKET: Efforts to salvage the sunken Choke Thaworn 6 and its cargo of some 25,000 liters of diesel fuel remain on hold today due to big waves and strong currents. Members of the media were yesterday taken aboard a Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) vessel to the site, 12 nautical miles off Phuket’s southwest coast. At the site…
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Pheu Thai presents reconciliation plan to Phuket
PHUKET: A regional spokesman for the opposition Pheu Thai Party was in Phuket yesterday to promote the party’s plan for national reconciliation. Chaturont Kochasiha addressed an audience of party coordinators and the media at the new Pheu Thai ‘Andaman Operations Center’ in the Phuket City Home estate in Rassada. Mr Chaturont said he had come to the island to help…
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Corpse confusion: mix-up in Phuket morgue
PHUKET: Mourners at the funeral of a British man in Chalong were shocked to discover that the corpse handed over to them by staff at Vachira Phuket Hospital was not his, but that of an unidentified Westerner. William John “Bill” Young, 61, of Ipswich, England, passed away in his sleep on Friday, September 3, a friend told the Gazette. Friends…
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Construction of new Phuket incinerator underway
PHUKET: Work to build Phuket’s second incinerator at Saphan Hin is underway and the 940-million-baht facility should be completed by the end of the year, a provincial committee on trash management issues was told on Wednesday. Prachoom Suriya, who heads the Phuket City Municipality Environmental Division, told the Phuket Provincial Trash Management Committee that project contractor PJT Technology is now…
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Lifeguard expert in Phuket calls for new rescue equipment
PHUKET: Ahead of the Phuket Surf Life Saving Carnival in Patong this Saturday, an expert surf lifesaving trainer from Australia has called for Phuket lifeguards to introduce different equipment to help them save lives at Phuket beaches. David Field, an assessor with Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA) with 20 years’ experience in lifesaving, has called for Phuket lifeguards to use…
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Toxic waste collection drive in Phuket
PHUKET: A special tent has been set up at Saphan Hin as a collection point for toxic waste materials for safe, off-island disposal.The project, started on Monday, invites households, businesses and government organizations to bring any and all toxic waste to the tent, located near the basketball gymnasium.Light bulbs, batteries of all sorts, toxic packaging and other dangerous materials not…
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Suthep confirms possible assassination attempt rumor
The National News Bureau of Thailand this afternoon reports that Deputy Prime Minister for Security Affairs Suthep Thaugsuban admits there are reports of possible assassination attempts on important figures, but no reports of such attempts to occur during the upcoming red-shirt rallies on 19 September. Deputy Prime Minister Suthep said he has instructed the police to tighten security, although there…
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Global scorching; Thai Banks also scorched; Tales of two TATs
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Scorching forecast for Thailand PHUKET: In the next 35 years, the temperature in Thailand will rise a whopping 3 to 4 degrees Celsius, which will result in the eastern provinces being inundated in 300 millimetres of rainfall…
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Diesel salvage mission off Phuket resumes today
PHUKET: The mission to raise the sunken Choke Taworn 6 and its cargo of diesel fuel was postponed yesterday due to rough sea conditions. The effort will resume at 10am today, weather permitting. Rear Admiral Nawin Thananet, Chief of Staff of the Royal Thai Navy’s Third Area Command, said yesterday that visual inspection of the diesel tanks by divers revealed…
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FC Phuket hoist championship trophy, down Phang Nga FC 2-1
PHUKET: Goals either side of halftime from Thawin Butrsombat and Nithirot Sukuma were enough to ease FC Phuket to a 2-1 home win over Phang Nga FC at Surakul Stadium last night. Thawin, signed during the mid-season break, put the Southern Sea Kirin 1-0 up after just seven minutes, when he kept his composure in the box to finish off…
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Phuket barber found dead inside shop
PHUKET: Thalang Police think a barber found dead in his shop in Pa Khlok yesterday afternoon died of natural causes at least five days earlier. Thalang Police duty inspector Seksan Komsakorn identified the remains as those of 44-year-old Pira Ruengsamut, a Ranong native who had operated the shop in Ban Ao Por for many years. Thalang Police arrived at the…
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Phuket sails in China; Phuket air lift; Reliable police?
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Team Phuket to sail in China PHUKET: The Nation reports that ‘Team Phuket King’s Cup Regatta’ has entered the China Cup International Regatta, to take place in Daya Bay, Shenzhen, China from October 29 to November 1.…
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New Phuket Town market finally opens for business
PHUKET: The new market on Ranong Road finally opened for business on Sunday, despite the refusal by a handful of holdout vendors to sign the contracts and occupy stalls they are entitled to. On the ground floor are stalls selling fresh meat, seafood and dry foods. Below, in the basement level, are small restaurants and vendors selling fresh fruit and…
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Cook arrested for religious icon theft in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket Police on Sunday arrested a thief who tried to return two stolen religious relics to their rightful owner, claiming they had brought him bad luck. News of the arrest came at a press conference at Chalong Police Station yesterday afternoon. Chalong Superintendent Police Colonel Wichit Intorrasorn identified the culprit as 36-year-old Janya Tongboonto, a resident of Karon. Presented…
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Choke Thavorn 6 salvage to begin off Phuket today
PHUKET: Efforts to salvage sunken transport vessel Choke Thavorn 6 are scheduled to begin at about 4pm today, weather permitting. Rear Admiral Nawin Thananet, Chief of Staff of the Royal Thai Navy’s Third Area Command, said the salvage effort will be conducted by the vessel’s owner and the Harbormaster Department. “We will just observe the operation and help them if…
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Phuket tuk-tuk hero spoils drunken thief’s getaway bid
PHUKET: A Phuket tuk-tuk driver’s bravery led to the arrest of a man who allegedly tried to steal more than 170,000 baht from his employer early on Monday night. Tuk-tuk driver Phathaphon Phumdee, 34, was driving a fare to Phuket Bus Terminal 1 on Phang Nga Road in Phuket Town when his cell phone rang. It was his wife calling…
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Tragic irony: Phuket road rescue volunteer dies in horror smash
PHUKET: A volunteer emergency rescue worker, who used his spare time to help Phuket road accident victims, died this morning when his own car slammed into a power pole on Chao Fa West Road in Chalong. Chalong Police duty officer Anukul Nuket and fellow officers responded to a call at 1:20am today reporting that a black Honda sedan had overshot…
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Swiss man falls to his death in Phuket
PHUKET: A Swiss man fell to his death from the third-floor balcony of his home on a Patong hillside this morning. The man was living in a rented home on Phisit Gorani Rd, Soi 1 in Patong, not far from Suwankhiriwong Temple, at the time of his death. The man’s live-in Thai girlfriend, a woman of about 30 years old…
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Readers’ Poll: Would an ‘Asean Visa’ help Phuket?
PHUKET: For years, Asean members have been working to develop a single “Asean visa” that would allow free travel within the bloc. Such a visa would closely follow the highly-praised “Schengen visa”, which allows free travel throughout 15 European countries. Last month, former tourism minister Weerasak Kowsurat called for more support for the project, saying it would boost tourism within…
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Phuket Poll: 60% think current ‘low’ season a bad one
PHUKET: About 60% of respondents to a Phuket Gazette poll believe that tourism businesses on the island are doing poorly in the current low season. In total, well over half of respondents (58.7%) had a negative view: 33.6% said the economy was doing “not very well”, while 25.6% said it was doing “very badly” The remainder had positive views: 26.6%…
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