Phuket News
Discover the latest news and updates from Thailand’s most famous and beautiful island, The Thaiger’s hometown, having previously operated as the Phuket Gazette.
Our team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Phuket, covering everything from local politics and business to lifestyle and tourism. Learn about the island’s stunning beaches, vibrant nightlife, and thriving expat community, as well as keeping updated on events, and attractions.
The Thaiger is your ultimate guide to staying connected with Phuket’s ever-evolving landscape. To keep up with the most reliable news source on the island, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.
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Aussie soldiers massacre Gazettes 45-0
PHUKET TOWN: Despite concerted efforts to reduce their opponents’ fitness by feeding them copious amounts of amber liquid the night before, the Phuket Gazettes rugby team were unable to withstand an Australian Army onslaught on Saturday, and were massacred 45-0. After the 15-a-side match at the Saphan Hin stadium, Gazettes skipper Patrick Cotter was gracious in defeat. “It was a…
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University lecturer charged with murder
BANGKOK (AFP): A Japanese-American university lecturer has been arrested on charges of murdering his Thai girlfriend and dumping her body into a river, police in Bangkok said yesterday. The man, identified by police as Michael Yoshinaka, 34, a teacher at a university in California, was arrested in a hotel on Friday night. They said a gold ring belonging to his…
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Two tourists killed, two hurt in van crash
CHIANG MAI (AFP): Two British tourists were killed and a Dutchman was injured this afternoon when a van crashed near a mountain-top retreat in northern Thailand. According to police, the accident happened when the van, hired by a tour company, went into a spin on a mountain road and hit crash barriers in northern Chiang Mai province, 700 kilometres (420…
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Police launch raids in Phuket Town
PHUKET: Police last night launched a series of raids aimed at catching illegal Burmese workers and cracking down on drug offenses and other crimes in Phuket Town. The raids, ordered by Pol Maj Gen Kongpol Suwannaraks, commander of the Phuket Provincial Police, began at 9 pm with 60 officers swooping on construction camps, the fishing port, rubber plantations, and shops.…
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Hospital director appeals for funds
PATONG: Dr Taweesak Netwong, the director of Patong Hospital, has appealed to the public to donate funds to help him in his plans to create Thailand’s first state-owned “international” hospital. Dr Taweesak told the Gazette that since Patong is in a unique location which requires it to deal with more tourists than any other hospital in Phuket, it needs upgrading.…
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Patong parking plan postponed
PATONG: Patong Municipality will be unable to collect parking fees until at least December 1 because it has been unable to find enough people to do the collecting. The chief of the Patong Treasury Department, Poom Tapnarong, told the Gazette this afternoon that there have been only 11 applicants for the 25 vacancies for parking fee collectors. The big problem,…
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Phuket expels illegal immigrants
PHUKET TOWN: A total of 72 illegal immigrants – 28 Burmese laborers and 44 Cambodian beggars – were sent back to their countries from Phuket today. The Burmese were sent to Ranong while the Cambodians were trucked to Aranyaprathet. All the Burmese were adults, but 30 of the Cambodians were children, and many of the 14 adults were handicapped. The…
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Taiwanese tourist dies after night on the town
PHUKET TOWN: The body of a Taiwanese tourist who died early on Sunday in his room at the Royal Phuket City Hotel was collected today by family members. Pol Maj Winai Kongkaew said the tourist, whom he named as Huang Tao-min, 36, arrived on Saturday with a tour group from Taiwan. That evening he went out drinking with friends, returning…
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Immigration Police crack the whip on foreigners
PHUKET: In a move reminiscent of the darker passages of a Kafka novel, Immigration Police in the province are visiting foreigners’ homes and demanding to see passports and visas. They say they plan to check up on every foreigner’s residential and work address every 90 days. The visits, which have raised the specter of a police state, have outraged a…
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Ozzies take three of four Laguna Triathlon titles
BANGTAO: Australian Marc Lees returned to reinforce his dominance of the Thai Airways Laguna Phuket Triathlon with another triumph in the event this year. His win of 2:29:45 h over nearest rivals New Zealander John Newsom (2:30:26 h) and Canadian Peter Reid (2:31:00 h) was not unexpected. But the 27-year-old pro confessed he was not cruising. “It was a hard…
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Blue Canyon nominated for Hertz awards
PHUKET: Blue Canyon Country Club is one of six resorts in the region nominated for the titles of “Asia-Pacific Golf Resort of The Year” and “Asia-Pacific Golf Course of the Year” in the prestigious Hertz International Golf Travel Awards 2000. Only one other Thai golf club, the Laem Chabang International Country Club, received a nomination, in the golf course of…
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Thailand shrugs off Y2K fears
BANGKOK (AFP): Thailand shrugged off fears it has acted too late to combat the millennium computer bug Friday, but advised citizens to stockpile food ‘just in case.’ Deputy Prime Minister Trirong Suwankiri hit out at claims that the United States and other nations do not trust Thailand’s effort to beat the Y2K bug. “Nobody trusts each other; we also do…
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Norwegian tourist killed in bike crash
PHUKET TOWN: A Norwegian tourist died in a motorbike crash on Tuesday, the day he arrived to begin his holiday in Phuket. The dead man, named by police as Aunrik Hakon, 40, was involved in an accident just before 11 pm in front of the Prasat Witthaya School on Wichit Rd. Police believe that Mr Hakon, who was staying at…
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Wachira renews appeal for Type A+ blood
PHUKET: Type A+ blood is still urgently needed at Wachira Hospital for a young man undergoing a series of operations after a horrific motorbike accident. Pillion rider Chanthit Suthitantayaporn, 22, was thrown from the bike when the driver braked violently for a red light. The rider received minor cuts on his head and chin, but Chanthit suffered severe head and…
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Fast Eddy wins Patong mini-marathon
PATONG: “Fast Eddy” Ou of the Hash House Harriers made it two years in a row when he won the “Fun Run” Mini-Marathon held to mark the beginning of the tourist season on Monday. Fewer than 50 runners took part in the 16-km race which went from the football field on Thaweewong Road to the Karon traffic circle and back.…
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Hospital appeals for type A+ blood
PHUKET TOWN: Wachira Hospital has issued an appeal for type A+ blood after a young man was severely injured in an accident today. The hospital currently has just two bottles of A+ in its blood bank, and expects to use more during operations to be performed on the youth tomorrow (Wednesday). Anyone wishing to donate A+ blood is asked to…
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City’s water to be suspended on Thursday
PHUKET TOWN: The town’s water supply will be suspended for 15 hours on Thursday (4 November) so that tanks at the waterworks can be cleaned, the Municipality announced yesterday. Mayor Phumisak Hongyok said that supply will be suspended from 9 am to midnight. He advised anyone using mains water to ensure that they keep an adequate supply in their homes…
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Hot competition in Junior X-Games
PATONG: Today’s ESPN/Junior X-Games semi-finals saw tough competition, especially in the sport climbing – bouldering category. Pipoy Cosculluesia and Tagoy Ledesma from the Philippines, Kim Dae Yaob from South Korea and Michael Foo from Malaysia topped the event, each clearing the two routes on their first try. In the female category of the same event, Shaina Gu from Taiwan and…
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Four crushed to death in truck accident
CHALONG: Four construction workers from Phuket were crushed to death and two others were seriously hurt when a 10-wheel truck crashed on Patak Rd in Karon on Saturday. Pol Capt Sanae Panmee of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette that the truck was carrying a 3½-ton excavator as well as 10 construction workers, four in the cab with the driver…
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Raids net two ya bah dealers in one day
PHUKET TOWN: Police nabbed two ya bah dealers on Thursday in two separate raids. The first arrest came after Pol Maj Searmpan Sirikong, inspector of the Special Team at Phuket Town Police Station, received information that a house on Soi Suknirun, off Chao Fa Nai Rd, was being used by drug dealers to sell ya bah. Police raided the house…
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Home-owners catch burglary suspect
CHALONG: Police have asked foreigners who have lost safes, cash, jewelry and other property in burglaries over the past 18 months to contact them. The call came after the arrest of a man they believe was responsible for raiding at least four foreigners’ homes in the Nai Harn area, and who appears to be connected also to a spate of…
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Drug cases top crime league
PHUKET: Drug cases overtook gambling in the first three weeks of this month in the list of crimes reported. However, gamblers once again topped the league for the number of people arrested. The Phuket Provincial Office reported 64 cases or drug possession or trafficking between October 1 and 21, with 69 people arrested. Cases involving ya bah, which are counted…
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Airport much busier than last year
PHUKET: If figures just issued by the Phuket International Airport are anything to go by, this year’s high season could be another big one. The numbers for September show that 210, 343 passengers arrived or departed through the airport, an increase of more than 7% on the same month last year. Although passengers on domestic flights totaled 131,443, a decrease…
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Tourist couple wake to burglary nightmare
CHALONG: A Swedish couple on holiday in Karon woke up in the early hours yesterday to a nightmare: a burglar in their room holding their three-year-old daughter with his hand over her mouth. The Winnheds, in their 30s, were woken by a noise in their room and sat up to see the burglar with their daughter in his arms. Mrs…
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Businesses help tax office stay on track
PHUKET: With 11 months of the taxman’s year complete, The Phuket Provincial Revenue Office reports that collections are up very slightly compared with the same period last year. There have been significant falls in VAT revenue, down 47 million baht; in Specific Business Tax (mostly from banks and finance companies), which fell 32 million baht; and in Personal Income Tax,…
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Taiwan team wins Phuket Soccer Cup
KO KAEW: The Kaohsiung 100 Pacers set a pace that proved too hot for the Lions Singapore in the finals of the 1999 Phuket International Football Cup at Dulwich International College last weekend. The Lions had no chance to respond to the Pacers’ 1-0 lead by half-time. And when the Pacers slammed home another in the last few minutes of…
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14 hurt as police turn dogs on tapioca protest
BANGKOK (AFP): Fourteen people were injured today when riot police turned dogs on thousands of tapioca farmers blockading Government House in Bangkok. Witnesses said police moved to break up the protest after demonstrators, who have been surrounding government offices for 24 hours, crossed a bridge leading to the entrance of the building. Dog handlers advanced on a line of women…
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Korean tourist drowns off Coral Island
RAWAI: A tourist from South Korea on a day trip to Koh Hei, (Coral Island), drowned yesterday afternoon. Police named the dead man as Hong Joonhan, 27, who was on holiday with his wife. Despite the heavy seas, the couple went swimming and Mr Hong disappeared. His body was not found until an hour later. An autopsy at Wachira Hospital…
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Drug suspects “attempted to bribe police’
PHUKET TOWN: Two alleged ya bah dealers arrested by Phuket Town police on Friday got themselves into even bigger trouble when they tried to bribe officers to release them. Pol Maj Prakarn Permwassana, inspector of the Phuket Town investigation team, told the Gazette that officers had received information that ya bah dealers were due in town, that they would be…
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Phuket counts cost of storm damage
PHUKET: Provincial officials have today been counting the cost of repairing damage caused by the tropical depression which has buffeted Phuket over the past few days, and which has now moved away into the Andaman Sea. Electricity company staff spent the day working to repair downed power lines and blown transformers in parts of Phuket Town, Patong, Ao Makham, Kata-Karon…
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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