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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A less-than-romantic evening
PATONG: In keeping with Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s drive to stamp out illegal drugs within three months, the authorities conducted a surprise raid on the popular Tiger Pub on Soi Bangla on Friday evening – Valentine’s Day. As police swooped in, a large number of tourists – mostly foreigners – managed to escape, leaving just 70 romantic revelers in the…
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Man found dead with bag over head
RAWAI: A Frenchman who had been living on Phuket for more than five years was found dead in odd circumstances, apparently the victim of a bizarre suicide. Police named the man as Gay Laurent, 43, who lived in the Happy House estate in Rawai. A friend of Mr Laurent contacted police about 7:30 pm on February 7, saying that he…
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Frenchman dies in road accident
CHALONG: Frenchman Jean Vidal, 39, was killed in a road accident on Chao Fa East Rd, near Soi Ta’iad Rd, in the early hours of February 9. Pol Capt Chana Sutthimas of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette today that he received an anonymous call about 2:30 am reporting an accident between a car and a motorcycle. When Capt Chana…
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Big day for big love
PHUKET: On the day marking the patron saint of lovers, St Valentine, 240 couples yesterday turned up at the three district offices on the island to tie the knot. At Thalang District Office, 49 couples got hitched, up from 30 couples last year, while 27 made vows of love at Kathu District Office. Happy with the turnout, up from 16…
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Thailand “should tax sex workers and bribes’
BANGKOK (The Nation): Increasingly hungry for state revenues, the Thaksin government received an unusual proposal from the national think tank yesterday that the sex trade should be legalized to boost the country’s coffers. The National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) also suggested legalizing some corrupt practices by, for example, turning bribes into “tips” to be shared by staff of…
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Dry season brings water shortages
PHUKET: The taps go on in Patong and off in Karon at 4 pm each day now, under new restrictions caused by Phuket’s shortage of water, and on in Karon and off in Patong at 7 am. Hotels are having to save reserves of water or buy it – and the Phuket Provincial Waterworks (PPW) has warned that other parts…
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Wachira seeks cash for equipment
PHUKET TOWN: Wachira Phuket Hospital is seeking donations so that it can buy medical equipment worth more than 10 million baht. Wachira Phuket Hospital has 522 beds for patients from Phuket and nearby provinces including Phang Nga, Krabi and Ranong. Visiting foreigners also go there for treatment. The equipment needed includes nine respirators for infants and four for children and…
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Reporters call for swift justice
PHUKET TOWN: Vichean Utsa, Chairman of Phuket Reporters Club, yesterday requested Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi to expedite the police investigation into shooting of local reporter Surapong “Od Patong” Rittee. The call came just 48 hours after K. Surapong, a local reporter for newspapers Thai Rat and Siang Tai, and for Channel 3 television, was gunned down early on Tuesday.…
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Man dies as bike crashes and burns
PHUKET TOWN: Police are investigating a crash last night that left a foreigner dead and his hired motorcycle a burnt-out shell. Two cars were also involved. The man, named by police as Etienne Jacques Payan, was carrying an international driving license issued in Britain. Today an officer went from Phuket Town to Krabi, where the motorcycle was rented, to investigate…
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Shark disco reborn as Star Wars
PATONG: The Shark discotheque, closed for more than a year after allegations of lewd behavior, is to reopen next month under new ownership and with a new name, Star Wars. The Patong landmark on the corner of Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd and Soi Bangla has been taken over by Maroot Tainikom, who also runs the nearby Tiger disco and plans…
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Vendors arrested over fake CDs
PATONG: Police arrested five vendors on Sunday after a Sony representative alerted them to the sale of illegal copies of CDs along the beach road. Three of the vendors were each fined 30,000 baht for being in breach of copyright laws. Police named them as Boonchu Saiwichian, Orasa Kritkamjorn and Kiatisak Krongsintham. Pol Lt Ampol Jantakul, of Kathu Police Station,…
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Police raid gambling den
KATHU: Sixteen gamblers were nabbed by police on Sunday after an informant led them to a rented house on Wichitsongkram Rd. Pol Maj Chawalit Petchsripia, of Kathu Police Station, was told that the popular dice game “High-Low” was being played there, so police raided the house about 9 pm. Those arrested, mostly couples, confessed that they rented the house for…
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Reporter slain execution-style
PATONG: A newspaper and TV reporter was killed by two shots to the head in an execution-style killing in Patong early this morning. Surapong “Od Patong” Rittee, 43, was gunned down by two .38 rounds fired close to his left ear as he was walking out of the Aree Karnka mini-mart on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd at 3:30 am. His…
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V-Day, not VD-Day
PHUKET TOWN: Young Thais have been warned not to lose their virginity on Valentine’s Day this Friday. The Chief of the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO), Dr Wanchai Sattayawutthipong, said research indicated that many Thai teenagers showed their love for each other on this day by having sex. This has led to the slogan among teens: “Lose your virginity on…
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Last chance for drug offenders
PHUKET TOWN: Police have given drug dealers and addicts until February 15 to surrender in the face of the national crackdown on illegal drugs. The leeway in the campaign was announced by Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, and Phuket Town District Chief Weerawat Janpan, who said the dealers would have a chance to be converted…
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Two die as drug dealers crack down on “squealers’
PHUKET TOWN: Two suspected drug dealers have been shot dead in separate incidents, and police fear a wave of gangland-style slayings could follow in Phuket. The executions, within hours of each other, indicate that the island’s drug overlords are having potential “squealers” permanently silenced rather than risk them talking to police. Elsewhere in Thailand, scores of killings over the past…
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Chalong TOT office to open soon
CHALONG: Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) customers living in the south of the island will be able to pay their phone bills at the new TOT office on Chao Fa West Rd from February 24. The payments counter will be open from 8 am-4:30 pm on weekdays, while other services, including applying for a telephone line and transferring numbers from…
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Body sighted off Similan Islands
SIMILAN: Mystery surrounds the sighting of the body of a foreigner in the sea between Koh Bua and Koh Bon, about 30 miles from the Similan Islands. A report was received from a Thai fishing boat at 11:45 am yesterday, giving precise coordinates for the body, said Pol Lt Col Prasopchai Banluesil, Deputy Superintendent of Phuket Marine Police Region 5.…
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Man dies in wild Saphan Hin brawl
PHUKET TOWN: A 45-year-old man was shot dead and others were wounded as a minor confrontation escalated into a wild brawl at Saphan Hin last weekend. At its height, about 30 people were involved, with at least eight shots fired and long knives being used to slash opponents. When police reached the scene at 2 am on Sunday, the group…
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Couple held for marijuana deal
PHUKET TOWN: Police arrested a couple for selling marijuana after a plain-clothes officer posed as a customer in a drug deal sting. Mahamasu Dearama, 29, and Suwannee Libong, 27, from Phuket Villa 3, were arrested after they met the officer in Sakdidet Road about 6:30 pm on Monday. Police confiscated one kilogram of compressed marijuana and goods allegedly linked to…
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Marine Police seek drug informants by post
PHUKET: In keeping with the central government’s three-month, all-out war on drugs, the Phuket Marine Police are encouraging informers to send anonymous tip-offs to PO Box 42, Phuket Town, 83000. Pol Maj Prasert Srikunnarath, Inspector of the Phuket Marine Police, told the Gazette, “PO Box 42 is intended to help us get information about drug dealers and addicts, especially those…
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Heavy penalities for dancing tax
PHUKET: Businesses caught avoiding the new 10% excise tax on entertainment venues with dance floors face heavy fines, said Narong Srivanitchakorn, Chief of the Phuket Provincial Excise Office (PPEO). K. Narong explained the new tax – which is part of the central government’s excise tax reform – to entertainment venue owners at a seminar at the Phuket Provincial Revenue Office…
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17 tourists hurt as bus crashes
PATONG: Police are still investigating the cause of a bus crash in which 17 tourists bound for Phuket FantaSea were injured last night. The driver was also injured. The bus, coming from Karon about 8 pm, went through a safety rail, hit a drain and flipped to one side, bringing down power lines and knocking over two pillars and a…
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Pytheus Aura in startling regatta win
PHANG NGA BAY: The most startling result in this year’s QBE Phang Nga Bay Regatta was surely the victory by Pytheus Aura in the Racing class. Last year the boat managed only a third place in the Cruising A class. Summersalt made it two in a row by winning the multihull class, while Tag repeated its second place in Cruising…
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Arrests start the anti-drug crusade
PHUKET TOWN: Two alleged drug dealers arrested for selling ya bah (methamphetamine) on Sunday were among the island’s first casualties in the national crackdown on illegal drugs. Vice-Governor Winai Buapradit said that the arrests came about because of a tip-off to Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi, who is concentrating his energies on the anti-drug war for the next three months. Phuket…
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Customs Dept goes online
THAILAND: The Customs Department today launched its revamped website featuring details of procedures for importing or exporting goods, items prohibited in Thailand, and a range of online services. The website – found at https://www.customs.go.th – is currently in Thai only. An English version of the website is expected to be online by the end of the year. The new services…
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Petty robbers pose as policemen
PHUKET TOWN: Two young men impersonating plain-clothes policemen searching for Ecstasy tablets robbed a 16-year-old boy on Sunday outside the Phuket Public Library on Phuket Rd. Pol Capt Pin Inmak, of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that Somkeat Maliwan was riding his motorbike along Phuket Rd at about 5 pm when two men on a motorbike pulled alongside…
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Krabi airport to get upgrade
KRABI: Krabi International Airport is now handling visas on arrival and will gain a longer runway and an expanded car park, thanks to a 700-million-baht government grant. Attapol Mansutthi, the airport’s Director, told the Gazette, “The total area of the airport is 2,300 rai including one building, car park and airfield. We will expand the car park and lengthen the…
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Gambling tops crime stats in January
PHUKET: Police statistics for January 1-25 reveal that gambling is still the island’s number one crime, with 147 arrests for the period in 69 cases. This figure is down significantly from the same period last year, however, when 180 arrests were reported. Drug-related offenses were the second most common crime for the period, with 117 arrests in 114 cases. The…
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Taiwanese tourist drowns
CHALONG: A 56-year-old woman from Taiwan died yesterday after she got into difficulties in the sea off Koh Hey (Coral Island) while on a guided tour. Police named the tourist as Huana Yuying, who arrived in Phuket with several members of her family on Saturday. “The area where the agent took the tourists to swim was not very deep and…
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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