Phuket News
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Taxi, tuk-tuk drivers save the day for forgetful tourists
PHUKET: A taxi driver and a tuk-tuk driver yesterday made two tourists very happy by returning over half a million baht and other belongings that had been left behind in their vehicles.Italian tourist Alfredo De Santi, 37, left a bag containing an iPad, passport, telephone and 500,000 baht in the taxi he took from the airport to his accommodation in…
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Gang brawl near Red Cross Fair leaves 2 dead, 2 injured
PHUKET: A fight between two rival gangs left two Myanmar nationals dead and two others injured at Saphan Hin last night. Both gangs had attended the final night of the Red Cross Fair. They ran into each other after leaving the event and a battle broke out, said Capt Udom Petcharat of the Phuket City Police. Police called to the…
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Phuket loses Sek’s appeal
PHUKET: Hundreds of angry anti-government protesters last night forced the organizers of the annual Phuket Red Cross Fair to cancel a live concert by Thai rock star Sek Loso, who was to perform the closing show at the fair. Sek “Seksan Sukpimai” Loso was one of many Thai celebrities who joined a publicity campaign calling on voters to cast their…
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Phuket prisoner electrified in jailbreak attempt
PHUKET: An attempted jailbreak from Phuket Prison came to a shocking halt at 12:30pm today when an inmate trying to escape was electrified by wires strung across the top of one of the perimeter walls. Alerted to the escape attempt, prison guards scrambled to the east wall, where they found Worawut Rordbhut, 45, unconscious, hanging upside down with his left…
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Phuket Police aim to ID high-speed crash victim
PHUKET: Police are trying to identify a man who died in a high-speed motorbike accident in Koh Kaew, north of Phuket Town, early this morning. Police were called to the scene, near the entrance of the Inizio Koh Kaew housing estate (map here), after security guard Chamroen Pinamorn witnessed the accident at about 4am. “I saw a man speed by…
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Special Report: A year in review
SPECIAL REPORT PHUKET: With 2013 having drawn to a close, Phuket’s top-ranking officials and leading tourism industry figures appear to have avoided a year of stagnant growth, which was almost brought on by the ongoing anti-government protests (click here for our special report) and a slew of other issues that continue to plague the island. Phuket protesters bring flowers. Photo:…
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Phuket speed cameras dish out tickets for holiday season
PHUKET: Ten motorists have been ticketed since Phuket’s four speed cameras became operational on December 25.“Anyone travelling over 90km/hr will be fined 500 baht each time they are caught on one of our cameras,” Lt Col Rungrit Rattanapagdee of the Phuket City Traffic Police Police told the Phuket Gazette today. According to Thai traffic law, 90km is the maximum speed…
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Special Report: A nation at the crossroads
Special Report PHUKET: As Thailand begins a new year, the country finds itself at a crossroads. What seems to be at stake is not only the future shape of democracy in this country, but whether it will even remain a democracy at all. This should worry all those who care about the future of Thailand and its people. The People’s…
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Phuket crane topples, downs power cables on bypass road
PHUKET: Officials have restored power supply along the bypass road, north of Phuket Town, after a crane toppled and brought down high-voltage power cables during peak hour traffic this morning.“We received a report of a crane falling over at 8:29am. We have yet to learn what caused it to fall,” Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) Operations Chief Yongyuth Podbutr told…
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Jintana’s family continues search for justice after execution-style murder
PHUKET: As the one-year anniversary of the execution-style murder of Jintana Mahattanapak approaches, her family seeks to meet with Phuket’s new top cop for help in a case that appears to have gone cold. Ms Jintana, a human resources director at the time of her murder, was shot coming home from work on January 18 (story here). Police initially believed…
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Phuket police declare victory after Patong parking D-day
PHUKET: Patong police have declared success in dislodging taxis and tuk-tuks from parking spots on the Patong beach road. “We succeeded in our goal of freeing up space between Prachanukroh Road and Soi Bangla. Each of the seven taxi ranks there are now limited to five vehicles each,” Patong Police Deputy Superintendent Akanit Danpitaksat told the Phuket Gazette this afternoon.…
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Phuket Airport customs nab Vietnamese “monk’ drug mule
PHUKET: Customs officers at Phuket International Airport arrested a Vietnamese man dressed as a monk yesterday for attempting to smuggle more than 2kg of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) into Thailand. The drugs had an estimated street value of about 8 million baht. “Officers arrested Nguyen Van Thiet, 64, at 1:50am after receiving a tip-off from undercover officers,” said Phuket Airport…
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Phuket maintains zero road deaths in 2014
PHUKET: Two traffic accidents sent two people to the hospital yesterday, but Phuket has yet to record a road-fatality for 2014. The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket office (DDPM-Phuket) today confirmed their statistics for Phuket during the Seven Days of Danger national road-safety campaign as five dead and 32 injured in 27 accidents. “The accidents on January 1…
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Election candidate blockade remains steadfast in Phuket
PHUKET: The Phuket blockade preventing any further candidates from registering to enter the February 2 national election held strong today, the last day for potential candidates to enter the election. “We couldn’t even get inside the building this morning to open the center as the protesters blocked our way,” Kittipong Thiengkunakrit, Director of the Phuket office of the Election Commission,…
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Pakastani arrested for passing counterfeit notes in Phuket
PHUKET: A Pakistani accused of passing counterfeit notes in Phuket was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday after police identified him from CCTV images taken along the road from Karon to Patong.Imran Haider, 30, exchanged counterfeit notes representing 1,400 Kuwaiti dinar in return for 148,000 baht at a foreign currency exchange booth in Karon on December 28.“The staff at the booth…
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Phuket starts 2014 with zero road deaths
PHUKET: Although five road accidents sent five people to the hospital with injuries yesterday, Phuket has yet to record a single death for the new year. The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) today confirmed that one serious accident had been reported in Patong after midnight last night. “A motorbike crashed into a pickup truck near the mosque on…
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Phuket offerings, blessings mark New Year 2014
PHUKET: About 1,000 people gathered at Queen Sirikit Park in Phuket Town this morning to join a mass alms-giving ceremony to bring good luck for the new year. All three Phuket Vice Governors attended the 7am ceremony in front of Queen Sirikit Park (map here), as did the Phuket City Mayor and other officials. After dry food offerings were presented…
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Phuket doubles down on Tah Chat Chai checkpoint security
PHUKET: The number of police manning the land-security gateway to Phuket, Tah Chat Chai checkpoint, has been doubled in order to ensure the safety of residents and visitors during Phuket’s high season. The number of Tah Chat Chai Police officers has jumped from 10 officers checking a total of five cars an hour to 20 officers checking a total of…
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Teen sixth road death in Phuket ‘Days of Danger’ campaign
PHUKET: A teenager became the sixth person to die during Phuket’s 10 Days of Danger when he crashed his new motorcycle in Thalang last night. Thanawat Tohting, 19, was travelling at high speed northbound on Thepkrasattri Road when the traffic light at the intersection with the airport road changed to yellow, witnesses told police. Mr Thanawat increased his speed to…
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Safer Phuket launches marine safety petition
PHUKET: The Safer Phuket campaign (story here), designed to significantly improve marine safety on and around the island, launched a petition last week to build mass commitment to change, campaign leader Duncan Stewart told the Phuket Gazette today. “The campaign needs three ‘Ms’: message, momentum and mass – we’re at stage three now,” Mr Stewart said. “We need demonstrable mass…
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Phuket MP candidate turned back by protesters
PHUKET: Two police complaints were filed yesterday after protesters once again blocked access to the Phuket Community Center, preventing a candidate from enrolling for the February 2 national elections. Pheu Thai candidate Visit Jaiart was prevented from entering the building to submit his candidacy. “I arrived to register at 8:30am, but protesters were blocking the doors and had taped flags…
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Phuket Pheu Thai candidate braves protest to enroll
PHUKET: One lone candidate yesterday braved the hundreds-strong protest in front of the Community Hall in Phuket Town to register in the February 2 national election. Jirayus Songyos registered as a Pheu Thai candidate for Voting District 2, which encompasses Phuket Town and the south of the island (click here). “So far, he is the only candidate registered to contest…
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Phuket officers take down taxi drivers for intimidation
PHUKET: A sting operation involving an undercover Patong Police officer disguised as a taxi driver put two men operating a hotel taxi queue behind bars yesterday. Pamorn Maipuek, 40, and Narathid Wangaree, 27, were charged for threatening the plainclothes officer, who was attempting to pick up guests at Avista Hideway Resort and Spa at about 7pm. “We had a team…
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![Runaway Phuket tour bus leaves two dead, 26 injured [Video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/phuketnews_2013123094755851_trhsjtfDhomexMZsmjrmMjVoMCCTUpNXpZHEmQbB_jpeg.jpg)
Runaway Phuket tour bus leaves two dead, 26 injured [Video]
PHUKET: Seven people remain in hospital after a runaway Phuket tour bus slammed into five vehicles, including one motorcycle, killing two people and leaving 26 others injured late yesterday afternoon. The bus came to a stop after ramming a concrete barrier at the bottom of Patong Hill near Wat Suwankiriwong (map here), explained Patong Police Superintendent Chiraphat Pochanaphan. “The driver…
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iBless to put on Phuket charity concert for typhoon victims
PHUKET: Local Filipino community project iBless Philippines is putting on a charity concert tomorrow to help those still suffering from the devastation of Super Typhoon Haiyan. The show, ‘Music for a Cause’, will showcase six local Filipino bands at Molly Malones Irish Pub in Patong. The event starts at 7pm with the MMR Band; FF Kei Vox; Uturn (The Rock…
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Bird strike forces AirAsia flight back to Phuket
PHUKET: AirAsia flight FD3167 from Phuket to Chiang Mai was forced to turn around 32 minutes after departing from Phuket International Airport, after a bird strike. “We believe several birds were sucked into the engine of the plane… After that, the captain decided to turn the plane back and land in Phuket to have the engine checked,” Arun Lilapantisitti of…
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Savvy Chinese Apple user busts thieving baggage handler in Phuket
PHUKET: A technologically handicapped baggage handler at Phuket International Airport was arrested for theft after having been outwitted by a savvy Chinese Apple user. Tah Chat Chai Police arrested Somsak Pohnisai, 31, yesterday and charged with the theft of Yang Liqiang’s iPad on December 14. Mr Somsak might have gotten away with the theft from Ms Yang’s luggage had he…
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Phuket bus drivers caught under the influence
PHUKET: Law enforcement officials are randomly testing bus drivers for drugs and alcohol during the 10 Days of Danger, and in two days have found three drivers working under the influence. Within Phuket, Thung Thong Police and Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) staff are stopping buses at the Thung Thong checkpoint on Phra Barami Road (map here) before they head…
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Speed cameras operational, but speed limit signs continue non-existent
PHUKET: Motorists speeding in Phuket now face a fine of 500 baht if they are caught by one of four speed cameras that became operational on Christmas Day. The cameras are in undisclosed locations: one within Phuket City limits; one on the bypass road; one on Thepkrasattri Road in Thalang; and one in the Tah Chat Chai area (story here).…
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Phuket high school student stabbed outside school gates
PHUKET: A senior high school student is in hospital after being stabbed yesterday afternoon as he left school in Thalang, in central Phuket. Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers were called to the Muang Thalang School (map here) at 2:30pm and found the youth with a chest wound. “He had been stabbed once in the chest with a long, thin, sharp object…
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.