Phuket News
-
Sponsored
New in July: Save 10% for life on family health plans in Thailand
Cigna has a special offer this July for families in Thailand. When you sign up three or more people on a family health plan, you will save 10% on your premiums for life. This deal helps you get affordable, high-quality...
-
Patong Hill crash victim dies
PHUKET: One of the victims in an accident on Patong Hill yesterday has succumbed to her injuries, police confirmed to the Phuket Gazette this morning. Laksamiduean Sawadiraksa, 26, who was driving a motorbike in front of a six-wheeled truck when it lost control on the hill, sustained serious head injuries in the collision, and was pronounced dead after being rushed…
-
Phuket Governor requests Navy, police protection for sea gypsies
PHUKET: Governor Nisit Jansomwong has requested that naval officers and Chalong Police carry out random checks at the Rawai sea gypsy village to boost security and ensure locals that they will be safe during ongoing land dispute cases. The security boost follows news reports from June 22 that 200 sea gypsies had begged Phuket authorities for protection after a group…
-
Alleged IUU captured in Phuket fined B51k
PHUKET: A fine of 51,000 baht was levied against the alleged illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) vessels that successfully fled the New Zealand and Australian navies with its cargo of Atlantic toothfish before being seized in Phuket earlier this year (story here). “Last month, the Customs Department in Bangkok fined the captain and South Service Co Ltd, which managed the cargo,…
-
Gold-fraud gang hit Phuket
PHUKET: A Kalasin man who pawned a fake gold necklace after his friend successfully swindled the same shop a day earlier has been arrested while his accomplices remain at large. Police received a call from Tongmaneemas gold shop, in Rassada, at about 11:45am yesterday reporting that someone had attempted to pawn a fake two-baht weight gold necklace with a genuine…
-
Breaking News: Two seriously injured in Patong Hill crash
PHUKET: Two women on a motorbike have been rushed to Patong Hospital with serious injuries after a six-wheeled truck lost control on Patong Hill, rolled backward and crashed into them. Police and rescue workers rushed to the scene, at the bottom of the hill near Wat Suwan Khiriwong Temple, at about 12:30pm to find the two women on the ground…
-
Phuket gets heavy rain, rough seas for weekend
PHUKET: The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Phuket office has warned of heavy rain and rough seas this weekend. “We received an official weather report from the Thai Meteorological Department [TMD] forecasting an increase in heavy rainfall,” said Santhawat Riwleung, chief of the DDPM Phuket office. “The report also said that there will be strong southwest monsoon conditions…
-
Two Myanmar workers killed in truck crash
PHUKET: Two Myanmar construction workers were killed and seven others were seriously injured when the truck they were riding in crashed on Kamala Hill last night. The truck, which was carrying 40 workers from World Co Ltd, was travelling from Tri Trang Beach to a workers’ camp near the top of Kamala Hill at about 10:30pm when the driver lost…
-
Know Russia better with iPad app
PHUKET: Readers seeking a better understanding of modern day Russia know the importance of the English-language Russia Behind The Headlines (RBTH) journal, regularly found throughout Thailand in the Phuket Gazette and The Nation. Now, for those needing more information faster, the bounty of stories created by RBTH is available through a newly launched RBTH iPad app – available on the…
-
Governor launches search for fake officers in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong vowed yesterday to look into a complaint filed about alleged fraudsters entering homes under the guise of anti-human-trafficking officers. Amnuayporn Samneang, village headman of Srisoonthorn Moo 6, filed a formal complaint to Governor Nisit yesterday evening. “Mr Amnuayporn told us that two ‘anti-trafficking officers’ arrived at his home on June 29 and refused to present…
-
Phuket police confirm tinted helmets illegal
PHUKET: Recent heated discussion on social media has prompted Phuket police to confirm that it is in fact illegal for motorists to wear helmets with tinted visors in Thailand. The news follows Maj Gen Apisit Muangkasem, national Traffic Police commander, recently speaking to many Thai media outlets about which types of helmets are prohibited. The commander’s statements sparked an argument…
-
Olympians take “Road to Rio’ at Thanyapura
PHUKET: Twenty-five future Olympians began their ‘Road to Rio 2016’ at Thanyapura Phuket – the first Official Federation Internationale de Natation (FINA) Training Center in Southeast Asia. Thanyapura announced its official partnership with the aquatics international body FINA this week at a press conference attended by Tourism and Sports of Thailand Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul and Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong. Thanyapura…
-
Opinion: Fishing D-Day
PHUKET: It is too early to tell what the long-term ramifications of the recent crackdown on the Thai fishing industry will be, but there is no doubt that drastic change is needed to bring one of Thailand’s most notoriously rogue industries up to something approaching respectability by international standards. The fishing industry was overdue for an overhaul long before the…
-
Ao Nang erects multi-million-baht fish statue
PHUKET: A 5-million-baht bronze sculpture of a sailfish was erected at Ao Nang Beach on June 29. “We have been planning to build a sculpture in Ao Nang for about a decade, but could never find the funds in our budget to do so,” Ao Nang Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) President Pankum Kittithonkul told the Phuket Gazette. “We searched for…
-
Car flips inside Phuket underpass
PHUKET: A car flipped inside of the Darasamuth underpass near Central Festival last night, causing all lanes to be temporarily closed off to traffic. Based on the damage, police believe that an individual driving a Toyota Yaris struck the back corner of a Toyota Avanza, causing it to flip, explained Maj Narong Muangduang of the Wichit Police. Both drivers received…
-
Phuket fishing boats vow to remain ashore amid strict regulations
PHUKET: Commercial Phuket fishing boats have vowed to remain ashore rather than be netted by officials and charged for Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing practices. “We requested that the government relax the strict measures being enforced on us. However, they refused,” Somyos Wongbunyakul, president of the Phuket Fishing Association, told the Phuket Gazette. “The new regulations began on July…
-
Family continues search for legally dead Dane in Phuket
PHUKET: Soren Baisgaard is legally dead. The Danish government laid him to rest after he went missing in Phuket in 1999. However, a single phone call in 2011 in response to a notice issued in the Phuket Gazette by the Danish government reignited the hopes of his deserted wife and two daughters that he was in fact still alive in…
-
Killer speedboat driver gets two years for two deaths
PHUKET: A speedboat driver who crashed into a fishing trawler, killing two Korean tourists last year, has been sentenced to two years’ imprisonment. “Surat Matosot was charged for reckless driving causing death and damage to property. He has been sentenced to two years in prison, with no option for the sentence to be suspended,” Maj Sopon Khongthong of the Krabi…
-
SKAL denounces Phuket dolphinarium
PHUKET: SKAL International Phuket & Southern Thailand’s executive committee, along with SKAL members, lashed out at the island’s unopened dolphinarium as news broke that the facility had leaped through yet another bureaucratic ring (story here). “SKAL International Phuket & Southern Thailand wish to publicly condemn this project and protests ‘vividly’ against the opening of a dolphinarium in Phuket,” a statement…
-
![Phuket dolphinarium grinds forward [video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/1_2015630121837503_pHQRljWoPiKkRQcLfZlpcwxYKOVIIeBQuSEHyBUX_jpeg.jpeg)
Phuket dolphinarium grinds forward [video]
PHUKET: The still unopened Phuket dolphinarium has cleared another set of hurdles in its attempts to launch the project to the public following issuance by the Department of Fisheries of the necessary public zoo operations licence earlier this month. “The building has been improved and now meets our standards,” an officer from the Department of Fisheries, who asked not to…
-
Speedboat lodges into Thalang traffic median
PHUKET: A speedboat disconnected from its trailer and became lodged in a traffic median while being driven through Thalang on Saturday evening. Kusoldharm Foundation rescuer workers were called to the scene, near Bang Duk Curve and Baan Markpork School, to help move the boat so as to avoid traffic congestion. “The driver told us that he was driving quite fast.…
-
German tourist found hanging from tree on Phi Phi
PHUKET: The body of a German tourist was found hanging from a tree on Phi Phi Island yesterday. Katharina Rebacz, 26, was found on the secluded Ao Por Beach, on the southeastern tip of Phi Phi Don, at about 5pm by local fishermen, who then notified police. “Ms Rebacz had been dead for about one hour before she was found,”…
-
Phang Nga police officer busted in Phuket gambling raid
PHUKET: A Phang Nga police officer and 12 others were caught and arrested for gambling on Friday. The arrest follows weeks of complaints from Kathu residents to Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong about loud noises coming from a house near the Ket-Ho police box, as well as many cars being parked haphazardly and blocking the road. The complaint was passed from…
-
Korean tourist drowns off Phi Phi
PHUKET: A Korean tourist drowned off Phi Phi Don on Saturday afternoon. Nak Ki Choi, 77, was swimming near Ao Sam Haad at about 1:40pm when his family and friends lost track of him, confirmed Lt Weerapan Kongphul of the Krabi City Police. “Mr Choi was swimming near the beach with his family and friends. They began to worry when…
-
Officers have “beef’ with illegal meat from Malaysia
PHUKET: Police seized more than two tons of illegally imported beef at a warehouse in Phuket Town yesterday morning. Backed by Navy personnel and Phuket City Police, Kasichon Choungchot, veterinary inspector from the Department of Livestock Development in Bangkok, led the raid on the house on Soi Siang Tai. “We called the homeowner, but nobody answered. So, the Navy officers…
-
Test results negative for two quarantined for MERS
PHUKET: Test results came back negative today for the two people quarantined for showing symptoms of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus (Mers-CoV), confirmed the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) chief. Both patients were admitted to a private Phuket hospital on Thursday night (story here). “The 7-month-old Korean and the 30-year-old Thai woman both had negative test results,” PPHO chief Kajohnsak Kaewjarus…
-
Officials celebrate successful earthquake drill
PHUKET: Officials celebrated a successful multi-day, full-scale earthquake drill this week, which was aimed at decreasing the loss of life should a powerful, damaging quake strike the island. “Many countries around the world face a number of natural disasters that have deep, troubling impacts on the nation. It can take a long time for a country to heal,” said Phuket…
-
Drug suspect flees police station, hit by bus
PHUKET: A man nabbed for ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) made a daring dash from the fingerprinting area of the Thalang Police Station only to get hit by a Chinese tour bus last night. Natthawut Chaipaew, 23, was arrested for possession of a Category 1 drug and was in the midst of having his finger prints taken at Thalang Police Station…
-
Ban Tha Rua students protest tyre burning
PHUKET: A group of about 200 students and three teachers from Ban Tha Rua school protested the burning of tyres next to their building, in front of the Yamaha showroom in Thalang Thursday morning. The protest follows more than four years of tyre burning near the school by the Yamaha showroom, which disrupts classes and is feared to be a…
-
Human trafficking charges dropped against three suspects
PHUKET: Human trafficking charges were dropped against three men who confessed to illegally smuggling 53 people from Myanmar to Thailand. The Takuapa Provincial Court judge said that the prosecution lacked sufficient evidence to prove that Phoowarin Boonlieng, 18, Prakob Mard-Ardum, 43, and Songphol Klaimee, 20, had used ‘means of the threat or use of force, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of…
-
Phuket tour company employing Nepalis shut down
PHUKET: A local tour company was shut down Wednesday night for hiring Nepali agents to sell tour packages at the company’s counter in Patong. Santi Pawai, director of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) Phuket office, told the Phuket Gazette that the company had ignored several warnings from the MOTS about their staff. “It had come to the point…
Phuket is a province in the south of Thailand. Phuket's beaches face the Andaman Sea allowing the west coast beaches fantastic sunsets right throughout the year. If you're looking for news in Phuket, go to thethaiger.com/phuket Or follow our instant news in our Facebook pages.
The good news is that Phuket is famous for its foodie scene with an enormously diverse range of local and international foods - Phuket and southern favorites, street food along with international choices catering for the 12 million visitors to the island each year. Thaiger follows Phuket news and information 24 hours a day with regular updates.
Phuket is only 'just' an island with a 300 metre bridge linking it to Thailand's mainland. We're always reporting in the news that the channel beneath is frequently dredged to maintain Phuket's status as an island. On the other side of Sarasin Bridge is the Province of Phang Nga.
Getting to Phuket is easy as the island has land, air and sea connections. Phuket is also used as a take-off point for local island trips as Thailand's largest island is surrounded by over 30 pristine islands. Koh Phi Phi and the famous Maya Bay are always in the news and would be the best known of the island's just off Phuket's shores.
Phuket is an island and a province. It's the largest island in Thailand – 48 km north to south, 21 km east to west.
It's about 20% smaller, in area, than Singapore but much less densely populated. Whilst the island nation of Singapore boasts a population of nearly 6 million, Phuket has a permanent population of around 400-450,000 (but varies a lot with the influx of tourists and a workforce that is always changing). Most of Phuket remains jungle and tropical rainforest despite an acceleration of development over the past 20 years.
Unlike some of Thailand's other popular islands (that are in the Gulf of Thailand), the news is that Phuket is located in the Andaman Sea.
Phuket is 878 km north of the equator.
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.