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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Mcllroy joins greats after repelling Garcia charge
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rory McIlroy suffered several anxious moments but kept the jitters in check to rubber-stamp his status as the newest golfing great by landing the first British Open title of his career on Sunday. The 25-year-old Northern Irishman watched Sergio Garcia (66) cut his overnight lead from six…
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Phuket Raceweek: Foxy Lady breezes to victory
PHUKET: Bill Bremner’s Foxy Lady VI breezed around the course off the east coast of Phuket today to win the IRC Racing I Class of the 2014 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek Regatta. Placing fourth in today’s race was little more than a formality for the too-hot-to-handle Foxy Lady (story here) crew to ensure they had enough points to allow…
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Special Report: Tackling Phuket’s kid thugs is no child’s play
A growing number of teenagers in Phuket are becoming involved in drug abuse and violent crimes in a shift that is concerning local officials involved with juvenile cases, from court judges who hand down sentences to the minors to the counselors tasked with reforming them in the hope the children do not become repeat offenders. The Gazette’s Saran Mitrarat reports.…
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Phuket Police launch 10pm street curfew for minors
PHUKET: Following the recent spate of violent teenage attacks throughout Phuket, the island’s top-ranking police officer has ordered a 10pm curfew for all minors, effective immediately. “I have ordered officers from every police station in Phuket to start cracking down on children under 18 years old who are found roaming the streets at night,” Provincial Police Commander Krajang Suwannarat told…
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Phuket Governor prepared to cry “disaster zone’ to combat coastal erosion
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut has pledged to support all budget requests by local authorities to combat the resurgence of coastal erosion that has plagued Phuket’s beaches during the past week. If need be, the governor is willing to specifically declare Surin Beach a disaster zone in order to be able to release money from a disaster-relief fund in order…
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Phuket migrant worker center to combat slavery to open July 22, as deadline looms
PHUKET: Phuket’s one-stop registration center where employers will be able register their illegal migrant workers will be open for 30 days, starting on July 22. “The center will be located at the Phuket Provincial Community Hall in Phuket Town,” Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) Chief Yaowapa Pibulpol confirmed to the Phuket Gazette today. “The one-stop center will be open from…
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Phuket thief smashes car window, makes off with 20,000 baht
PHUKET: Police have warned motorists against leaving valuables in their cars after a Phuket thief this morning smashed a car window with a rock and made off with a bag containing 20,000 baht. Phuket City Police were called to the scene on Wirat Hongyok Road, near Suan Luang Park (also called Chalermprakiat Ror IX Park or King’s Park), at about…
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Phuket beach tear-down debris stabs tourist through foot
PHUKET: A Phuket tourist exercising barefoot on Kamala Beach yesterday was stabbed through the foot by a one-foot-long metal rod that was hidden beneath the sand. Local rescue workers called to the scene near the Kamala Cemetery found Benedict Tauber, 55, sitting on the ground with the metal rod sticking through the bottom of his foot. “We had to cut…
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Police raid illegal Phuket forest homestead
PHUKET: A Phuket police raid on an illegal homestead in the Kamala Forest yesterday found no people but did turn up a registered rifle which police are using to pursue suspects. More than 30 Phuket police officers and a special squad from Region 8 Police went to the site, located three kilometers away from the nearest road, after local residents…
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Next Target: Land-snatching Phuket officials
PHUKET: National level politicians involved in commandeering more than 1,000 rai of public land in Phuket will face fire as a joint agency operation pushes to shake out the long history of illegal land titles plaguing Sirinath National Park. “The people at the root of the issue of encroachment in Sirinath Park go all the way up to the top……
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Phuket Raceweek: Foxy Lady stretches her legs with four straight wins
Bill Bremner’s Foxy Lady VI, out of Singapore, scored two more firsts in the Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek Regatta today to card four straight wins in the IRC 1 Racing class. Winds eased to 10 to 12 knots off the east coast of Phuket, where the fleet of 35 yachts competed in the second day of racing in slightly…
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Jellyfish warning after Russian woman suffers serious sting
PHUKET: A 24-year-old Russian woman was rushed to hospital today after being stung by a bluebottle jellyfish while swimming at Nai Thon Beach, off Phuket’s west coast. “At about 12:30pm we heard a woman screaming. We helped her out of the waist-deep water and found a bluebottle jellyfish stuck to the back of her hand,” Jit Chairap, head of the…
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Dig up the land titles next
PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) deserves the island’s full support for the ongoing efforts to rid public beaches of illegal encroachment in all its myriad forms. The results, which have been nothing less than stunning so far, are sure to go a long way towards restoring the island’s attractiveness to quality tourists, of both the foreign…
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Sea Sheperd rails against allegedly wild caught dolphins for Phuket Dolphinarium
PHUKET: Sea Shepard Global has put out a call to stop the Nemo Dolphinarium from being built in Phuket. Phuket Aqua Project Co Ltd’s application for the facility has been handed over to the Department of Fisheries’ head office in Bangkok, confirmed Kiattikhun Charoensawan, chief of the Phuket Fisheries Office, to the Phuket Gazette today. “I don’t see the construction…
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Video Report: Pony Up – Phuket marine conservationists launch international seahorse specialty course
PHUKET: Marine conservationists in Phuket today announced the international launch of a seahorse diver specialty course to promote accurate crowdsourcing as Thailand, and the rest of the world, attempts to protect endangered populations. The Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) course will teach student divers the basics of seahorse biology and conservation, how to identify and search for seahorses and…
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One-stop center for migrant worker registration to open in Phuket this month
PHUKET: Migrant workers living and working illegally on Phuket may be able to become fully legal and registered by the end of the month, confirmed the island’s employment office chief yesterday. “We expect illegal workers to be able to register at Phuket’s one-stop center by the end of the month. All application processes and procedures will be completed in one…
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Phuket to be waste management model for nation
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Navy has vowed to find a budget to fix Phuket’s third incinerator, broken since 2012, and make the island a model of garbage management for other provinces to follow. Royal Thai Navy Commander Narong Pipathanasai made the pledge after touring the island’s waste facility at Saphan Hin on Monday. On a similar tour in March (story…
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Phuket dog turns in fugitive
PHUKET: An astute dog led police to arrest a fugitive who had escaped from a Phuket police pick-up truck yesterday as it was stopped at a red light (story here). About 7 hours after 22-year-old Boonrit Boontang, arrested for motorbike theft, escaped from police custody while being transferred to Phuket Provincial Court, a barking dog gave up his hiding spot.…
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Knife-wielding bag snatcher bagged by Phuket police
PHUKET: Police snared the knife-wielding thief who threatened and robbed a Chinese couple last night at Karon View Point in just over 24 hours. “We were notified about the attack at about 10:30 yesterday morning,” said Lt Col Ason Jiraksa of the Karon Police. “The victims said the man threatened them with a knife, snatched the woman’s bag and then…
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Phuket officials board fishing vessels to check for human trafficking victims
PHUKET: Officials stepped off Phuket to spot-check five fishing vessels this morning as Thailand ramps up its efforts to stifle human trafficking. “We came out to the boats to ensure that there were no trafficking victims on fishing boats in the province. We also talked with the fishermen to establish whether or not they were being treated fairly by their…
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Phuket police hunt handcuffed thief who fled from police vehicle at red light
PHUKET: A handcuffed man left behind only his slippers today when he jumped from a police pick-up truck while it was stopped at a red light. Boonrit Boontang, 22, who has been evading police since his escape, had been arrested on July 15 for stealing a motorbike. He was being transferred to Phuket Provincial Court at about 11:30am when he…
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Phuket bound bus kills three in Krabi
PHUKET: Three people died and 10 were injured in Krabi when a pick-up truck rammed another truck, sending it into the path of a bus last night. The accident occurred as a Mazda pick-up was approaching a u-turn near the Makro store on the Krabi-Ao Luek Highway at 8:30. “Witnesses said that the Mazda was going slowly into the u-turn,”…
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Phuket Raceweek: Foxy Lady too hot to handle
PHUKET: Bill Bremner’s Foxy Lady VI scored two firsts in the opening day of racing in the Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek Regatta, which began today off the east coast of Phuket. Peter Ahern’s TP52 Oi! cut a clear lead from the fleet from the outset, but a spinnaker error at the leeward mark handed the advantage to Foxy Lady,…
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Phuket Raceweek: Fast boats, slick crews to make most of blustery weather
PHUKET: The shift to heavy weather this week has set the scene for dramatic racing off Phuket’s east coast as a fleet of 36 yachts compete in this year’s edition of the renowned Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek Regatta. Racing began today following last night’s gala opening party. Setting the courses over the next four days is Simon James, who…
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Phuket python magnet catches third snake seeking shelter
PHUKET: An unlucky resident in northern Phuket suffered deja vu early this morning as he discovered that a two-meter-long python had taken cover from the rain in his chicken coop. At about 1:30am, Chokdee Inklub heard his chickens crying loudly so he went out to investigate. “I found a snake in the coop,” said Mr Chokdee. Rescue workers from the…
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Kata-Karon mayor denies five more charges in connection to Phuket taxi mafia
PHUKET: Police have slapped five more charges on Tawee Thongcham, mayor of Phuket’s tourist-popular beach area Kata-Karon, for his alleged connection to the powerful taxi mafia in the area. Mr Tawee has denied all charges. “Mr Tawee has been charged with the same thing as before, which is conspiracy and the aiding of illegal activities carried out by criminal associations,”…
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Islands off Phuket’s east coast next up in beach cleanup
PHUKET: The islands of Koh Naka Yai and Koh Naka Noi are the next targets in the great Phuket beach cleanup, which has now spread to sands on and off the island’s east coast. Officials planned to visit the islands this afternoon but were informed by a local official that residents there had started clearing illegal beach structures on their…
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Phuket shop owners helpful in clearing Phuket east coast beachfront
PHUKET: The clearing of Phuket’s beaches reached the east coast today as officers helped Ao Por locals dismantle shacks, sun shades and stalls set up along the beachfront. “We had about 70 people on our task force including Navy personnel and staffers from the Pa Khlok Municipality, as well as officers from the Thalang Police Station and Marine Office,” said…
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A Phuket success story: British siblings’ locate saviors nearly a decade after the tsunami
PHUKET: A Facebook hunt led by British siblings for a man and woman who helped them during the devastating 2004 tsunami is over; their guardians have been found. Upin Sengmuang, a small shop owner on Tri Trang Beach, learned today that she and her partner Pitchat were being sought by Emily and Ben Willgrass, who had posted a message on…
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Sirinath National Park land tug-of-war continues as chief files complaint against illegal landowners
PHUKET: The Sirinath National Park chief is set to file a complaint against three people who are attempting to upgrade allegedly illegally issued SorKor 1 documents into land title deeds. “Tomorrow morning I will file a complaint to Tah Chat Chai Police against Nakorn Wongsrithong, Chan Pongpa and Anoma Fangsen for encroaching on national park land,” said Sirinath National Park…
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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