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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Two seized boats sold at auction
PHUKET TOWN: Two confiscated yachts were sold at auction this morning at the Phuket Customs Region 5 office. Niwat Triemsantipap, the assistant general manager of the Maiton Resort, bid 720,000 baht to acquire the nine-meter speedboat “Seafarer” for the resort, while another resort, Moonlight Bay on Koh Lanta, bought the 9.8-meter Hatteras motor cruiser, “Old Crow”, for 619,000 baht. K.…
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THAI to hike domestic fares by 15pc
PHUKET: Fares for domestic flights on Thai Airways (THAI) will be hiked by 15% with effect from November 15, Viset Sontichai, THAI’s District Sales Manager for Upper Southern Thailand, announced today. The newspaper Thai Rath reported that the rise was because THAI’s domestic services, with the exception of those between Phuket, Bangkok and Chiang Mai, were unprofitable. The news agency…
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Rogue police a major worry: Governor
PHUKET: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi has accepted that there is a major problem in Phuket with police officers engaging in criminal activities, and has called for a change in the system that encourages such activities. He told the Gazette that reports of police officers selling narcotics were particularly worrying. “It seems to me the number of reports is rising every…
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Children reminded about overstay fines
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Immigration Office has issued a reminder that foreign children over seven years of age who overstay their permits to be in Thailand – whether in their own passport or included in a parent’s passport – face fines of 200 baht for each day they overstay. Pol Lt Col Paisan Deedoykhar, Inspector of the Phuket Immigration Police,…
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Outrage at escape from murder rap
BANGKOK (AFP): The Thaksin government’s failure to apprehend the son of a widely distrusted politician has exposed glaring flaws in Thai democracy. Murder suspect Doungchalerm Yubamrung, a junior army officer and the son of a prominent member of Thaksin’s coalition government, has been on the run for a week since a police officer was shot dead in cold blood at…
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Illegal alien arrests continue to fall
PHUKET: The number of illegal immigrants arrested on the island has fallen dramatically for the second successive month, according to the latest crime statistics issued by the police. From October 1 to 24, only 10 illegal aliens were arrested, compared with 47 during the same period in September, and 230 in August. The dramatic fall has been credited to the…
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Carnival marks start of high season
PATONG: The Patong Carnival 2001 yesterday marked the opening of this year’s tourism high season. The day’s activities, which began in the morning with a merit-making ceremony, included a beach clean-up, a coral exhibition and a mini-marathon fun run. The highlight of the carnival was the colorful evening parade along Thaweewong Rd and into Soi Bangla. The parade, which was…
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One-stop shop for yachts to reopen
CHALONG: Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi will reopen the “one-stop shop” in Chalong for visiting yachts and their crews next Monday. The Phuket Port Control Center (PPCC), was originally opened in 1999 by the then-Governor Chadej Insawang. It was closed down more than a year ago, officially because there were not enough officers to man it and there was no…
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Cooking gas price rises on the way
PHUKET: The island can expect substantial rises in the price of cooking gas over the coming few weeks, after the government announced today that it had stopped subsidizing the fuel and was allowing vendors to set their own prices. So far, cooking gas prices in Phuket remain at much the same levels as before, at about 190 baht for a…
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Duongchalerm: Pressure mounts for arrest
BANGKOK (AFP): Pressure mounted Wednesday for Thai authorities to arrest MP’s son Duongchalerm Yoobamrung, who is accused of killing a police officer on Sunday. But first they have to find him, which appears to be causing some difficulty. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called on the military to arrange for Duongchalerm to be handed over to police for interrogation after a…
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Seized speedboat to be auctioned
PHUKET: A nine-meter British-built speedboat with twin 200hp Mercury engines, seized from a dive company in Ao Chalong earlier this year, will be put up for auction on November 8 at the Phuket Customs Region 5 offices on Phuket Rd. As with previous vessels put up for auction, the speedboat, “Seafarer”, was seized for alleged non-payment of Thailand’s crushing boat…
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Road injuries toll nearing 10,000
PHUKET: Road deaths in Phuket between January 1 and September 20 are down on the past two years, according to the latest government statistics, but the number of people injured this year is heading rapidly for five figures. According to statistics from the Wachira, Thalang and Patong government hospitals, 11 people died as a result of traffic accidents between August…
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New Provincial Palad takes office
PHUKET: Vithit Jiannai took office yesterday as Phuket’s new Provincial Palad, Governer CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi announced this morning at the monthly meeting of provincial department heads. K. Vithit, who was transferred from Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, replaces Dr Sumeth Chailertvanitkul, who yesterday moved to a new post as Palad of Nakhon Sawan Province.
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Kata Group win Suratin Cup
PHUKET TOWN: Kata Group won the Suratin Football Cup on Saturday in a bruising final against Anupharp Trading at the Chai ground on Narisorn Rd. The two teams were evenly matched throughout the 20-minute first half, both creating scoring opportunities, but both failing to find the net. Kata stepped up the pressure after half time, to the point where Sinchai…
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Murder warrant issued for Chalerm’s son
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai police today issued a warrant for the arrest of Duongchalerm Yoobamrung, 29-year-old son of top MP Chalerm Yoobamrung, for shooting dead a police officer in a Bangkok nightclub. Inspector General Suraphon Kanchanajittra said he ordered the arrest of Sub-Lt Doungchalerm for premeditated murder after witnesses reported seeing him fire the fatal shot last night. “There were two…
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Top businessman dies of heart attack
PHUKET: Banlue Tantiwit, former President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) died this morning of a heart attack. Phuket-born K. Banlue, who was 70, was also the Founding Chairman of the Phuket Rotary Club, a former Chairman of the Kathu Shrine and Chairman of the Phuket Sports Association. A well-known businessman, he was Chairman of the Board of the…
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Illegal labor raids to resume in earnest
PHUKET: The drive by the Phuket Provincial Employment Service Office (ESO) to register all Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian laborers working in Phuket came to an end on Thursday. The ESO has warned that raids to find unregistered workers will now resume in earnest. In a campaign that began on August 28 as part of a national effort, the ESO registered…
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Top brass tackle crimes against tourists
PHUKET TOWN: Top police commanders met today to discuss how to tackle problems affecting tourism in Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi. Speaking after the meeting, Pol Gen Kovit Wattana, Deputy Commissioner-General (Crime Suppression 1), said that the meeting was held to find ways of ensuring tourists’ safety, including ways to stop people cheating tourists, and ways to protect the environment.…
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Experts enter burned-out ammo dump
KORAT (AFP): Thai army experts today entered the smoking ruins of a badly damaged ammunition dump to search for victims of yesterday’s massive explosions that are thought to have killed at least 13 people and injured 80. The warehouse complex in Pak Chong District was torn apart yesterday when a truck overturned, setting off a deadly chain reaction that engulfed…
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Strange day as Patong gets new Mayor
PATONG: The Patong Municipal Council has elected a new mayor for the town after former Mayor Pian Keesin was forced to step down last week when his budget plan was rejected by a vote of 9-2. Oddly, the new Mayor is Surasak Maneesri, one of the two councilors to vote for Pian’s budget – the other being Pian himself. Sakorn…
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Slow economy boosts Festival crowds
PHUKET: Slow times in the Thai economy and higher unemployment have had an effect on the Vegetarian Festival, with the number of people going to Chinese shrines for free vegetarian meals sharply up on last year’s figures. Partly, shrine spokespeople said, this was because they could save money. But it was also because believers felt that by taking part in…
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Patong Mayor forced to quit
PATONG: Members of the Patong Municipal Council have forced the resignation of the town’s Mayor, Pian Keesin, by rejecting his budget plan for the coming year. Pian lost by a vote of nine to two, the two being the mayor himself and Councillor Surasak Maneesri. Councillor Sakorn Cheua-yuan, who is secretary to local Member of Parliament Chalermlak Kebsab, said that…
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Krabi killer gets life
KRABI: Kasem ‘Maew’ Dumdee was sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday for the October 1 murder of German tourist Cao Ghu. Pol Lt Col Somdej Sukkarn, the case investigator, told the Gazette today, “Kasem was charged with murder for the purpose of robbery and with concealing his crime. He was also charged with robbery resulting in death. He pleaded guilty…
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Thailand may triple visa fees
BANGKOK (AFP): Despite an alarming slump in the country’s critical tourism sector, Thailand is considering a plan to triple visa fees for tourists. Non-immigrant visas, including those for business people, whether resident or visiting, would also rise sharply, a report said today. Thailand’s finance ministry is expected to seek cabinet approval this week for the move, claiming that it would…
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More trouble in Paradise
PATONG: A bus driver employed by Seatran Travel was arrested Thursday for attacking a Paradise Complex business owner with an iron bar over a parking dispute. Rick Hooper, the new director of Simple Computers, told the Gazette that he and his pregnant wife, Chatchada, went to their car parked outside the office, and found that it was blocked by two…
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CSD arrests Phuket policeman for murder
PHUKET: Officers from the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) in Bangkok yesterday arrested a fellow officer working in the Phuket Forensic Science Department on charges of murder and robbery. Pol Lt Col Chatkanok Keawsongsang, Deputy Commissioner of the CSD, explained that it was alleged that Pol Sgt Maj Soonthorn Krodtem stopped an airport limousine driven by 26-year-old Sampakorn Temtup of Krabi…
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Injured writer’s family appeals for funds
PHUKET: Friends and family of writer Karla Doberstein yesterday appealed for people to help Karla with her rising medical bills by making donations into an account specially set up to pay the hospital. Ms Doberstein, 38, fell down the stairs in her home late at night on October 3, striking the back of her head as she fell. She was…
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Tangled trouble in Paradise
PHUKET TOWN: Thirty owners of businesses in the market area of Patong’s Paradise Complex descended on the Consumer Protection Office at the Provincial Hall on Monday morning to protest construction by the Royal Paradise Hotel, which they say has blocked access to their shops with thigh-high walls made of concrete blocks. The protest is the latest turn in a tale…
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Tax cut in bid to salvage boating industry
PHUKET: In a move likely to prove ‘too little too late’, Thailand’s cabinet has approved reduction in the country’s levies on imported pleasure boats from 209% to 47%. Sources contacted by the Gazette in Phuket and Bangkok were not prepared to speculate on a firm date for final approval or implementation of the measure, but there was a consensus that…
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New chief bans police from golf courses
BANGKOK (AFP): Thailand’s newly appointed police commissioner, General Sant Sarutanond, has banned senior officers from playing golf, saying they were shirking their duties by spending hours on the fairways. “Many police commanders are ignoring their responsibilities by going to play golf and passing all their duties to subordinate officers, which is not proper behavior,” he said in a directive released…
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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