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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Ya bah arrests drop by 50pc
PHUKET: The number of people arrested between July1 to July 25 on charges related to ya bah (methamphetamine) was just 28, compared to 56 during the same period in June, according to the latest statistics released by police. Police last month arrested 123 people on narcotics charges in raids that netted 455 ya bah pills, compared with 153 arrests for…
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Star Tour denies cutting back tour groups
PHUKET TOWN: A major Swedish tour organizer says it will continue to send groups to Phuket despite some misgivings it has about child labor, homeless children and child prostitution on the island. At the same time, however, Marie Hallberg – a Swedish researcher who was at the center of an earlier storm over suggestions that the company might boycott Phuket…
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Phuket kids head for Special Olympics
PHUKET TOWN: Two students from the Phuket Special School are to represent Thailand in this year’s Special Olympic Games in Japan. Fifteen-year-olds Suriyan Kwanprom and Sukasem Charoensuk were presented with 10,000 baht towards the trip when they met Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi at Phuket Provincial Hall today. The two leave Phuket on Monday to meet the other eight Thai representatives…
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Fake Dulwich papers “full of mistakes’
PHUKET TOWN: Fake Dulwich International College certificates were part of a recently uncovered Internet scam, but were of poor quality, the Phuket Provincial Education Office said today. Among the mistakes on the imitations were subjects listed that are not taught at the college and a logo that failed to match the real one. The signature on the fakes was that…
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Mahouts trained to look after elephants
PHUKET: The Provincial Livestock Department today held a training seminar for mahouts from Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi, in which they were taught the basics of elephant health. About 50 mahouts attended the seminar at the Royal Paradise Hotel in Patong. A similar seminar last year attracted about 300 mahouts. Suwut Chalayjorn, Director of the Veterinary Service Division, explained, “The…
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Thais urged to battle corruption
PHUKET TOWN: Thai people should be more aware of corruption, a workshop to promote ethics in the community was told today. “There should be regular corruption inspections and investigations,” Pongthep Thepkarnjana, Minister to the Prime Minister’s Office, told the 500 people who attended the day-long gathering at the Royal Phuket City Hotel. K. Pongthep, who is also Vice Chairman of…
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Convention center decision closer
PHUKET: The site of the island’s proposed international convention and exhibition center (CEC) remains undecided but a verdict is one step closer. Napasorn Kakai, Assistant Director of the local Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office, told reporters that a sub-committee led by businessman Wichit Na Ranong has carefully examined the proposed sites and voted on each. Their opinions have been…
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Mayor to lead 500 on Penang junket
PATONG: The Mayor of Patong, Surasak Maneesri, is to take 500 local people on an educational tour to Penang in Malaysia next week, at a cost to local tax payers of two million baht. The money to provide the 500 travelers with free bus transport, accommodation and food from August 4-7 will come from the municipality’s human resources development budget.…
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Fisherman witnesses colleague’s murder
PHUKET TOWN: A Thai fisherman watched as a Burmese man who worked on the same boat was stabbed to death at Rassada Port in the early hours of Sunday. Pol Maj Pissanu Poonwong, of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette yesterday that the witness, who works on the fishing boat “Yod Duangporn”, called the police after seeing his co-worker…
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Rules changed for EMS deliveries
PHUKET: The Communications Authority of Thailand (CAT) has announced that it is no longer accepting parcels or envelopes addressed to post office boxes in India, Luxembourg, Qatar, or Tanzania, for delivery via its premium Express Mail Service (EMS). EMS parcels and envelopes sent to these four countries must carry the recipient’s name and full address. Items addressed to PO boxes…
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Key Aussie probe witness turns up in Patong
PATONG: A key witness in a major Western Australian inquiry into misdeeds by the state’s police, who disappeared from Australia recently, has turned up in Patong. The witness concerned is Tony Lewandowski, an ex-detective who recently signed an affidavit concerning the rigging of evidence to secure the convictions of three brothers, Raymond, Peter and Brian Mickelberg, for the notorious Perth…
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Murder, attempted rape on mangrove walk
PHUKET TOWN: A man was stabbed to death as he tried to save his girlfriend from two would-be rapists on the new Saphan Hin mangrove tourist walkway on Friday night. One attacker dropped his wallet in the struggle, leading to the arrests of both the following day. The murder victim, Nopparat Thongjanthuck, a 26-year-old air-conditioning technician from Surin, had taken…
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Girl drowns at Nai Harn Beach
NAI HARN: The body of an eight-year-old Thai girl who was pulled under the waves on Wednesday washed ashore at Nai Harn Beach this morning. Pol Capt Anake Mongkol of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette that Nisamanee Malilam was reported missing around 5 pm on Wednesday. Capt Anake said Nisamanee had come to Nai Harn with her aunt and…
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‘Hot’ competition for Phuket police
PHUKET TOWN: Police officers went through a two-hour competition yesterday to hone their skills in dealing with hostage-taking and other “hot” situations. Police were judged on their work with pistols and rifles, methods of snatching a gun from a suspect, using handcuffs, arresting suspects in a car, freeing hostages on a bus, protecting VIPs and other similar drills. Pol Maj…
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Pursuit of robber brings traffic to a halt
PHUKET TOWN: Traffic in Samkong was brought to a standstill this afternoon as local residents chased a thief down Yaowarat Rd, accompanied by police firing shots in the air. The thief, Witaya Meejai, 26, from Nakhon Sri Thammarat, was caught by police, with the help of local residents, outside the Steak Samkong restaurant at about 4 pm. Pol Maj Vichakom…
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Bars, nightclubs urged to close
PHUKET: Police are requesting bar and nightclub owners to close their doors tomorrow and Thursday, out of respect for the religious holidays. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, said today, “We ask only for cooperation from the bar and nightclub owners in Phuket. It’s not a law or rule. “It has become customary for Thais not…
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Phuket Aquarium to get giant face-lift
AO MAKHAM: The Phuket Aquarium has received 81 million baht from the Department of Fisheries to renovate and expand to include a glass tunnel that will allow visitors to walk through a fish tank. The improvements, it is estimated, could bring as many as half a million visitors to the aquarium a year. Potchana Boonyanate, a marine biologist at the…
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Man in black found hanging from tree
PHUKET TOWN: Police have appealed to the public for help in identifying a man who was found hanging from a tree yesterday morning near Moo Baan Prangthong on Kwang Rd. Pol Capt Watcharin Jirattikarnviwat, of Phuket Town Police Station, said the victim was found by local villagers hanging by a nylon rope from a tree branch, about 10 meters from…
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PTA elects new president
PHUKET TOWN: Pattanapong Aikwanich, Managing Director of Diamond Cliff Resort, was elected President of the Phuket Tourist Association (PTA) on Saturday. The biennial election attracted 117 of the PTA’s 198-strong membership to the Metropole Hotel to cast their votes. First business of the meeting was for members to elect a committee of 11, which later voted for K. Pattanapong to…
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Russian drowns at Surin Beach
SURIN: A Russian tourist drowned at Surin Beach on Friday while swimming with his wife. Pol Maj Anan Jingjit, Inspector of Cherng Talay Police Station, identified the victim as 42-year-old Alexey Afonichev. “He was swimming with his wife and disappeared under the strong waves. Other tourists in the area located him and pulled him to shore,” Maj Anan said. Police…
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Bag-snatch raiders score three times
PHUKET: Three motorbike handbag snatchings have sparked a police hunt for the perpetrators – and a warning to women to be wary until the snatchers are caught. The first case took place on Wednesday in front of Moo Ban Perm Sin on Thepkrasattri Rd. Suwai Wanbutra, 25, was riding her motorbike back home from Phuket Town, when two men rode…
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Phuket prepares for Apec meeting
KARON: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a seminar involving about 100 officials and businesspeople this morning at Phuket Arcadia Beach Resort, to prepare for the 3rd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Senior Officials Meeting, to be held in Phuket next year. Apinan Pavanarit, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Phuket will host the conference from August…
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Gov to hold “clinic’ in Kamala
KAMALA: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi will hold a public service “clinic” at the offices of the Kamala Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) on July 28. The Governor, with chiefs and staff from every provincial government department, will meet local residents to hear their grievances and to explain services. Officers will be on hand, from 9:30 am to 5 pm, to give…
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Bravery of recovery team acknowledged
PHUKET TOWN: The United States Ambassador to Thailand, Darryl Johnson, today presented certificates of commendation to the 24 Marine Police and Navy personnel involved in the operation to recover the body of American diver Dr Jeffrey Gall. Dr Gall, an experienced diver with more than 250 logged dives, disappeared on March 25 while exploring an underwater cave off Koh Ha…
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Wachira sets two national firsts
PHUKET TOWN: Deputy Public Health Minister Dr Surapong Suebwonglee today announced that Wachira Phuket Hospital has set two public health care firsts for Thailand. It is the first to have a government-owned hyperbaric chamber, and the first to treat HIV patients under the 30-baht medical scheme. Dr Surapong officially opened the hyperbaric chamber, which will be used to treat divers…
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Boys, 11 and 12, arrested for burglary
WICHIT: Three schoolchildren became burglars because their pocket money wasn’t enough, they told the Gazette on Monday. Twelve-year-old “Pring”, one of the accused sixth-graders, said, “Twenty baht isn’t enough. I asked mom for extra money, but she said no.” The trio were caught after allegedly burglarizing two houses in the same neighborhood, one of them twice. Pring, 11-year-old “Kob”, and…
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Tenth Burmese fisherman murdered
PHUKET TOWN: The number of Burmese fishermen murdered since May 1 has reached double figures with another unidentified body dumped in the notorious “Burmese Cemetery”. The tenth victim was found Monday afternoon in long grass near the entry to the Sang Aroon Mai raft on Sri Sena Rd. Seven of the 10 corpses have been found in this area. The…
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Luck runs out for Diamond the dolphin
AO MAKHAM: Diamond the dolphin died on Sunday, just hours before a planned release back into the ocean at Patong. Rescued by villagers from the beach at Patong last month, Diamond (Jao Petch) had appeared to be recovering and biologists at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) planned to free him today. The 1.83-meter striped dolphin (Latin name Stenella coeruleoalba)…
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18-year-old held over fake diplomas
PHUKET: Police have arrested an 18-year-old Bangkok student and are checking whether Dulwich College certificates were among fake diplomas she is alleged to have sold over the Internet. Officers spent two weeks tracing the student through an email “sting”. They raided her Rachaburi home yesterday and found fake diplomas and certificates in her computer. The girl, named only as Daeng,…
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Ya bah found under mattress
PHUKET TOWN: Police arrested a couple in a raid over the weekend and discovered illegal drugs hidden under a mattress in their hotel room. Acting on a tip-off that a delivery of ya bah (methamphetamine) had just been made, Marine Police took Rhom Chantarat, 48, and Jinawal Phromharn, 22 into custody early on Saturday. In a plastic bag under the…
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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