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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Chinese tourist drowns off Phuket
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist on holiday with friends in Phuket drowned this afternoon while on a day trip to Koh Racha Yai, about 25 kilometers south of Phuket. Capt Wuttiwat Liang-boonjinda of the Chalong Police named the victim as Li Ran, 28. Ms Li was travelling with five friends who joined about 40 other tourists for the trip to Racha…
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Video Report: Man in pink raincoat robs Phuket Family Mart
PHUKET: A man wielding a knife and wearing a pink raincoat jumped over the counter of a convenience store in Thalang early this morning and made off with the contents of a cash register.Police responding to a call at 3:45am found the two female employees unharmed at the Family Mart at the entrance to Baan Lipon School in Srisoonthorn.One of…
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Phuket storm topples marquee at festival, man crushed by speakers
PHUKET: A Phuket Town motorbike taxi driver died after strong wind toppled a marquee covering the stage at Saphan Hin last night, sending speakers crashing down on him. Police and rescue workers arrived at the 10th Annual Southern Prison Products Fair (story here) at about 7:45pm to find Muhammad Poksakul, a 62-year-old motorbike driver at the nearby Phun Pol Night…
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Phuket’s DJ Doris out of ICU
PHUKET: Paul Norris, Phuket’s renowned “DJ Doris” on Phuket Island Radio 91.5FM, is out of intensive care and recovering at Bangkok Hospital Phuket. Mr Norris suffered a head injury in what is believed to have been a motorbike accident in Patong early Saturday morning. He was rushed to Patong Hospital by rescue workers. However, he remained unconscious and was transferred…
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Elephant smugglers caught at work in Phuket
PHUKET: Thalang police seized three elephants being illegally transported into Phuket this morning. Nine people were arrested in the early-morning raid and the two trucks transporting the elephants were seized. Suspects told police that a “Piang Sala-ngam” had sent his son-in-law Sa-ngad Padphai down with the trucks from an elephant camp in the northeastern province of Surin. The trucks departed…
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PHUKET VIDEO REPORT: Infamous Black Hole of Patong may not be fixed for weeks
PHUKET: After two motorbikes plunged into a giant pothole in the back streets of Patong early yesterday morning, Phuket authorities say they will not be able to start fixing the road until at least next week. A video posted on YouTube shows a foreigner having to dive into the huge puddle – measuring at least two meters deep, several meters…
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Phuket python chokes the chicken
PHUKET: A three-meter python was found choking a Phuket resident’s chicken late last night. “I was asleep in the house when I was awoken by the sound of a chicken,” said the owner of the fowl, Pairoj Denmalai. “I came outside to find a large python strangling one of my chickens, and immediately contacted Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers,” he said.…
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V-Phuket braves wild weather to stage anti-government protest
PHUKET: Hundreds of V-Phuket protesters, wearing their iconic Guy Fawkes masks, braved the strong wind and lashing rain in Phuket Town yesterday afternoon to continue their protest against the Pheu Thai government under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The rally in Phuket was held in concert with other “V for Thailand” protests in at least 22 provinces, as well as in…
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Young American dies in Phuket motorbike crash
PHUKET: A 27-year-old American man died instantly on Saturday when he was hit by a Chang beer delivery truck on Wiset Road, in Rawai. “According to witness reports, American Nicolas Javier Solis exited Soi Kok Ma… onto Wiset Road, heading to Rawai Beach,” said Lt Wuthiwat Leangboonjinda of the Chalong Police. “As he exited Soi Kok Ma, he was struck…
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Iraqi wrestling coach dies of heart attack in Phuket
PHUKET: A coach with the Iraqi wrestling team in Phuket for the Asian Junior Wrestling Championships died of a heart attack on Saturday night while returning from a night out on Phuket’s renowned Soi Bangla. Kadee Abes, 44, from Iraq, was pronounced dead at 1:28am yesterday, Dr Patrinee Thammasrisawat of Patong Hospital told the Phuket Gazette. “We tried for about…
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Phuket tourist safety gets 300 CCTV camera boost in Patong
PHUKET: The push by Phuket authorities to increase tourist safety across the island has received a much welcome boost with Patong CCTV control rooms now up and running. The new system, launched as part of the Patong Safety Zone initiative (story here), displays footage from 32 high-quality police CCTV cameras and 300 private CCTV systems at three central locations, Patong…
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One dead as Phuket pickup slams into tree
PHUKET: One man died and another was injured when a pickup truck slammed into a tree in central Phuket early this morning. Rescue workers and Thalang Police were called to the scene on Srisoontorn Road, about 300 meters from Baan Manik School (map here), at about 2:10am. The driver, Jaroendham Thepraksa, 25, died instantly in the impact. The passenger, Montri…
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Police probe suicide at Phuket workers camp
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a woman who reportedly committed suicide while her husband was out drinking and her 14-year-old son was next door playing with neighbors yesterday afternoon.Phuket City Police officers were called to the scene, a construction workers camp on Soi Kingkaew Uthit in Rassada, at about 5pm.They arrived to find Saeng-ngern Trairoj 54, dead from…
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Phuket Immigration Tourist Service Point opens in Patong
PHUKET: Phuket Immigration’s Tourist Service Point in Patong re-opened on Thursday to a flurry of activity, with about 20 expats and tourists taking advantage of the immigration services provided. “Most of them came to do their 90-day resident reporting and for extensions to permits-to-stay,” said Patong Immigration’s Capt Angkarn Yasanop, who now heads the office with a staff of five.…
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Newborn dumped, found dead in Phuket trash pile
PHUKET: A newborn baby boy with a rubber band twisted tightly around its neck was found dead in a pile of rubbish in southern Phuket beach area of Rawai yesterday afternoon.The baby, estimated to have been dead for over 24 hours, was spotted by Rawai Municipality trash truck driver Sutham Kansuwan on his regular route along Soi Suksan 1, said…
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Phuket teens in gang attack, motorbike theft
PHUKET: Police are urging motorists to exercise caution when travelling alone late at night in the Thalang area after a man was kicked off his motorbike while in motion and robbed of his motorcycle by a gang of youths late Thursday night. Chatmongkol Sukmak, 17, was riding home from Phuket Town at about 11pm when a gang of youths travelling…
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Schaefer takes over Muang Thong, Thailand play China
PHUKET: Winfried Schaefer quit his role last week as manager of Thailand’s national football team to replace Slavisa Jokanovic as manager of Muang Thong United. He lost his first game in charge 1-0 to Bangkok Glass last Sunday. Schaefer’s move to Muang Thong represents a solution to the headache suffered by the Thai Football Association as it sought to end…
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Lions Tour: Upping the tempo
PHUKET: After two relatively straightforward workouts – against the Barbarians in Hong Kong and the Western Force in Perth, the Lions encountered their first real test at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, the setting for the first Test on June 22. Against the Barbarians, the heat had been enervating, with Welsh prop Adam Jones declaring it “like nothing I have…
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Phuket on the cards to host Thailand’s F1
PHUKET: The Ministry of Tourism and Sports has admitted Phuket could host Thailand’s lucrative Formula One race in 2015 due to strong opposition from Bangkok residents. Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) put the skids on the F1 race being held in the capital by banning the use of the historic Rattanakosin Island. The move came after residents and business owners complained…
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VIDEO REPORT: European Union tackles Phuket tourism woes
PHUKET: Ambassadors from 17 European nations today brought to the Phuket Governor’s attention four critical issues plaguing Phuket’s tourism industry: road transport, boat safety, tourist security and jet-skis.“The meeting today was held to identify several key issues affecting European tourists to Thailand and to come up with solutions to these problems,” said European Union (EU) Ambassador to Thailand David Lipman,…
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LPIM: Testing ground for evolution of species
PHUKET: Homo sapiens have evolved as persistence hunters. We are designed to go the distance, to plod along behind any quick footed antelope on the open prairie until the poor bugger, all sprints and no stamina, gives up the ghost – the Laguna Phuket International Marathon was a testing ground of our evolution. “We are a species of runners,” I,…
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No Phuket cars on DSI supercar list
PHUKET: No Phuket luxury cars are on the list of 488 supercars whose owners are being investigated for tax evasion, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. The DSI on Monday revealed the names of the owners of 488 luxury cars who will be called in for questioning in a nationwide crackdown on supercar tax…
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Phuket security guard saved from suicide leap
PHUKET: A security guard sacked after two days on the job in Phuket was talked down from a four-storey building in Phuket Town yesterday after he threatened to jump. Police arrived at the Phoonphol Night Plaza just before 4pm, along with Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers and a medical team from Vachira Phuket Hospital. Officers were dispatched to the rooftop to…
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Mass tourism market blamed for degradation of Phuket
PHUKET: The Senate Standing Committee on Tourism yesterday highlighted a series of issues plaguing Phuket due to the rapid development of the province into a major center for mass tourism in Thailand.“The growth of the tourism industry in Phuket is the source of many problems at its natural tourist attractions. Land and beach encroachment, as well as air and water…
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Asian junior wrestling takes hold of Phuket
PHUKET: The 2013 Asian Junior Wrestling Championships started today with dozens of bouts taking place this morning at Saphan Hin’s 4,000-seat Indoor Sports Complex; and will conclude on Sunday (click here for map). The Wrestling Championship will be the first time some competitors have competed since the World Wrestling Body (FILA) introduced changes to the point system last month. With…
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Special Report: Burmese manager climbs to the top of Phuket hotel industry
Special Report: Kyaw Kyaw Khine is a piece of living Phuket history. At 47 years old, he is the first Burmese national to become a hotel manager in Phuket’s critical tourism industry, at one of the best known hotels on the island: the On On Hotel on Phang Nga Road in Phuket Town. Here he tells the story of his…
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Heavy Phuket rains send snake slithering for shelter
PHUKET: A large python sought accommodation and food in a local Phuket woman’s home yesterday morning.“During heavy rain, pythons often come to find things to eat. My house has many chickens, which is good food for a snake,” said Kanittha Saechau.On spotting the snake, which stretched to about four meters long, Ms Kanittha contacted Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers.The rescue workers…
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Phuket flood, landslide warning issued as weekend deluges forecast
PHUKET: An island-wide flood and landslide warning has been issued as heavy rains continue to soak Phuket. The warning was issued to all local authorities across the island, San Jantharawong, chief of the Phuket office of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket), confirmed to the Phuket Gazette this morning. “There has been heavy rain every day for days…
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Phuket beach encroachment top concern of Senate tourism sortie
PHUKET: A fact-finding tour of Phuket’s top west coast tourist beaches yesterday identified encroachment by hotels, resorts and restaurants as the top concern among members of the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism. The tour of beaches began at about 8:30am, led by Phuket Senator Tunyaratt Achariyachai, who is also the chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism. Joined by…
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US Ambassador Kenney showers praise on Phuket
PHUKET: US Ambassador Kristie Kenney praised an array of aspects of Phuket during her one-day outreach trip to the island yesterday. “I am very thankful for every Phuket police officer. I am aware of how hard your work is, especially as Phuket is a tourism city and you have to take care of not only Thai people, but also foreigners,”…
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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