Phuket News
Discover the latest news and updates from Thailand’s most famous and beautiful island, The Thaiger’s hometown, having previously operated as the Phuket Gazette.
Our team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Phuket, covering everything from local politics and business to lifestyle and tourism. Learn about the island’s stunning beaches, vibrant nightlife, and thriving expat community, as well as keeping updated on events, and attractions.
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Chinese tourists rescued from sinking speedboat in Phuket’s Chalong Bay
PHUKET: A speed boat carrying Chinese tourists from Koh Lone to Chalong Pier took on water yesterday morning and sank about 500 meters from Chalong Pier.A passing longtail boat safely transferred the 16 passengers and three boat crew members from the speedboat to the pier.The speed boat Alisa 2 was nearing Chalong at about 8am when the boat crew noticed…
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Suspected Deep South bomb truck found in Phuket Town
PHUKET: Bomb disposal experts this morning are inspecting a pickup truck that was found parked in front of Phuket City Police Station with two gas cylinders in the back seat connected by electrical wires.Officers discovered the pickup truck on Saturday while clearing the police station car park for the annual police assembly held each year to launch the new year’s…
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Cement truck juggernaut demolishes small car, driver safe [Video]
PHUKET: A cement truck jumped a median strip at an intersection near Phuket Town last night and rammed a small car coming towards it. The truck was headed south on Chao Fa East Road and had reached the intersection at the Dowroong Wittaya School (map here). In the dramatic police CCTV footage (click here), the juggernaut can be seen entering…
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Record drug bust in Krabi nets 48K meth pills, B17mn assets
PHUKET: Police in Krabi province, across the bay from Phuket, have arrested three suspects and seized more than 48,000 pills of ya bah (methamphetamine) in what is being hailed as the largest drug bust in Southern Thailand.The arrests were announced at a press conference today, when Krabi Governor Prasit Osathanon presented Bancha Janchamroen, 36; Sompot Janchamroen, 30; and Pattara Dechaporn,…
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Phuket beach pollution readings to remain secret
PHUKET: The Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) will not post the pollution readings of its seawater quality tests online, the Phuket Gazette has confirmed. Instead, the center will publish only its self-determined star rating system, PMBC Director Ukkrit Satapoomin told the Gazette this week. The PMBC issued a press release last week announcing that the reports were now available online…
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“Evil man of Krabi’ eligible for bail during appeal process
PHUKET: A tour guide was sentenced to 20 years in jail last week for the rape and assault of a Dutch tourist in Krabi last year. However, Chumpol Khanonuang, 27, can appeal the case in the Appeals Court, said Krabi Provincial Police Commander Nantadech Yoinuan. “Chumpol’s bail has been set at 700,000 baht,” he added. It was this bail that…
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Police raids uncover drug dens in Soi Ya Bah, Phuket Town
PHUKET: Police yesterday arrested two men after separate raids on the same small street in Samkong, Phuket Town, resulted in the seizure of 1,818 pills of ya bah (methamphetamine) and 4.99 grams of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine). Acting on a tip-off, officers arrived at the house of Worasak Bamrung, 30, in Soi Prayoon 3/1 (map here) at 3am. A search…
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Merry Christmas Phuket! Governor to announce bypass road speed limit
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut on December 25 will announce the speed limit for motorists travelling along the bypass road, officially called Chalermprakiat Ror IX Road and unofficially one of Phuket’s deadliest motorways. The move will be the first of many measures taken in the hope of achieving zero fatalities over the new year holidays. “The usual ‘Seven Days of…
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Colorful New Year coming to Phuket
PHUKET: “Colorful Countdown Phuket 2014” is set to usher in the new year with light shows and live concerts at Sanam Chai Park (map here) from December 29 to 31. This year’s theme for the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization (PPAO) event is “The Charm Wonderland of Light”, explained PPAO President Paiboon Upatising, also known as “the pink panther” for his…
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More human remains found believed to be those of missing Phuket 7-year-old
PHUKET: More human remains were found today in the pine woods where family members of missing 7-year-old Nong Dear and villagers yesterday discovered fragments of a human skull, along with shorts and a pair of slippers that matched those the girl was wearing at the time of her disappearance. It was a spirit medium who led the family to the…
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Phuket truck tumbles off Kata Hill
PHUKET: An empty holiday home narrowly avoided heavy damage yesterday afternoon when a truck loaded with pallets of cement bags plunged down Kata Hill. The six-wheeled truck rolled down the steep slope, spilling its load of cement bags as it tumbled. It came to rest after bumping into the front of the vacant house. “We arrived at about 1:45pm to…
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Skull fragment found in Phuket believed to be of missing 7-year-old
PHUKET: Fragments of a human skull have been found in Chalong along with clothing and slippers that match those of missing 7-year-old Natthapa “Nong Dear” Papkaew (story here). The relatives of the missing girl uncovered fragments of bone while searching the forested area near Palai Beach yesterday. Chalong Police were notified of the discovery at about 3pm. “While our forensic…
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Firefighters battle blaze at Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa
PHUKET: Hotel staff have evacuated the Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa in Patong as firefighters battle the blaze that started at the hotel’s laundry facilities.The standalone building, part of one of Patong’s best-known resorts, caught fire at about 1:30pm, Patong Police Superintendent Chiraphat Pochanaphan told the Phuket Gazette.Firefighters have now contained the fire, which continues to burn.On site are five…
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Moonlighting Phuket electrician falls asleep at wheel, kills motorbike driver
PHUKET: A moonlighting electrician fell asleep at the wheel on his way home from work early this morning, striking and dragging a motorbike taxi driver to his death on Thepkrasattri – Nai Yang Road. Police called to the scene at 6:30am found a pickup truck with a badly damaged hood in a ditch alongside the road. The taxi driver vest…
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German tourist collapses, dies at Phuket beach
PHUKET: A German man collapsed and died in knee-deep water only meters from the shore at Patong Beach just before sunset yesterday. Patong Police officers were called to the scene, in front the police box at the end of Soi Bangla (map here), at 6pm. “When we arrived, lifeguards were administering CPR [cardiopulmonary resuscitation]. They continued for about 10 minutes,…
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Phuket FC gets new blood for new year
PHUKET: Following a month-long break, Phuket FC last week assembled its new-look squad for pre-season training in preparation for the coming Yamaha League One (YL1) season, which is set to commence in February, 2014. Meanwhile, the club’s chairman and president announced a projected season budget of between 45 to 55 million baht – about the same as the 2013 season,…
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Phuket teen killed by water truck in front of unopened Makro Rawai
PHUKET: A 15-year-old girl was killed by a water truck at the yet-to-be-opened Makro store in Rawai last night. The 48-year-old driver, Utai Suwannachoti, fled the scene, but surrendered to police this morning. “When we arrived at the scene, we found a water truck stopped in the middle of the road with a lot of onlookers surrounding it,” Capt Wuttiwat…
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Phuket to honor tsunami victims
PHUKET: The Phuket community will honor those who died in the devastating tsunami that struck the island nine years ago with a ceremony at the Tsunami Memorial Wall in Mai Khao followed by the traditional “Light Up Phuket” candle-lighting ceremony on Patong Beach. Thai official figures state that the tsunami killed 5,398 people and that more than 3,700 disappeared in…
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Phuket Police rule out “Nui’ as suspect in missing Nong Dear probe
PHUKET: Chalong Police today ruled out the Bangkok Monster “Nui” as a prime suspect in the Phuket Nong Dear case. Known only as Nui, as police have yet to release his full name, the prime suspect in the case that has outraged the nation confessed on live television to the abduction and rape of “about 10 girls”. He also confessed…
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Drowning of Phuket boy, 9, spurs lifeguard warning
PHUKET: The drowning of a 9-year-old boy at Karon Beach over the weekend has sparked a warning from Phuket lifeguards for parents to never leave children unwatched at the beach. “Children should never be left unattended near the surf, even if no red flags have been posted to mark it as a dangerous area to swim,” Kata-Karon chief lifeguard Uten…
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Phuket land grab suspect arrested
PHUKET: Police charged a man with encroaching on a protected Phuket forest yesterday after he was found building two houses amid mangroves in Wichit. The arrest came during a raid led by Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkhaosutthirak at a site near Klong Mudong (map here). The raid was inspired by a complaint filed by local villagers, Vice Governor Somkiet told…
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Chef murdered in Phuket likely bag-snatch victim
PHUKET: Police suspect that the chef who was fatally stabbed early yesterday morning while on his way to work was the victim of a bag-snatch. Eyewitnesses told police that Dithchart Insom was riding north on the Kathu-Naka road (map here) when two men on a motorbike rode alongside him and ordered him to stop. “When Mr Dithchart stopped, the men…
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Phuket mother denies rumor that 7-year-old daughter’s body was found
PHUKET: The mother of 7-year-old Natthapa “Nong Dear” Papkaew today dismissed the rumor circulating across Phuket that the body of her missing daughter had been found. “I have heard the rumor, but they’re not true. My little girl has not been found,” Jaroon Papkaew told Phuket Gazette today. Capt Thada Sodarak of the Chalong Police confirmed that his officers had…
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Former Phuket police volunteer denied bail
PHUKET: Long-time expat and well-known Tourist Police Volunteer Garry Halpin has been denied bail by police, the Phuket Gazette was told today. Mr Halpin was arrested on Saturday night in a police sting operation during which he was found in possession of more than 18 grams of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine). Mr Halpin was placed under arrest after he bought…
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Phuket murder trial of Swedes enters closing stages
PHUKET: Tommy Viktor Soderlund, one of two Swedish nationals charged for the stabbing murder of Maksim Schantz two years ago, reiterated his plea of not guilty at Phuket Provincial Court today. Mr Soderlund, in court to testify, repeated his plea of not guilty and gave his version of events that led to the killing of Russian-born Swedish national Mr Schantz…
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Jetstar begins direct Phuket-Melbourne flights
PHUKET: Jetstar Airways has launched its non-stop service between Phuket and Melbourne, connecting Phuket to one of its most important source markets just in time for the tourism high season to kick off. “The first flight of the service directly to Phuket left the ground on December 14, making it the first direct low-cost carrier service for travellers between the…
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Monkey business at kratom den north of Phuket
PHUKET: Police raiding a kratom den in Phang Nga last Friday ran into some serious monkey business when they discovered 19 caged macaques. After receiving a tip that beverages made from the leaves of the illegal kratom tree were being brewed in a house in Takuapa, police moved in. “Not only did officers find three men drinking a kratom beverage,…
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Be forewarned about 4G in Phuket
PHUKET: Lest you think it’s 3G déjà vu all over again, the current state of 4G in Phuket has a few interesting new wrinkles. In many ways, the impending 4G roll out – which is already under way, at least in theory – isn’t nearly as confusing as the 3G roll out two years ago. Thank heavens! Let’s start with…
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Patong Carnival Fun Fest underway
PHUKET: Thousands of tourists and Phuket residents lined the streets of Patong yesterday evening to usher in the annual Patong Carnival, held each year to unofficially mark the beginning of the tourism high season. This year, branded the “Patong Fun Fest”, the carnival got underway with the traditional parade, snaking its way from Phang Muang Sai Kor Road, Prachanukhro Road…
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Karon named deadliest Phuket beach
PHUKET: Karon Beach was marked as the deadliest beach in Phuket after eight people drowned between October 2012 and September 2013, said Karon Police Superintendent Weerawat Jantarawichit on Friday. “We have put up signs in many languages warning people about the dangers, but they have not been successful – this is very concerning,” Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut said in a…
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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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