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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Wanted Aussie fugitive arrested in Patong
PHUKET: Police arrested an Australian fugitive in Patong at 11pm Tuesday night. Patong and Tourist Police, joined by officers of the Australian Federal Police (AFP), arrested 58-year-old Robert Gordon Pollybank Gee at Bar Funk on Bangla Road. Mr Gee is allegedly wanted in Australia for the possession and sale of drugs, possession of restricted chemical substances and falsifying documents for…
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American man found dead in Patong apartment
PHUKET: Investigations are underway into the death of an American man, whose body was found in a rented apartment in Patong Tuesday night. The body of 63-year-old Horace Nelson Higdon Jr was found after a housekeeping staff member noticed a foul smell coming from inside the third-floor apartment at the Fasai Apartment & Home on Pisitkoranee Road. “The owner of…
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Wanted posters of bombing suspects go up in Phuket
PHUKET: Wanted posters with photographs of the August 12 bombing suspects (story here) as well the suspects of the Samui bombing last year (story here) were put up in four hot spots on the island yesterday. The four 3×4 meter posters show pictures of the eight suspects. The general public is being urged to contact the 24-hour hotline on 191…
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Phuket to host November Ironman 70.3
PHUKET: Phuket is to host the next Ironman 70.3 triathlon on November 27 with a US$15,000 professional prize purse, Ironman Asia announced yesterday. The ‘Foremost Ironman 70.3 Thailand’ comprises a 1.9km rectangular swim that will start and end at Xana Beach Club Laguna Phuket, a 90km bike ride through the Laguna Phuket property and on to the Sarasin Bridge, and…
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Rider ripped to pieces in 4am horror crash
PHUKET: A motorbike rider was torn to pieces in a fatal ‘ghost riding’ collision on Thepkrasattri Road at about 4am today. Piroon Aka, 44, was driving home to Mai Khao when he was in a collision with motorcyclist Puriwat Sukbanjong, 32. Mr Puriwat was dismembered in the smash and ended up in a grotesque heap on a grass verge –…
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PM’s Phuket speech venue changed
PHUKET: The venue for the Startup Thailand 2016 seminar in Phuket, where the Prime Minister is scheduled to make a speech during his visit to the province on Friday, has been moved to the Duangjitt Resort and Spa in Patong. After presiding over the official opening ceremony of the new international terminal at Phuket Airport from 8:30 to 9:30am, Prime…
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New Phuket governor named
PHUKET: Thailand’s Council of Ministers announced this morning that Chokchai Detamornthan will replace Chamroen Tipayapongtada as the governor of Phuket. The announcement comes after the cabinet decided to transfer Governor Chamroen to Nakhon Sri Thammarat, effective October 1 (story here). Mr Chokchai, who has been governor of the northeastern Maha Sarakam province since last October, reportedly fired 32 Tambon Administration…
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Motorbike rider killed by tourist bus
PHUKET: A man on a motorbike was killed as he attempted to make a u-turn on Thepkrasattri Road this afternoon. The accident took place at about 4pm on the southbound lanes of the busy thoroughfare, in front of the Hongyok Bumrung School in Baan Suan Maphrao, northern Phuket. “Witnesses said that the man, currently known only as Mr Dol since…
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Plans for 12-lane highway approved
PHUKET: Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada announced on September 6 that preliminary plans for a proposed 12-lane highway running the length of the island have been approved and may be completed by 2022. Although the exact route of the proposed superhighway has not yet been decided, the 22 kilometer project would reportedly start 1km away from Phuket International Airport and extend to…
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Phuket Muslims celebrate Sacrifice Feast
PHUKET: Muslims in Phuket are today celebrating Eid ul-Adha, also called the ‘Sacrifice Feast’ or ‘Bakr-Eid’. The festive day is celebrated worldwide each year on the tenth day of the Islamic month of Zil-haj, marking the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Goats and cows are usually sacrificed for the day’s feasting and the meat is traditionally divided into…
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Russian nabbed for failed gold shop heist
PHUKET: Police have caught a hapless Russian robber who broke into a gold shop in Patong on Friday night but failed to snag any swag after discovering that all the gold had been locked away in the shop’s safe for the night (story here). Dmitrii Sevastianov, 32, admitted to breaking into Yaowarat Namchok Gold Shop on Phra Metta Road in…
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Gloucester man killed in crash
PHUKET: A British expatriate died after reportedly being cut off by a pickup truck on Saturday night. Michael Fraser Macpherson, 44, was killed on Kwang Road, in front of the Baan Manee Kram Jomthong Tanee housing complex, when his motorcycle slammed into the side of a pickup truck at about 8:40pm. Police reported that Mr Macpherson was not wearing a…
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Test flights arrive at Phuket’s new international terminal
PHUKET: Phuket International Airport began testing the facilities of the new international terminal this week with a handful of flights ahead of the official opening of the terminal later this month. Prime Minister Gen Prayuth Chan-o-cha is scheduled to preside over the grand opening of the new facility on September 16 (story here). Phuket Airport Director Monrudee Gettuphan said the…
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Woman finds snake in her paste tin
PHUKET: A Phuketian Facebook user took to social media after finding a disfigured snake in her anchovy paste. Facebook user Wanida Pagamat yesterday posted an image of Thai anchovy paste (Pla-ra) with a black snake-like slough in it. She claimed to have bought the paste in a local Phuket store. “How do you sell this to someone? It looks like…
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Bungling burglar sought after failed Patong gold shop robbery
PHUKET: Police are hunting for a ‘farang-looking’ man who broke into a gold shop in Patong on Thursday night but left empty handed after failing to snatch any stash. However, the burglar did leave clues, including dusty finger prints on the door of the shop’s safe, where all the gold had been locked away. The owner of the Yaowarat Namchok…
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DSI: Land officer’s death not on CCTV
BANGKOK: The Department of Special Investigations (DSI) claims that it has no CCTV footage of the events surrounding the suspicious death of Tawatchai Anukul in a police cell, insisting that the system’s server was faulty at the time. Police are investigating the death of Mr Tawatchai, 66, a former land department official previously based in Phuket and Phang Nga, to…
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Officials plan to install 1,000 CCTV cameras
PHUKET: Ten more CCTV cameras are to be installed along Bangla Road, Patong police announced this week. The cameras are to be installed as part of a public-private sector partnership, Patong Police Col Chaiwat Auikam said. Managing Director of the Pisona Group and member of a well-known Thai family in Patong, Preechawut ‘Prab’ Keesin, said the project received support from…
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Showers, high surf expected next week
PHUKET: The Phuket Marine Office confirmed they have issued no warnings for boats leaving shore due to the recent spate of weather yesterday. “The waves and wind are still stable and suitable for boating,” said Phuket Marine Chief Surat Sirisaiyas. “However, we have issued a notice urging all boats to proceed with caution as their vision may be impaired during…
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Phuket hospital warns blood donors not to over react
PHUKET: Staff at Vachira Phuket Hospital’s blood bank have warned the public to be careful about reacting to requests on social media for urgent blood donations, after news went viral on Wednesday of a teenage motorbike accident victim urgently needing A-type blood donations. The hospital was inundated with blood donors who had seen the social media posts and believed that…
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600,000 tons of trash weighs down Krabi
KRABI: Deputy Prime Minister Admiral Narong Pipatanasai was in Krabi today to see what can be done about 600,000 tons of untreated waste piling up in the province. Admiral Narong met with Krabi Governor Pinit Boonlert and other provincial agencies at Krabi City Hall to discuss waste management measures as well as to observe progress on other public works undertaken…
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PM Prayuth set to visit Phuket
PHUKET: Prime Minister Gen Prayuth Chan-o-cha, who is scheduled to visit Phuket next Friday, has a number of items on his agenda, including the grand opening of the new airport terminal and the regional launch of Startup Thailand. The following is the itinerary for his visit (some details subject to change): 8:30-9:30am: Grand opening ceremony of the new terminal at…
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Tranlee asset auction hailed “success’ with B166mn in bids
PHUKET: The auctioning of assets seized from defunct Tranlee Travel Co by the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) raised more than 166 million baht, it was revealed today. AMLO Auctioneer Col Kovit Piromwong announced this afternoon that three days of auctions at Phuket City Hall from September 6 to 8 saw bidding on 34 boats and 83 tour buses for a…
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Born to be wild: Baby gibbons repopulating Phuket
PHUKET: “Gibbons released back into the wild several years ago have already begun to reproduce,” Wild Animal Rescue Foundation of Thailand (WARF) secretary-general Thanaphat Payakkaporn told the Phuket Gazette on Monday. “We released three gibbon couples into the wild several years ago but hadn’t seen them around for almost two years, so we were worried about them and wondered if…
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Video: Chao Fa black spot claims American motorcyclist
PHUKET: Chalong Municipality released video footage on Tuesday of collisions between cars and motorbikes at an accident black spot on Chao Fah East Road in Chalong, including that of a smash that killed an American motorcyclist on September 5. Municipality spokesperson Suphawattakan Kunlak said the footage of the fatal accident and other serious smashes involving motorcycles, where Soi Thanuthep opens…
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Vietjet launches new routes from Phuket to Bangkok, Chiang Rai
PHUKET: Vietnamese low-cost airline Vietjet announced its ‘domestic debut’ in Thailand on September 6 and the launch of new flight routes from Phuket to Bangkok and Chiang Rai this month. The ‘new-age’ airline already flies from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi and operates 53 routes in Vietnam and to Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, China and Myanmar…
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Phuket Sea Gypsy sued again in new land dispute case
PHUKET: Rawai Sea Gypsies are facing yet another fight over their right to remain in their century-old village, which offers splendid views across the Andaman Sea. Rawai local Bancha Hatsaithong is being sued over allegedly encroaching on land owned by Jindarak Thammajak. This latest Sea Gypsy land dispute came to Phuket Provincial Court on Monday for its initial assessment, with…
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Boisterous bidding raises over B102.7mn at Tranlee auction
PHUKET: More than 150 assets seized from embattled Tranlee Travel Co fetched 102,742,000 baht at auction today. The auction to sell off boats, buses and other assets once owned by the now defunct travel company began at 10am today and is set to continue over the next few days until all of the assets have been sold off. The assets…
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Paralyzed American fall victim responsive after spine surgery
KRABI: An American teacher who was critically injured when she fell down a 45-meter-high cliff at Railay Bay in Krabi is conscious and responsive after being rescued on Friday, but still cannot move her legs. Hannah Michel Gavios, 23, is being treated at Bangkok Hospital Phuket after falling down the rock face while fleeing a would-be molester on Thursday night.…
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Underpass closure results in traffic nightmare
PHUKET: A five-car pile-up in the northbound lanes entering the Samkong Underpass around 10am today resulted in heavy traffic and long tailbacks. Traffic police responded by closing both the southbound and northbound lanes of the underpass in order to clear out the damaged vehicles. With the roads above the underpass closed to through traffic, the closure resulted in long tailbacks…
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Still no leads on fake bombs in Krabi
KRABI: Two devices, similar in design to the ones used in last month’s bombings (story here), were found in Krabi Town last week. Authorities believe that the devices, which consisted of wires connected to an electronic circuit board, were left to scare passersby and to test the emergency response capabilities of police. Police currently do not have any leads after…
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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