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Major blackouts announced for March
PHUKET: In order to continue its work on high-voltage power lines, the Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) has announced scheduled blackouts that will affect major business areas as follows:March 7, from 9 am to 5 pmKoh Kaew: the west side of Thepkrasattri Rd, from Soi Harnfarang in Baan Sapam to the Isuzu showroom in Koh Kaew, including Soi Bangku 1…
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Three Brits still in Phuket jail
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Court has denied bail to a British family charged with bank fraud after they were caught using counterfeit cards to withdraw more than 100,000 baht from a Kasikorn Bank ATM in downtown Phuket City. Lt Col Chakaphol Suchon of Phuket City Police Station told the Gazette that the three suspects are still being held at Phuket Provincial…
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Patong bars to fight 2 am closing
PATONG: Bar, discotheque and pub owners will be given a 90-day grace period before police begin to strictly enforce a 2 am closing time at all nightlife venues on the island, authorities have announced.Starting at 2 am on February 27, police presence was unexpectedly heavy on Soi Bangla and along nearby roads that make up the heart of Phuket’s nightlife…
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Four Phuket police stations upgraded
PHUKET: As part of a nationwide reorganization of the Royal Thai Police Force, Phuket’s four subdistrict police stations have been upgraded to district police stations, effective from an order dating back to January 16, the Gazette has learned.Col Phuwanart Rithawej, Phuket Provincial Police Superintendent of General Staff, told the Gazette that the order is intended to improve investigation and budget management…
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Two Princesses to visit Phuket
PHUKET: HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will visit Phuket on March 11 and HRH Princess Ubol Ratana Rajakanya will visit Phuket City on March 14, the Phuket Provincial Office announced at a meeting held on February 26 in preparation for their arrival.Princess Sirindhorn will make stops in Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga during her trip.On March 11, Princess Sirindhorn will…
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Anchalee resigns OrBorJor presidency
PHUKET: Anchalee Vanich Tephabutra, president of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor), yesterday tendered her resignation to the Governor’s Office, the Gazette has confirmed.Manus Nooluck, Secretary to Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, this morning confirmed receipt of the letter.No reason was given for the resignation, which takes effect today, he said.However, a source in the OrBorJor told the Gazette the move…
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Top cop toppled after Phuket visit
THALANG: Royal Thai Police Commissioner Gen Sereepisut Taemeeyavej had a busy day in Phuket yesterday, attending two important dedication ceremonies.However, it turned out to be his last day as national police chief as Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej today announced his abrupt transfer to a temporary post in the Prime Minister’s Office.Gen Sereepisut arrived in Phuket from Bangkok yesterday and at…
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Foreigners charged over ATM card forgery in Patong
PATONG: Two European men arrested by Kathu Police last Sunday night for scanning information allegedly to be used in committing bank card forgery remain in jail without bail, the Gazette has learned.Maj Narong Laksanavimol said that the two men arrested, whom he named as German national Hota Bogdan Nicolae and Romanian Andrei Gugioman, both 25, are part of a larger…
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Dr Anuroj dies of cancer
PHUKET CITY: Dr Anuroj Tharasiriroj, 66, founder of Phuket International Hospital, passed away at 3 am today after a long battle against cancer of the large intestine.Dr Anuroj founded Siriroj Hospital on Krabi Rd, Phuket City, in 1982. The hospital opened with just 35 beds.The hospital moved to its current site on the bypass road in 1993 and began trading…
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Police raid Patong bars in Chalerm’s crackdown
PATONG: Last night’s police crackdown on Soi Bangla entertainment venues trading past 2 am was in response to an order by new Interior Minister Chalerm Yoobumrung, Kathu Police chief Col Grissak Songmoonnak has confirmed.Col Grissak, Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, told the Gazette today that he ordered the crackdown after Interior Minister Pol Capt Chalerm told police nationwide to get…
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Mischievous monkey meddlers meet their match
SRISAKET: A man was arrested in the early hours of February 21 for kidnapping monkeys from a popular tourist spot in Rasi Salai District. Police believe the monkeys were to be smuggled to Korea, to be eaten for perceived health-giving benefits.At 3:30 am, Pol Lt Col Wisanu Reuangsri, an investigating officer at Rasi Salai District Police Station, received a phone…
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Revered Abbot passes away
WICHIT: Phra Ratchakiti Soonthorn, revered Abbot of Wat Thepnimit died of congestive heart failure at Thalang Hospital on Sunday night at the age of 78.As head of Phuket’s provincial monastic council, Phra Ratchakiti Soonthorn was Phuket’s highest-ranking Buddhist cleric at the time of his death.Born as Sommart Kinkaew, the Phuket native entered the monkhood at the age of 22, when…
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Missing monk found dead in PSU lagoon
KATHU: Police are treating as a case of accidental drowning the death of a monk whose body was found in a pond at the Phuket campus of Prince of Songkla University on Sunday.Maj Passakorn Sonthikun of the Tung Tong Police identified the monk as Phra Thawat Theerawiniyo.The body of the 29-year-old monk, originally from Nongkhai province, was discovered by a…
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Low turnout for advance voting in Senate race
PHUKET: Advance voting held in Phuket on Saturday and Sunday for the March 2 senatorial election saw much less interest among out-of-town Thais than before the parliamentary election held last December.PEC Director Supap Akkam told the Gazette that of 30,291 non-Phuket Thais registered to cast advance ballots in the province, only 7,301 (24.1%) chose to do so. Of those, 2,968…
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Blues Fest rocks Karon
KARON: Blues fans were treated to a lineup of local and international acts last night at the first night of the Phuket International Blues Rock Festival at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort and Spa. Gates opened at 6 pm and the crowd slowly swelled as the acts played late into the night. Bangkok-based Soi Dog Blues Band were the first…
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Young love ends in ya bah bust
PHUKET CITY: A Muang District special operations unit arrested a pair of young lovers and seized 697 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills in a sting operation early this morning.The arrests were announced by Phuket Vice Governor Worapoj Ratthasima and Muang District Chief Wisit Kurattanavej at a press conference at Muang District Office at 9:30 this morning.The couple were identified as Nakhon…
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Runaway truck causes Patong Hill pileup
KATHU: Tailbacks several miles long streamed from both sides of Patong Hill yesterday evening after a broken-down truck rolled backwards, setting off a chain reaction smash-up that left five cars and a motorbike damaged.Maj Passakorn Sonthikun of Tung Tong Police in Kathu said, “About 5 pm, a six-wheeled truck broke down halfway up the hill on its way to Patong.…
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Officer charged over tsunami funds misappropriation
BANGKOK (Kom Chad Luek): The Royal Thai Police Disciplinary Division has charged a high-ranking officer in the Foreign Affairs Division over alleged improprieties in the use of funds for the Thailand Tsunami Victims Identification (TTVI) center.Col Chaiyaporn Wannaprapa, Deputy Commander of the Disciplinary Division of the Royal Thai Police, on February 12 announced that Col Pornprasert Karnjanarin was formally notified…
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Three coastal projects denied building permits
PHUKET: The Provincial Natural Resources and Environment (PNRE) committee chaired by Phuket Vice-Governor Worapoj Ratthasima has denied building permits for three marine projects, citing Interior Ministry regulations prohibiting such construction in six tambons.Declined were an application from Trisara resort developer Three Dolphins Co Ltd to build a wharf in Cherng Talay for boats under 20 tons displacement; an application for a floating…
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Phummisak appointed to Senate
PHUKET: Former Phuket City Mayor Phummisak Hongsyok has been named by the Election Commission (EC) in Bangkok as one of 74 appointed senators who will serve in the 150-member upper house, the EC announced yesterday.The new Senate will convene after the March 2 election for the other 76 seats. While the elected 76 senators will serve a six-year term, the selected…
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Tanked-up tiger taming leads to trauma
AYUDHAYA: Taming big cats, whether they are lions or tigers, generally requires a long period of dedicated training – and no small amount of skill and courage. After a drinking session recently, one man in Ayudaya Province persuaded his zoo-keeper friend to let him have a go at taming a large tiger – with sadly predictable results. Prasert Yomprakong, originally…
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Brits charged over fake ATM-card withdrawals
PHUKET CITY: A father, mother and son from the UK have been charged with using fake electronic cards to withdraw more than 100,000 baht from ATMs while on holiday in Phuket.Capt Supachai Petchkul of Phuket City Police Station today told the Gazette that police received an anonymous phone call at 1:40 am yesterday reporting that two foreign men were behaving…
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SIPA called in to track visiting yachts
PHUKET CITY: In the name of better security, the Phuket office of the Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) has been given until the end of April to develop a device that allows Thai authorities to track yachts visiting Thai waters.The proposal was announced on Thursday at a meeting of a special committee formed to review security, Customs and Immigration procedures…
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Englishman arrested in Patong
PATONG: An Englishman has been charged with careless driving causing death after being involved in an accident at the southern end of Patong on Sunday afternoon in which a Thai motorcyclist died.Lt Col Serm Kwannimit of Kathu Police today told the Gazette that Wayne Robert Washbourn*, 38, was driving a pickup truck from Patong to Karon and had just turned…
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Sea gypsies petition Governor over violence – again
PHUKET: Villagers from the Rawai sea gypsy community have once again petitioned Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, saying that their safety and way of life continues to be threatened by the bullying tactics of some tourism business operators.On Thursday, 10 sea gypsies led by Niran Yangpan submitted a formal letter of complaint addressed to Governor Niran and the Damrongtham Center at…
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More metered taxis to serve Phuket Airport
PHUKET: A committee of tourism and transport officials yesterday agreed to allow Phuket Taxi Meter Service to operate 23 more metered taxis out of Phuket International Airport (PIA), while a request by Phuket Mai Khao Company to operate 20 metered taxis was tentatively approved.Chaired by Phuket Vice-Governor Tri Augkaradacha, the committee granted permission for Phuket Taxi Meter Service, which has…
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150 couples take the plunge on Valentine’s Day
PHUKET: Many couples registered their marriages yesterday, Valentine’s Day, with added incentive of the island’s three District Offices offering gifts to newlyweds, including passes to Phuket FantaSea, stays at hotels and resorts and dinners at restaurants on the island.However, the figure was down compared with last year, when 202 couples wed on the international day of love.As expected, florists have…
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American extradited on child molestation charges
PHUKET (Gazette, Nation, Kom Chad Luek): A man wanted for child molestation by police in the US state of Missouri was arrested Tuesday afternoon and has been turned over to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for extradition.During questioning, the suspect, Earl Russel Bonds, tried to kill himself by cutting his left wrist with scissors, but police seized the…
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Young writers set to jet to Dublin
BANGKOK (Nation): The winners of the 4th Annual Junior IMPAC Dublin Literary Awards for Thailand were announced yesterday.The writing competition theme, “If We Could Change the World” proved challenging enough to attract entries from almost 1,000 students throughout country.The competition was open to Thai students between 14 and 18 from Thailand’s four main regions – North, Northeast, South and Bangkok/Central.…
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Abbot killed in “chicken shoot’
KAMPHAENG PHET: A temple abbot was shot dead February 5 after one of his students mistook him for a chicken. Phra Khru Silwachirakan, known to his followers as Luang Por Pheuan, the abbot of Wat Traiphum in Phrankratai district, was tending cattle belonging to the wat with three followers, Phra Pui, 27, Sanong Phobanlang, 37, and Buntham Phairoj, 54, when…
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