Phuket News
Phuket news, politics, business, tourism, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s top island destination. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Phuket news source.
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NDWC tsunami-warning app still not in English
PHUKET: Budget issues have prevented the English-language version of the tsunami warning application for smartphones from being released, two years after the announced release date, the Phuket Gazette has been told. “We have yet to make any further progress in developing the application,” National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) Specialist Yaiying Sirithanapivat said. The application was up and running for Apple…
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Video Report: Machete-wielding man attempts to publicly slay traffic cop in Krabi
PHUKET: A Krabi man attempted to slay a traffic police officer with a machete in front of hundreds of tourists after he was issued a warning for parking in a no-parking zone in the beach town of Ao Nang on Monday. Sgt Apichart Narksa-nga and Sgt Jirameth Laosirikul of the Krabi City Police had noticed a pick-up truck parked in…
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Video Report: Laguna post-tsunami Community Learning Center still going strong
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket’s Community Learning Center, established as part of the recovery efforts from the 2004 tsunami, recently re-opened after major refurbishment to mark 10 years since the disaster. The opening ceremony of the newly revamped center was held on Monday, attended by approximately 100 participants comprising government officials, Laguna Phuket management, Cherng Talay villagers, and members of the press.…
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Soldiers detained over abducting Phuket foreigners, Military Police probe ordered
PHUKET: Five soldiers arrested by the Chalong Police may face court martial for the alleged abduction of a Ukrainian businessman and his wife last week. “The soldiers are now at the 41st Military Circle barracks at the Royal Thai Army’s Region 4 base in Nakhon Sri Thammarat,” Region 4 Deputy Commander Ruangsak Suwannaka told the Gazette on Wednesday. The Military…
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Kiwi charged for drug dealing in Phuket
PHUKET: A New Zealand man was charged yesterday for dealing drugs in Phuket after being found in possession of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) and cocaine. Taylor Grainge, 41, was nabbed by Patong Police during a holiday crackdown on crime, explained Patong Police Deputy Superintendent Khunnadet Nanongkhai. “We put a sting operation in motion after learning that Mr Grainge was selling…
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Phuket uncle dies, nephew survives Christmas Day motorbike crash
PHUKET: One man died and another was injured in a Phuket motorbike accident early this morning, just 15 minutes into Christmas Day. “According to witnesses, the motorbike was travelling southbound at high speed when it hit the median strip at the Baan Nai Klum U-turn, near Tesco-Lotus Thalang,” said Lt Col Sanit Nookong of the Thalang Police. Anucha Promraksa, 25,…
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Bus driver in Phuket crash tests positive for drugs
PHUKET: A Chinese tour bus driver tested positive for drug use after crashing on Kata Hill in Phuket on Tuesday afternoon (story here). Six of the tourists on the Xin Tour Phuket bus, as well as a local resident in one of the five vehicles tangled up in the accident, were slightly injured. They were taken to Phuket International Hospital…
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Mystery surrounds deaths of Phuket cave divers at Khao Sok National Park
PHUKET: Two experienced Phuket cave divers died after a diving accident on technical rebreathers near the entrance of Tiger Cave in the Chio Lan Reservoir, Surat Thani, on Monday. Dmitry Dokuchave, 46, died at the scene, while fellow Russian national Alexander Solomatin was pronounced dead at Surat Thani Hospital. “Both bodies were transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital, with the preliminary…
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Official New Year holiday period unchanged, says Phuket Governor
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong has laid to rest rumors on social media sites that the Thai government is planning to extend the official New Year holiday period to five days. “The government has already announced that the official holiday period will cover three days, from December 31 to January 2,” Gov Nisit confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. Coupled with…
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Depressed Phuket lawyer spared leap from rooftop
PHUKET: Rescue workers recovered a highly-stressed lawyer from a rooftop in Phuket Town yesterday by grabbing him and pulling him into a cherry picker. “The man was under a lot of pressure about work,” said Lt Wetchasak Juladung of the Phuket City Police. The lawyer climbed onto a third-floor terrace of the building where his friend lives in Soi Suthat…
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World’s toughest Ironman shares his training tips with Phuket
PHUKET: A great triathlete has to be fast. But there’s much more to the sport than speed. Persistence, perseverance and resistance are also essential qualities. Andreas Raelert, a German triathlon champion has it all, and as the Ironman World Record holder, he is fast – very fast. Raelert came to Phuket two weeks ago to train at Thanyapura Phuket. Less…
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Manhunt launched for traffickers, six escaped refugee caught
PHUKET: Officers in Phang Nga have launched a manhunt for 300 people reportedly being herded through the area by gun-toting human traffickers. The search began after two men presented themselves at a checkpoint in Takuapa before dawn on Sunday claiming that they had fled their armed captors. “The men said that they had fled a camp where they were being…
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Phuket Navy airlifts official hurt in speedboat fall
PHUKET: An official is under observation at Bangkok Hospital Phuket after a Navy medivac helicopter returned him from the Surin Islands yesterday. Amnuay Komonthee, a skills development officer from Phang Nga, suffered spinal injuries in a fall while riding in a speedboat that was en route to a sea gypsy village in the islands. A local team of Navy medical…
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Video Report: Free life-jacket exchange to float Phuket water safety
PHUKET: More than 1,000 old life jackets were exchanged for new ones, certified by the Marine Office, at the launch of a life-jacket exchange program chaired by the Minister of Transport, Air Chief Marshal Prajin Juntong, yesterday. The goal of the event was aimed to improve safety for boat passengers during the Christmas and New Year holidays and beyond, explained…
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Phuket motorbike chop-shop Facebook gang arrested
PHUKET: Phuket Police arrested several members of a motorbike chop-shop gang last night that rebuilt bikes with stolen parts and sold them on Facebook. “We had a tip-off that a rowdy group of young people were staying at a rental house in Rassada and that there were always lots of motorbikes and bike parts laying around,” Phuket City Police Deputy…
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Privy Councilor Surayud eyes Phuket sea gypsies needs
PHUKET: Gen Surayud Chulanont, Privy Councilor to HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej and former prime minister, has suggested that local authorities take further steps to improve the quality of life of the Phuket sea gypsies living in the north of the island. Gen Surayud chaired a meeting in Thalang last Thursday to hear the current state of the living conditions of…
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Teen mum yet to be charged for attempted infanticide
PHUKET: Phuket police have yet to charge a teenage mother who tried to drown her newborn in the cistern of a public toilet. Thung Thong Police were called to the scene at a public toilet in Kathu Municipality Park, where they found the mother locked in a toilet stall with her newborn baby. “A concerned passersby told me that a…
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Phuket court issues arrest warrants for soldiers in abduction case
PHUKET: The Chalong Police are continuing their investigation into the alleged abduction of a Ukrainian businessman and his wife by soldiers in Phuket late last week. Igor Iermakov, 37, was allegedly abducted from Mitraphap Beach in Rawai on Thursday by a group of 10 people that included five soldiers. His wife, Maryna, later reported to the Chalong Police that she…
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Phuket man blasts penis with make-shift pesticide torch
PHUKET: One member of a make-shift pest-control team suffered damage to his penis after a flaming bottle of pesticide backfired on him and his partner as they attempted to kill a colony of wasps today. Prapanpong Sinmalee, 29, and his 22-year-old co-worker Phollawat Suwong were moving spools of power-cables from a truck into a field along Thepkrasattri Road near Baan…
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Germans rescued from wrecked Phuket tour boat
PHUKET: A group of tourists were rescued from a tour boat after it grounded on the rocks off Laem Ka Cape, on the east coast of Phuket’s Rawai area, yesterday. The 12 people on board Electric Blue, including nine German tourists and one Thai tourist, were rescued after locals spotted the crashed boat and dispatched three longtails and a rescue…
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Phuket golfers raise B1.2mn for Life Home Project charity
PHUKET: Local golfers in colorful dress on the fairways of Phuket have raised 1.2 million baht for island-based charity the Life Home Project Foundation. The 4th Annual Life Home Project Charity Golf Event took place at the Blue Canyon Country Club on November 15, when more than 100 golfers took to the fairways and greens of the spectacular Lakes Course.…
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Tsunami Memorial: Phuket tourism shows world how to bounce back
PHUKET: Tourism industry insiders who have monitored trends in the Phuket tourism industry over the past decade describe the recovery after the worst natural disaster to ever hit the region as “remarkable”. Few potential visitors these days are dissuaded from coming to the island out of fear of another inundation. The successful introduction of a tsunami early detection and warning…
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Thai glory at Suzuki Cup final
PHUKET: Thailand’s triumph at the 2014 Asean Football Championship on Saturday night is the latest and most compelling evidence underlining the fact that former national striker Kiatisak Senamuang is the man the country has long searched for to bring back the glory days to Thai football. Few could have predicted when Thailand last won the region’s showpiece tournament in 2002…
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Phuket’s “abductor soldiers’ arrested by mistake, says military
PHUKET: The military’s highest-ranking officer in Phuket under martial law has called the arrest of five soldiers for the alleged abduction of two Ukrainians on Friday a “mistake”. The soldiers, named by the Chalong Police on Friday (click here), were acting as “mediators”, Maj Gen Theenachat Jinda-ngern, Commander of the 41st Military Circle, told a press conference at Phuket Provincial…
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NFL Week 16: Jaguars square off against rivals Tennessee Titans
PHUKET: In a showdown on Thursday Night Football two of the worst teams in the NFL, the Jacksonville Jaguars improved their record to 3-12 with a 21-13 home win over AFC South division rivals the Tennessee Titans (now 2-13). Despite both teams having long been eliminated from playoff contention, it was still a closely contested match; it did not appear…
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Army soldiers taken into custody for abducting foreigner in Phuket
PHUKET: Police took ten people into custody for the abduction of a Ukraine businessman and his wife in Phuket yesterday. Five of the men taken into custody are soldiers based in Thailand’s restive Deep South provinces, said Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent Chukiat Imjaitam. Igor Iermakova, 37, was allegedly abducted by the group from Mitraphap Beach in Rawai on Thursday morning.…
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Legendary Thai rocker Carabao in Phuket for New Year countdown concert
PHUKET: Legendary Thai folk-rock artist Yuenyong Opakul, better known by his stage name Ad Carabao, is set to headline three-days of entertainment in Phuket Town to count down to the New Year. The “Colorful Countdown Phuket 2015” will usher in the New Year with light shows and live concerts at Sanam Chai Park, across the road from Phuket Provincial Hall,…
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Cricket: Island CC wrestles victory from jaws of defeat in Phuket
PHUKET: Fiery old rivalries were reignited on Sunday when Patong CC faced Island CC in the second fixture of the 2014/2015 Senior League season at the Alan Cooke Ground. In a match that saw the T20 finalists face Patong’s players hoping to exact retribution after their defeat in September, it was the Islanders who claimed victory by a solitary run…
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Phuket beach vendors return for trial run
PHUKET: Vendors renting out umbrellas, offering massages or selling food and drinks are allowed to return to Phuket’s beaches – but not vendors who rent out sun-loungers or beach chairs. Governor Nisit Jansomwong delivered the news at a meeting at Provincial Hall yesterday, when he laid down a stringent list of conditions under which beach vendors will be permitted to…
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Russian escapes death in 300m plunge from Phuket coastal road
PHUKET: A Russian man is recovering in hospital after his car ran off a coastal road near Phuket’s Promthep Cape and plunged into the water some 300 meters below late last night. “It happened at about 11:30pm,” said Lt Wuttiwat Liang-boonjinda of the Chalong Police. “By the time we arrived, all we could see was the back of the car…
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.
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