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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Phuket’s tunnel plans stalled pending MoT decision
PHUKET: Progress on the long-awaited Patong tunnel project has stalled, with Patong Municipality still waiting for senior officials in Bangkok to approve the 3.5-billion-baht project, according to Patong Deputy Mayor Chairat Sukbal. Speaking to the Phuket Gazette, Mr Chairat added that at this stage he did not expect any major decisions on the project to be made until the current…
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Patong Cricket make it 3 from 3
PHUKET: The 2011/2012 Island Furniture Cricket League is edging ever closer and the final pre-season friendly was played out at Cherng Talay School between arch rivals Patong CC and Laguna CC – 35 over champions and T20 title holders, respectively. Lijo Hose and Val Guiraud opened the batting for Laguna and looked in control until Guiraud was caught on 18.…
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No gain without the pain – Phuket’s own ironman explains
PHUKET: Emma Bishop speaks to Laguna Phuket’s Jaray ‘Ray’ Jearani after he competed in the Ford Ironman World Championships. Ray’s latest journey on the big island at the biggest triathlon event in the world has given the smiling 31-year-old a lot to think about and a fresh ambition to go faster and inspire more of his countrymen to take up…
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Phuket Sports: Khao Lak charity golf returns to Navy golf course
PHUKET: Following last year’s successful event, the second Khao Lak Charity Golf Tournament is teed up for another great outing on November 19 at the Tab Lamu Navy Golf Course in Phang Nga. Organizers are expecting to draw 100 entries this year, far in excess of participating numbers at the 2010 competition – a testament to the growing popularity of…
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Phuket athletes at the Nakorn Trang Games
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) recently held a small ceremony to send off 50 athletes representing Phuket, who are currently in Trang province competing in the Nakorn Trang Games – the 29th Southern region finals for Thailand’s local youth Olympic games. The Nakorn Trang games began on October 25 and continue for a month, concluding on November 23.…
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Singaporean recovers in Phuket after crash kills friend
PHUKET: Singaporean Anthony Chaw Tat Soon, 39, is recovering at Phuket International Hospital with three broken limbs – a lucky escape from a head-on crash in Phang Nga last Thursday that killed fellow rider and friend Charlene Jade Tay, 31. A hospital staffer today told the Phuket Gazette that Mr Chaw was rushed from Phang Nga Hospital to Phuket on…
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Organizers undaunted as floods cost Phuket FIVB beach volleyball 15 teams
PHUKET: A lack of clarity in understanding which parts of Bangkok were flooded and how travelers could transfer to flights heading to Phuket has resulted in 15 teams pulling out of the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour, which starts on Karon Beach tomorrow. However, tournament director Geoffrey Rowe of Pentangle Promotions today pointed out that the teams who have…
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Phuket pedestrian killed on merit-making journey
PHUKET: A Phuket woman was struck by a car and killed yesterday, moments before embarking on a merit-making tour to a temple in Ranong Province. Police received a report at 5:30am that a woman had been hit by a car in the southbound lane of Thepkrasattri Road in front of Thepkrasattri Municipality. At the scene police found Somboon Keawprasert, 60,…
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Phuket retailers scramble to stem flood shortages
PHUKET: Phuket’s major retailers are reeling from the effects of the floods in Bangkok and Central Thailand, which have crippled their distribution networks, sparking shortages of consumer goods and forcing local prices to skyrocket. The Phuket Internal Trade Office (PITO) has launched a blitz against market vendors and retailers gouging customers, saying there is no need for panic as Phuket…
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Thailand U23 outshine Phuket All Stars
PHUKET: In the first of two friendly charity games scheduled for Surakul Stadium, the Thailand U23s annihilated a Phuket All Stars team by a score of 6-1 on Sunday evening.The All Stars team was in fact an FC Phuket ‘B’ team given the opportunity to showcase their abilities against the junior national team preparing for the SEA Games, due to…
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Phuket Tennis: Chang ITF tournament main draw starts today
PHUKET: The first Chang ITF Tournament Pro Circuit to be held in Phuket gets underway in earnest today with both Men’s Singles and Doubles main draw matches gracing the tennis courts of the Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club in Thalang. Seven seeded players will face their first test with number four seed Laurent Rochette of France (ranked 374 in the…
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Phuket Opinion: Amid the many bus and van crashes killing tourists in Phuket, it’s time to focus more carefully on responsibility
PHUKET: One of the most startling revelations to arise from the bus crash on Phuket’s Chalong-Kata Hill was a policeman telling the Phuket Gazette that there is no provision in law for police to lay charges against a bus owner and/or management company for vehicle malfunctions, such as brake failure. This is why bus, van and truck drivers who crash…
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Phuket tennis hopes dashed at ITF tennis tournament
PHUKET: Hopes of a Phuket player qualifying for the main draw of the Chang ITF Pro Circuit tournament 2011 being held at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC) were dampened yesterday with Tachakorn Tonnon exiting the competition in the very first match.Tachakorn, who plays his tennis out of Chalong, lost 6-0, 6-0 to Wing-Lun Lam of Hong Kong in a…
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Phuket All Stars play Thailand’s U23 squad tonight at Surakul
PHUKET: Thailand’s U23 national team has announced schedule changes for their southern tour schedule, moving their friendly charity match against FC Phuket to Friday, November 4 at 6pm, instead of Saturday as initially announced. The change follows a request by 2011 SEA Games host Indonesia to bring forward the starting date of the SEA Games to November 9 from November…
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‘Amateur’ gold thief nabbed by Phuket Police
PHUKET: A 22-year-old Phuket man has been arrested in connection with yesterday’s brazen 950,000-baht gold heist. Dechin Gongsinon was arrested at his home this morning after police followed a trail of clues left by the seemingly hapless thief. Mr Dechin was found in possession of two of the stolen gold chains, police said. “The thief was an amateur,” declared Phuket…
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Stranded Phi Phi tourists towed to Phuket safety
PHUKET: Sixty-six tourists were towed to safety in Phuket last night after spending hours stranded at sea when the speedboat they were on broke down. In addition to the Australian, French, Indian, Spanish and Thai tourists aboard the Kamika speedboat, there were four staff members of the operating company, Phi Phi Island Marine. Tourist Rescue officers in Chalong informed Marine…
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Phuket Governor pulled into appeal to fix deadly hill road
PHUKET: Patong Deputy Mayor Chairat Sukbal today pleaded for Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha to order the damaged road on Patong Hill to be repaired. The road was damaged by a landslide on October 13 after heavy rain fell across Phuket. The road suffered further damage after yet another landslide at the same location on October 19. At a meeting at…
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“Troubled’ lovers plunge from Phuket bridge, whereabouts unknown
PHUKET: A search has been launched for a pair of troubled lovers who were last seen on Thepkrasattri Bridge and are now missing, believed to have leaped into the fast-flowing waters heading out to the Andaman Sea. Tah Chat Chai Police Duty Officer Watcharin Jiratikarnwiwat received a report just after midnight last night that a man and a woman had…
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Floods force south-bound trains out of Bangkok
PHUKET: Floods in Bangkok have forced trains bound for Surat Thani, a popular jump-off point for tourists heading to Phuket, to start from the Nakhon Pathom railway station, on the west of the Thai capital. An operator at the State Railway of Thailand’s call center today told the Phuket Gazette that the move to shut down Southern Line services at…
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Japanese refugee in Phuket pot bust
PHUKET: A Japanese man fleeing the flood waters in Bangkok was caught with about 24 grams of marijuana this morning as he entered Phuket by car. Police stopped a white Honda Jazz at about 9:30am at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint for a routine inspection. In the car were three Japanese men, including Haruyuki Masuoka, 27. Police found four plastic bags…
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Thai Floods: Phuket becomes safe haven in Bangkok exodus
PHUKET: Roads and bus, train and airport terminals in Bangkok yesterday were jammed with people exiting flood-struck Bangkok, heading to safe areas including, quite noticeably today, Phuket. The exodus gathered pace yesterday, with long tailbacks on outbound highways with cars and adding to packed accommodations in Pattaya, Hua Hin and Chon Buri, among other destinations. For days, Bangkokians have been…
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Thanyapura serves up ITF tennis for Phuket on Saturday
PHUKET: Following their success at the recent Thanyapura Tennis Challenge, Tachakorn Tonnon and Pavaporn Limsakul are now preparing for another opportunity to showcase their talents at the Chang International Tennis Federation (ITF) Thailand Pro Circuit 2011 tournament.Enthusiasts of the sport in Phuket are also anticipating an exciting exhibition of tennis from a number of the finest players in the region,…
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Phuket Governor goes shopping for flood price hikes
PHUKET: Governor Tri Augkaradacha today inspected Phuket’s three largest grocery retailers after receiving complaints of price rises on some products following the floods in Bangkok.Joining Governor Tri were Prajiad Aksornthammakul of the Phuket Provincial Office, Phuket Internal Trade Office Director Supatcha Boonpalit, and Phuket MP Raewat Areerob.At each store, Gov Tri and his entourage were welcomed by the store manager…
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Phuket rises to send more flood-relief
PHUKET: On behalf of the Rotary Club of Patong Bach (RCPB) the Phuket Gazette office in Koh Kaew is serving as a drop-off point for flood-relief donations. The reception desk is accepting cash as well as bottled water, clothing (particularly warm items), blankets, baby products, canned or dried food, life vests, flashlights, small boats, and anything else that donors feel…
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Phuket Live Wire : Signing up for Internet service – Ten tips
PHUKET: Over the past month in these Live Wire columns I’ve given you a snapshot of what options you have for internet service in Phuket. Choices range from not-really-tolerable to surprisingly good. Most of all, the competition’s fierce and that bodes well for all of us. The key to it all is staying on top of what’s available, and how…
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Phuket tourism on high ground
PHUKET: Tourism in Phuket will not be negatively affected by flooding in other parts of Thailand – in fact, the industry is doing better than last year, according to Phuket Tourist Association (PTA) Vice President for Marketing Bhuritt Maswongsa. “The flood disaster is not affecting Phuket tourism because most of Phuket’s tourists come from abroad – there are more than…
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Second event completed in Phuket Dinghy Racing Series
PHUKET: The second edition of the Phuket Dinghy Series took place off Nai Yang Beach on October 15 and 16 with 33 sailors in contention for honors. Organizers selected Nai Yang for this edition as part of three different racing areas, with the intention of allowing sailors to experience a range of conditions and test their seamanship throughout the three…
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Phuet Youth Sailing Club’s sailors selected for Youth Games
PHUKET: Six Phuket Youth Sailing Club (PYSC) members have been selected to represent Phuket at the National Sports Festival in Khon Kaen during November 2011 and the National Youth Games to be held in Phuket during March 2012. The six sailors are, Mak Sarawat (Laser Standard Class), Akapoj Kankaew and Sukanya Saiman (Super Mod Class), Teerapong Tohkratoak, Tanaporn Budgrim and…
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Phuket Gazette’s top sport tips: Tennis
PHUKET: The second most important shot in tennis is the return of serve. The goal for the return of serve is to neutralize the serve. Returning the ball deep into the court for singles, or at the side “T” for doubles, is where players should aim. The technique is to minimize backswing and forward swing. Measure the racket to the…
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Phuket Irish Times race 5
PHUKET: What initially looked like a small crowd turned into a fleet of seven for the Irish Times Series race five off Ao Chalong Yacht Club. Participating in the Racing Class were Linda, Dreamtime and Remington, while in the Multihull Class were Nina, Moto Inzi, Miss Saigon and Sidewinder. A sunny day greeted the crews with a good breeze beginning…
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