News
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Phuket car used in mega-heist; foreigners suspected
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: Police say a Toyota sedan owned by a Phuket person is believed to have been the vehicle used by the robbers in Friday’s 12-million baht robbery. The heist occurred outside the Krung Thai Bank headquarters in Bangkok. The…
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Pagunsan wins at Laguna Phuket
PHUKET: Juvic Pagunsan from the Philippines recorded his first win on the Mercedes-Benz Tour yesterday following a runaway seven-stroke victory in the US$60,000 Mercedes-Benz Masters Thailand at Laguna Phuket Golf Club. Starting the day with a four-stoke lead he closed with a five-under-par 65. Thailand’s Udorn Duangdecha claimed outright second after shooting a 68 while Lam Chih Bing from Singapore…
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Phuket Expo dream: Could it end our transport nightmare?
PHUKET: The prospect of Phuket winning a bid to host World Expo 2020 is an exciting one, but there are huge hurdles to overcome if the island is to be ready for the task. [See page 4, current issue of the Phuket Gazette. Digital subscribers click here.] Phuket easily satisfies most of the criteria needed to be a World Expo…
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Phuket to crack down on World Cup gambling
PHUKET: Phuket authorities are preparing to crack down on gambling during the soccer World Cup that kicks off on June 11. Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop told a law enforcement committee at Provincial Hall on May 26 that locals and tourists would be keenly following the tournament, not only for the love of the game, but also for gambling. Gov Wichai…
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Five vehicle pile-up in Phuket
PHUKET: Slippery road conditions last night led to a five-vehicle pile-up on the bypass road that left one pick-up truck upended in a roadside drainage ditch and several people injured. The accident happened at about 6:15pm in the southbound lanes, about two kilometers north of the Tesco-Lotus junction near the Thanachart Bank. Just after light rain started, a motorcycle with…
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An inconvenient curfew
UBON RATCHATHANI: Two young drunks arrested for allegedly smashing up a 7-Eleven convenience store told police the attack was motivated by hunger. Suspects Kasemsan Saiwong, 19, and Sorayut Saithong, 20, said they launched the attack in anger at the store closing early because of the curfew in place in Ubon and other provinces. Police received a report in the early…
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Seniors World Cup semifinal matches in Phuket today
PHUKET: Two semifinal matches in the 5th Seniors World Cup soccer tournament will take place at Surakul Stadium today. The first match, which kicks off at 4:30pm, will see undefeated Group A winners Iran take on New Zealand. Then, from 6:30pm, Group B winners Australia, also undefeated, take on hometown favorites Thailand in what promises to be a hotly contested…
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Phuket prepares for landslides
PHUKET: Many hillside areas of Phuket are at serious risk of landslides this rainy season, the Phuket Office of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket) has warned. DDPM-Phuket chief San Jantharawong said that torrential rainfall can hit at any time during the monsoon, which typically runs from May though October. Especially vulnerable to landslides are steep areas where construction work exposes…
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Road warriors: Phuket Tourist Association goes to Australia
PHUKET: In a bid to tempt more tourists from down under, the Phuket Tourist Association (PTA) is planning a September road show to Australia. PTA President Somboon Jirayut said he was targeting Australia because there were direct flights to Phuket from most major cities there, including Perth, Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. “The association is also planning road shows in China,…
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Phuket tops investor sentiment for Thai property
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: Various measures are being taken in Thailand to promote tourism as foreigners have not yet returned in the aftermath of the political violence. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is organizing a series of events and campaigns to…
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Pattaraphol leads at Laguna Phuket
PHUKET: Thailand’s talented crop of young golfers flourished once again yesterday at the US$60,000 Mercedes-Benz Masters Thailand, with new kid on the block Pattaraphol Khanthacha taking the halfway lead. The 20-year-old from Ratchaburi shot his second successive five-under-par 65 for a tournament total of 10-under-par 130. He leads by one stroke over Filipino Juvic Pagunsan at Laguna Phuket Golf Club.…
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US consular visit to Phuket
PHUKET: The Consular Section of the American Embassy in Bangkok will be in Phuket for a consular outreach visit at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort and Spa in Karon on June 14, from 8am to noon. The following services will be available: – Passport renewal applications; – Notarial services and certified copies, including income affidavits for retirees; – Applications for…
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Phuket man slain by Leo-wielding Lao
PHUKET: A drunken Lao man was arrested today for killing a friend by slashing his throat with a broken beer bottle. He confessed to the crime, telling police he acted out of rage after the man used his money to buy beer instead of rice whisky. Chalong Police led by Wichit Intorrasorn held a press conference at noon to announce…
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Rajabhat Phuket in Bt395m expansion
PHUKET: Phuket Rajabhat University (PKRU) is currently undergoing a large expansion, with six new buildings under construction under a 395-million-baht development project. First established as part of the national teacher’s college network in 1971, the school was subsequently elevated to institute status and finally became a full university in 2004. Thirty years ago, the school had about 100 teachers and…
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Phuket to feature in relaunch of ‘playground’
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: The Thailand Incentive and Convention Association (TICA) plans to relaunch Ratchaprasong as Bangkok’s most favourite playground next month, when top executives of 30 multinational companies will be brought to Bangkok and Phuket on a fam trip. Phuket gets…
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Phuket teen shines at Mercedes-Benz Masters golf tournament
PHUKET: The opening day of the US$60,000 Mercedes-Benz Masters Thailand witnessed some sensational low scoring, with four players taking the lead with course record five-under-par 65s and a 13-year-old amateur upstaging the professionals with a 67. Thais Wisut Artjanawat, Ratsak Hansapiban and Pattaraphol Khanthacha and Singaporean Lam Chih Bing lead the way after confident rounds at the Laguna Phuket Golf…
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7th annual Prison Products Fair in Phuket
PHUKET: The seventh annual Prison Products Fair will take place at Saphan Hin starting at 9am on Friday. The 10-day event, from June 4 to 13, will offer a wide range of hand-made products crafted by prison inmates from 14 provincial prisons across the southern region as part of their vocational skills training. The fair will officially kick off at…
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Will THAI Airways become a pariah in Phuket?
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: In a stinging editorial in Travel Daily News yesterday, the Thailand chapter of the Pacific Area Travel Association (PATA) blasts THAI Airways for its authorship of a “self-defeating tourism recovery strategy for Thailand” which some stakeholders in Phuket…
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AoT defends taxi fees
PHUKET: The director of Phuket International Airport (PIA) has defended concession fees charged to taxi and limousine operators by Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT), pointing out that the airport is expensive to run and that, as a public company, AoT must make a profit. “I want to explain that everyone involved in business needs to make a profit. Based on…
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Alien worker scheme flops in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket is facing a shortage of alien labor as the numbers of registered alien workers requesting extensions of their permits are down 15,166 year-on-year, according to official figures. The Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) said that this year only 49,017 out of 64,183 registered workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia extended their work permits. The vast majority of these,…
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Immigration to check on UK pedophile’s trip to Phuket
PHUKET: The Phuket Immigration chief says his office will contact the British Embassy regarding the background of a UK man reportedly convicted on child pornography charges in the UK, and now said to be planning to travel to Phuket to marry a Thai girl. News that UK national Craig Meehan was planning a trip to Phuket was first reported by…
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Phuket hotels not happy with THAI Airways
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: Fears of Phuket hotels being forced into a massive price war are already being realised with THAI Airways International “cordially inviting” hotels contracted under its Royal Orchid Holidays (ROH) program to offer 50% discounts. TTR Weekly reports that…
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Kriel Roosters win Phuket Rugby 10s
PHUKET: Scoring three tries in the first half, the Kriel Roosters from South Africa trounced the Moorabbin Rams from Australia 31-0 in the final of the 12th Overgaard Phuket International Rugby 10s played at Karon Stadium yesterday. The South Africans were clearly the fresher side, making the most of their speed advantage by quickly passing the ball wide and using…
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Phuket to host Asian Hospitality & Travel Show in October
PHUKET: Events Thailand team and Skal Phuket are combining talents to stage the inaugural ‘Asian Hospitality & Travel Show’ at the Central Festival Phuket Convention and Exhibition Center from October 1 to 3. “The exhibition is geared towards becoming a platform for networking between suppliers within the Asian Hospitality and travel sectors,” said Events Thailand committee member Simon Samaan, who…
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Phuket Software Park ‘Tech Talk’ series in June
PHUKET: Phuket Software Park has announced the schedule of weekly activities under its ‘Tech Talk’ series in June. June 3: Ads on Google: Just a piece of cakePresented by Brand Identity and Innovation, a Phuket Software Park incubatee; June 10: Exploring iPhone Usage & Making Money: User Track Presented by Phuket School; June 17: Exploring iPhone Usage & Making Money:…
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A Phuket Imperative: Credible Public Transport
PHUKET: Public debate has intensified in recent weeks as road projects that have been talked about for years appear closer to becoming reality in Phuket. Despite the recent chaos in Bangkok, the number of tourists visiting the island continues to grow. Airports of Thailand (AoT) reported over 120,000 international arrivals at Phuket International Airport in April 2010, a 41% increase…
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Phuket will lead recovery of Thai tourism
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PHUKET: The curent issue of Time magazine quotes Bill Heinecke, whose Minor group owns two hotels in Phuket, as emphasizing that Phuket and Hua Hin were among the many places in Thailand where “tourists were never in any danger…
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Mystery shrouds fatal Phuket road accident
PHUKET: Police are investigating a hit-and-run accident that left a man dead on the bypass road last night. Phuket City Police duty officer Lt Teerawat Amnachjaroenying identified the victim as Wittaya Sapsong, 35, whose body was found at 7:30pm on the southbound side of the bypass road in Koh Kaew, between the Bypass Seafood restaurant and the entrance to Premium…
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Phuket thief ‘nagged’ into crime
PHUKET: A man arrested for stealing a masseuse’s bag in Karon told police that his wife’s constant complaining drove him to commit the crime. Chalong Police at 5pm on Wednesday arrested Sittha Rattanaphan, 36, at the Andaman Seaview Hotel in Karon, seizing as evidence a Honda motorbike and a brown bag containing 200 baht in cash, a mobile phone, an…
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Natural causes suspected in Phuket “drowning’
PHUKET: Cherng Talay Police are awaiting a coroner’s report to learn whether a German tourist who died at Surin Beach on Wednesday drowned or died of other causes. Cherng Talay Police duty officer Lt Tatchagrit Ritnuang identified the deceased as 51-year-old Marek Klein. Mr Klein, his wife and 10-year-old daughter were guests at the nearby Courtyard by Marriott Phuket resort.…
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