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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Sponsored FBS celebrates 16 years with an adventurous Birthday Quest
Leading global broker FBS is marking its 16th anniversary with a special campaign — FBS Birthday Quest. Over the past 16 years, FBS has been on an incredible journey alongside its clients. Now, as a way to give back, the...
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Phuket Gazette sponsors Asian Beach Games
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette has joined forces with the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) to ensure that the world takes notice every day as Asia’s top athletes battle it out from November 14 to 23 at the 4th Asian Beach Games. With Governor Nisit Jansomwong encouraging the local community to get involved, both to show that Phuket can still glisten…
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Phuket praised for progress in prepping for upcoming Asian Beach Games
PHUKET: The Minister of Tourism and Sports has praised Phuket’s leaders for the progress made in prepping the island for the upcoming 4th Asian Beach Games. “Phuket has made great progress, but we must remember that besides competing, athletes will also be experiencing Phuket for themselves. We must take this opportunity to impress them,” said Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn…
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Gun battle brings down suspected serial 7-Eleven stickup artist
PHUKET: Police arrested a man suspected of several armed robberies at 7-Eleven stores after a shootout in Phuket today. Phuket Town native Piriya Tangbunjerd, 41, was slightly injured in the short gun battle. “Mr Piriya was taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital with a gunshot wound to the hip. The two officers involved in the incident suffered no serious injuries,” Phuket…
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Fast arrest of thief should boost tourists’ confidence, say Phuket police
PHUKET: Police are hoping that the speedy arrest of a knife-wielding thief who targeted a Bahrain couple on Monday will raise tourists’ confidence in their safety. Patong Police arrested Ismael Pomalee, 30, from Pattani, less than 24 hours after the robbery. “We received a call at about 9:30pm on Monday saying that the couple had been held at knife point…
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Phuket blood-moon surf sees German drowned, Patong tourists saved
PHUKET: A German tourist managed to save his brother-in law from drowning at Nai Harn Beach yesterday, but could not save himself from the same fate. Lifeguards were unable to resuscitate Frank Retsch, 34, after pulling him from the surf. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Vachira Phuket Hospital. “Mr Retsch came to Phuket with his wife, sister and…
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Phuket’s Keesin clan given one week to grieve, before facing mafia charges
PHUKET: Police have granted the Keesin clan one week to grieve the loss of the head of their family, former Patong mayor Pian Keesin, who died yesterday (story here), before officials move ahead with pressing taxi mafia charges. “I am aware that Mr Pian passed away. I am sorry for the family,” Region 8 Police Deputy Commander Paween Pongsirin told…
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Phuket downpours leave sinkhole, landslip across roads
PHUKET: Workers from the Phuket Highways Office tomorrow will begin repairs to a gaping hole along the southbound lane on the bypass road left behind by the week of heavy downpours across the island. “We have closed the outside lane and placed warning signs and cones to inform motorists of the hazard,” Phuket Highways Office Director Samak Luedwonghad told the…
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No official services for fallen former mayor Pian Keesin, confirms Patong Municipality
PHUKET: Patong Municipality will not hold any official remembrance ceremonies to mark the death of Pian Keesin, whose body was found at his home north of Phuket Town yesterday morning (story here). Mr Pian was elected as the town’s first mayor in 1995 and served five terms – totalling nearly two decades. Born in Patong on February 12, 1944, Mr…
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Unable to prevent Phuket speedboat departures, officials trust captains’ judgment
PHUKET: Officials are unable to prevent tour boats from departing the island despite the current heavy weather and small boat warnings, the Phuket Gazette has confirmed. “So far this is only a weather warning, so we can only warn boat operators,” Lt Col Chatchai Sakdee of the Phuket Marine Police told the Gazette. “If the Marine Office of the Governor’s…
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Phuket lifeguards close beach, urge tourists to heed warnings
PHUKET: After saving several people from drowning yesterday, lifeguards are urging all tourists to heed warnings to stay out of hazardous surf at Phuket’s Kata and Karon beaches. A section of Kata Beach was closed and red warning flags were posted along dangerous sections of Karon Beach, said Kata-Karon lifeguard chief Uten Singsom. “We saved a few swimmers yesterday. They…
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![Poll: 98% of tourists against Phuket dolphinarium [video] | Thaiger](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0naHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmcnIHZpZXdCb3g9JzAgMCAzMjYgMjIwJz48L3N2Zz4=)
Poll: 98% of tourists against Phuket dolphinarium [video]
PHUKET: Tourists led the charge, as an overwhelmingly majority of the more than 7,000 readers who took part in the recent Phuket Gazette poll voted against opening the island’s controversial dolphin park. A staggering 4,353 of the 4,435 (98%) of those who identified themselves as “Tourists / Visitors to Phuket” voted: no – Phuket should not have a dolphinarium; they…
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Phuket Poll: Do you feel safe on the streets of Phuket after dark?
PHUKET: The gruesome murder of two British backpackers on the holiday island of Koh Tao has drawn international media attention to safety concerns in major Thai tourists destinations such as Phuket. In the wake of the murders, the Region 8 Police commander ramped up security in all areas under his watch, including Phuket and Koh Tao (story here). At about…
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Breaking News: Patong mob kingpin, taxi mafia suspect Pian Keesin found dead
PHUKET: Former Patong Mayor and taxi mafia suspect Pian Keesin died at his home at the Rock Garden housing estate this morning, police confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. The cause of death has yet to be released. Mr Pian, along with his son Prab Keesin, was facing charges of extortion and criminal activity carried out by a criminal association after…
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Phuket flash flood, landslide warning in effect, but bright skies ahead
PHUKET: The flash flood and landslide warning issued for Phuket last Friday is still in effect, though local officials have appealed for people to not panic over the current wet weather. “The warning was sent to every local authority as a precaution, to advise people to beware of flash floods and landslides in risk areas,” said Weera Amnuayporn, acting director…
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Phuket teen stabs ex-girlfriend’s new lover in jealous rage
PHUKET: A teen, recently released from the island’s juvenile detention center, is on the run after he stabbed his ex-girlfriend’s new lover seven times in a jealous rage in Phuket Town early this morning. Phuket City Police arrived at the scene, outside of Royal Phuket City Hotel, at about 12:30am. There, they found a 29-year-old hotel employee, named by police…
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Police suspect single gunslinger responsible for two 7-Eleven stickups
PHUKET: Phuket police suspect that a single gun-wielding robber is responsible for two 7-Eleven stickups yesterday. The first robbery took place at 1am at a 7-Eleven store on Ranong Road in Phuket Town. Then, at 10pm, a 7-Eleven at Baan Kien in Thalang was also robbed. “We believe the two robberies may well be connected, as the robber caught on…
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Phuket member at National Reform Council granted royal endorsement
PHUKET: Cherdchai Wongseree, who failed to gain election to the Senate in March (story here), today received royal endorsement to become Phuket’s sole representative at the National Reform Council (NRC). Mr Cherdchai was among the 250 candidates throughout the country whose names were published in the Royal Thai Government Gazette today as approved by HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej to serve…
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Phuket storm pins woman under tree, more rain forecast
PHUKET: The storm that ravaged Phuket over the weekend pinned a woman under a felled tree on a busy street in Mai Khao late Saturday night. Rescue workers and police arrived at Mai Khao Soi 10 at about 11:30pm to find Soisuda Somjan, 20, and her motorbike trapped the tree. “She was unable to move with her right leg caught…
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Indian tourists washed overboard, drown off Krabi coast
PHUKET: Two Indian tourists travelling in a rented longtail boat drowned off the coast of Railay, east of Phuket, yesterday after a large wave swamped their boat and washed them overboard. Ekkapong Kinglek, 25, the boat operator, was charged with reckless driving causing death, Capt Praphan Nhuchaikaew of the Krabi City Police told the Phuket Gazette. The tourists, Yash Agarwal,…
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Asean health experts target regional vaccination strategy
PHUKET: Asean health experts gathered in Phuket last week for a series of workshops to hammer out strategies for regional vaccine security. The three-day event, hosted on the island for the first time, involved a series of brainstorming sessions among health experts, centering on vaccine research and development, production and vaccine immunization. The exchange of information is seen as the…
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Phuket underpass faces part-closures, races for November opening
PHUKET: The northbound lane above the 600-million-baht underpass beside the Central Festival Phuket shopping mall has been closed so workers can repave the road. “Motorists heading north can still use the underpass,” Phuket Highways Office Director Samak Luedwonghad told the Phuket Gazette. With the lane closed for repaving, motorists heading east past Central Festival can no longer turn left onto…
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Special Report: Phuket’s billion-baht beach ‘scandal’ never kept a secret
Special Report PHUKET: A senior official at Kata-Karon Municipality this week claimed that permits issued to allow local residents to work as beach vendors were introduced at the behest of a Provincial Hall standing committee some 20 years ago. The issue raised a storm of controversy last week when Paween Pongsirin, Region 8 Police Deputy Commander at the time (story…
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Phuket cat burglar robs sleeping couple’s hotel villa
PHUKET: Police have arrested a Phuket cat burglar who crept into a sleeping couple’s hotel villa and stole a mobile phone and about 13,000 baht in cash. “Thung Taothong, 28, was arrested at his apartment in Soi Yod Saneh in Chalong and charged with robbery,” Karon Police Deputy Superintendent Sophon Borrirak told the Phuket Gazette today. “We are still searching…
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Breaking News: 6-wheeled Phuket truck kills two on Patong Hill
PHUKET: Two people were killed in a road accident as they ascended the infamous Patong Hill road at about 3pm today, Patong Traffic Police told the Phuket Gazette. The two people riding the motorbike died after being crushed by a 6-wheeled truck in front of Sea Pearl Hotel. The driver, who police have yet to publicly name, has been taken…
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DDPM issues flash flood, landslide warnings for Phuket
PHUKET: A weather warning advising Phuket residents and tourists to prepare for flash floods and landslides has been issued by the local Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM). “According to the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD), we can expect increasingly heavy rains tomorrow,” said Weera Amnuayporn, acting DDPM Phuket office chief. “It’s going to take a turn for the worse,…
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Australians’ drunken balcony fall raises Phuket safety concerns
PHUKET: Patong Police have urged local municipality workers to inspect the balcony-railing heights of Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa after three drunk Australians tumbled off their second-floor balcony (story here). “It is beyond our jurisdiction to ensure that the railings are of a safe height. We actually voiced our concern before this accident, and again after it. However, we cannot…
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Phuket Police defend snaring foreign tourists in illegal taxi raids
PHUKET: Police have defended their actions in a raid that saw officers and military personal, clad in flak jackets and carrying assault rifles, besiege an illegal Phuket taxi carrying a family of foreign tourists. “We flagged down a taxi with the assistance of the security guard in front of our hotel at Karon Beach. The driver agreed to take us…
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Heroin overdose suspected in American expat’s death in Phuket
PHUKET: Police suspect that a 29-year-old American expat found dead on the side of the road in Kamala early last Sunday morning died of a heroin overdose. Not far from where the body of Texan Benjamin Nesher Jones was found on Soi 8, police arrested another man with 18grams of heroin. “We believe that Mr Jones died because of a…
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PWA announces Phuket Town water shutoff
PHUKET: The Phuket Water Authority (PWA) has announced that water supply in some areas of Phuket Town will be shut off from 9pm tomorrow to 3am on Sunday. Water is being shut off to allow for new pipes to be laid in Suan Luang Park* – part of the PWA’s plan to improve Phuket Town’s water-treatment process. Those affected include:…
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Phuket Police officer charged for fatal pub shooting
PHUKET: A Phuket Provincial Police officer has been charged with gunning down a waitress in cold blood after forensic evidence showed that the bullet came from his gun. Nuchiska Klasuek, a 35-year-old waitress, was shot in the head by an unidentified assailant in a pick-up truck on May 16, after leaving the popular Saraphan Pleng Pub live-music bar in Chalong…
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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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