checkpoints

  • Thailand NewsFormer politician caught with meth in underwear in South Thailand

    Former politician caught with meth in underwear in South Thailand

    A former local politician was arrested at a checkpoint after attempting to hide methamphetamine (meth) in his underwear. A subsequent search of his home revealed a firearm. Local police set up the checkpoint to maintain order. Police Lieutenant Colonel Sawat Niyomdecha of Koh Thuat Police Station in Nakhon Si Thammarat, in coordination with local administrative officials, established the checkpoint in…

  • Thailand NewsPipe bomb attack at Batu checkpoint injures volunteer in Narathiwat

    Pipe bomb attack at Batu checkpoint injures volunteer in Narathiwat

    Two assailants hurled pipe bombs at the Batu checkpoint in Narathiwat, injuring one paramilitary volunteer and damaging property. CCTV footage captured the incident, showing the suspects approaching the checkpoint on foot before throwing the explosives. The southern border province of Narathiwat has been plagued by unrest, and the recent attack at the Batu checkpoint is a stark reminder of ongoing…

  • Thailand NewsInterior Ministry official disrupts police at Songkran checkpoint

    Interior Ministry official disrupts police at Songkran checkpoint

    A high-ranking government official from the Ministry of Interior caused a stir when he confronted and attempted to obstruct police officers at a traffic checkpoint during the Songkran Festival celebrations. The incident, which took place yesterday, April 11 at around 5pm, occurred in the district of Yang Chum Noi, Sisaket Province. The man, identified as a district chief, reacted aggressively…

  • Road deathsScreening for drunk driving to reduce new year holiday road deaths

    Screening for drunk driving to reduce new year holiday road deaths

    Drunk driving is a fairly constant problem in Thailand, like many other places worldwide. It’s so prevalent during the holiday season, that Phuket holds an annual road safety campaign known as ‘Seven Days of Danger.’ The campaign is held around the new year holiday from December 29 to January 4. The government announced new strict screening of drivers over the…

  • Covid-19 NewsLockdown tomorrow: What to expect in Bangkok and beyond

    Lockdown tomorrow: What to expect in Bangkok and beyond

    Though the government won’t use the word, tomorrow sees 10 dark red zone provinces going into, essentially, a lockdown. Here’s a rundown of what to expect during the 2 week period beginning tomorrow (Monday). The restrictions apply to all 10 provinces, but the information below is focused on the lockdown in Bangkok. INSIDE BANGKOK Things are about to quieten down.…

  • Visa InformationThe Sandbox Guarantee – taking the ‘what ifs’ out of travelling to Thailand

    The Sandbox Guarantee – taking the ‘what ifs’ out of travelling to Thailand

    OPINION “The ‘Sandbox Guarantee’, or a similar style of guarantee for incoming passengers, is an important step if the Thai government is honest about restarting the country’s vital tourism economy.” In Bangkok they are preparing to lock down the city, well, add extra layers of restrictions and a curfew, and stop people getting out and heading back to their provinces.…

  • Transport News80 Bangkok roadblocks to curb Covid-19 spread before lockdown

    80 Bangkok roadblocks to curb Covid-19 spread before lockdown

    “The law of unintended consequences has come to be used as an adage or idiomatic warning that an intervention in a complex system tends to create unanticipated and often undesirable outcomes. It is commonly used as a wry or humorous warning against the hubristic belief that humans can fully control the world around them.” – Wikipedia The last time the…

  • World NewsThai PM orders a crackdown on Thailand’s leaky borders

    Thai PM orders a crackdown on Thailand’s leaky borders

    Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is asking the country’s security authorities to “step up” surveillance along the country’s four borders – with Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia and Laos – to help stem the flow of illegal migrants sneaking into Thailand. Thailand shares a massively long 2,500 kilometre border with Myanmar, most of the area undefined and littered with walking tracks through dense…

  • Covid-19 NewsRayong, Chon Buri (including Pattaya) and Chanthaburi face full travel restrictions

    Rayong, Chon Buri (including Pattaya) and Chanthaburi face full travel restrictions

    Rayong, Chanthaburi and Chon Buri (that includes Pattaya), could be facing a full lockdown as soon as tomorrow if a recommendation from the Ministry of Public Health is approved by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The outbreak of new infections are almost entirely linked to illegal gambling dens, mostly in Rayong. Thailand’s Deputy Health Minister says the measure “is…

  • Pattaya News3 eastern provinces being considered for full travel restrictions, including Pattaya

    3 eastern provinces being considered for full travel restrictions, including Pattaya

    Rayong, Chanthaburi and Chon Buri (including Pattaya), are headed into a full lockdown scenario after the Ministry of Public Health formerly asked the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration to impose additional restrictions on travel in and out of the provinces. Most of the infections in the 3 provinces are linked to illegal gambling dens. A decision will likely be made…

  • Thailand NewsThailand News Today | Shorter quarantine, STV update, THAI jets for sale | November 6

    Thailand News Today | Shorter quarantine, STV update, THAI jets for sale | November 6

    Last day of the week and a day full of news about the STV, Chinese travel bubbles and the PM saying he’ll step aside if there’s someone better to take his job. Thailand News Today, with Tim Newton. Retired Thai official with Covid-19 dies after returning to Thailand A 66 year old retired Thai official, diagnosed with Covid-19, died yesterday…

  • Crime NewsPhuket police to use hospital blood tests to confirm drivers’ alcohol levels

    Phuket police to use hospital blood tests to confirm drivers’ alcohol levels

    Phuket police are using hospital blood tests to confirm drivers’ alcohol levels after the national police chief suspended checkpoints due to “transparency issues”. Arayapan Pukbuakhao, the island’s police deputy commander, is warning that police will continue to arrest and charge drink drivers despite the absence of roadside tests. All roadside blood alcohol checkpoints were cancelled last weekend through to October…

  • Thailand NewsNew police chief stops drink-driving checkpoints over corruption issues

    New police chief stops drink-driving checkpoints over corruption issues

    Thailand’s new police chief has temporarily placed a stop on drink-driving checkpoints over alleged corruption issues in the police department. Gen Suwat Jangyodsuk made the announcement at a meeting yesterday, just a day after starting his new position. “There must not be roadside examination. It must be done at a hospital. Above all so that people can have confidence that…

  • Thailand NewsThailand News Today | Visa amnesty, sealing Burmese border, Thai airways creditors | September 24

    Thailand News Today | Visa amnesty, sealing Burmese border, Thai airways creditors | September 24

    Latest update for September 26 deadline of visa amnesty. Deadline set for THAI creditors A date has now been set for creditors to recover their money from Thai Airways. Applications for debt repayment through corporate bonds started yesterday. Applications filed by private individuals are being received at the Securities and Exchange Commission office in Bangkok. The deadline for applications is…

  • Hot NewsSurat Thani governor confirms that residents coming back from Phuket will be quarantined

    Surat Thani governor confirms that residents coming back from Phuket will be quarantined

    With the exodus of people from Phuket heading back to their home provinces, officials from Surat Thani have confirmed that they will be quarantined at home for 14 days when they arrive. Surat Thani is about a 3-4 hour drive northeast from Phuket. The Surat Thani governor Witchawut Jinto has ordered all district chiefs in the province to quarantine visitors…

  • Covid-19 NewsBangkok to cut checkpoints from 89 to 52

    Bangkok to cut checkpoints from 89 to 52

    Bangkok’s Metropolitan Police Bureau announced yesterday it will reduce the number of checkpoints from 89 to 52 during the night curfew, effective until further notice. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a nationwide curfew from 10pm to 4am starting April 3, in a bid to curb new Covid-19 infections. Police checkpoints have been set up since then throughout Bangkok to enforce the…

  • Pattaya NewsPattaya irons out the wrinkles at checkpoints

    Pattaya irons out the wrinkles at checkpoints

    After some major traffic nightmares during the initial implementation of restricted movement in Pattaya, the wrinkles have been ironed out and the lockdown is now flowing smoothly. Thanks in part to cooperation from the public, together with improved routing management during permissible driving hours, the lockdown has helped reduce the spread of Covid 19 in the Chonburi province as the…

  • Covid-19 NewsPattaya commences ‘restricted access’ from April 9 onwards

    Pattaya commences ‘restricted access’ from April 9 onwards

    Today, Chon Buri’s governor Pakkhathorn Thianchai has approved the Pattaya City’s proposal to restrict access to the town at 2pm from tomorrow (April 9) for 21 days. It is not a new curfew, but a limitation on people travelling in and out of the city region. Pattaya City will commence a 24 hour lock down of the city’s borders where…

  • Covid-19 NewsChiang Mai vigilantes set up roadblocks and checkpoints

    Chiang Mai vigilantes set up roadblocks and checkpoints

    A subdistrict of the northern Chiang Mai province is taking matters into its own hands by locking down residents and setting up checkpoints to screen people entering the area in the fight against the Covid-19 coronavirus. The village headman in Khilek in Mae Taeng district Anan Siriphakphokhin says residents are worried about the worsening outbreak. “In Khilek subdistrict alone, about…

  • Covid-19 NewsPreparing further measures to control the spread of Covid-19

    Preparing further measures to control the spread of Covid-19

    The Thai Ministry of Interior Permanent Secretary has sent an urgent official memo to Provincial Governors around the country informing them that the National Covid-19 Coronavirus Disease Management Centre is calling for a range of measures to be addressed immediately and urgently. “These measures are in accordance with overall stepped up measures to help stop the spread of Covid-19 and…

  • World NewsLaos closes checkpoint at Thai border

    Laos closes checkpoint at Thai border

    Laos has closed its four immigration checkpoints near Thailand’s Nakhon Phanom province, saying it doesn’t have enough medical personnel to screen for the Covid-19 coronavirus at the four places. Immigration Police Office in Nakhon Panom province were informed that Laos would close its immigration checkpoint at Thakhek port from 2pm, until the Covid-19 situation is resolved. Also yesterday, provincial governor…

  • Koh Samui NewsPolice swarm into Koh Phangan for tonight’s Full Moon Party

    Police swarm into Koh Phangan for tonight’s Full Moon Party

    Authorities are out in force at tonight’s Full Moon Party on Hat Rin, the beach-home of the monthly Full Moon party on Koh Phangan. The Office of the Narcotics Control Board has arrived in the Surat Thani province to crack down on drugs in the popular archipelago of islands off the Surat Thani province coast. They say Koh Phangan is…