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Phuket Gazette breaking news – North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dead
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dies during train ride Phuket Gazette The Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il, died on early Saturday morning, state-run media announced today. He was 69 or 70 years old. The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim died at…
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Phuket’s ‘labor shortage’ more imagined than real
PHUKET: Government assistance to help solve the chronic “labor shortage” in the island’s tourism industry is unlikely to have much impact this high season, given Phuket’s reputation as an expensive place to live. (See page 11, current issue of the Phuket Gazette. Digital subscribers click here to download the full issue.) A scan of the comments in popular online forums…
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FC Phuket draw, Krabi clinches Div 1 berth
PHUKET: Krabi FC will join FC Phuket in Thai Premier League Division 1 next season thanks to a last-minute goal in a do-or-die match against promotion contenders Rayong FC last night. In front of a standing-room-only crowd at Krabi Provincial Stadium last night, the Andaman Eagle’s equalizer came only moments after Rayong FC scored the game’s first goal – at…
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Facebook ‘predator’ arrested as Phuket mum pleas for help
PHUKET: Eleven days after her disappearance from a Phuket Town internet cafe, 12-year-old Phuket schoolgirl Samudchaya “Nong Pin” Yanpunya remains missing. Nong Pin’s mother Samruay Saenthaweesuk told the Phuket Gazette this morning she has yet to receive any leads regarding her daughter’s whereabouts and continues to fear she might have been abducted by someone she met online while using the…
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Phuket Media Watch – journalist killed; radioactive metal in Moscow
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Founder of political newspaper shot dead in Russia’s Dagestan Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A leading Russian journalist and the founder of a local political newspaper was killed by a gunman on late Thursday evening, officials said on Friday. Human rights organizations are calling for a full investigation.…
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Peacock delivers “pheasant surprise’ in Krabi
PHUKET: A rubber tapper in Krabi, Phuket’s sister province across Phang Nga Bay, got an unexpected surprise this week when he discovered a live peacock of a species thought to be extinct in the region. Jamrad Kuannakorn and his wife arrived at a rubber plantation in Khao Kram sub-district before dawn on Tuesday, starting work as usual, when they heard…
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Phuket Media Watch – death toll from flooding in Thailand reaches 740
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Death toll from flooding in Thailand reaches 740 Phuket Gazette The death toll from months of severe flooding across Thailand has reached at least 740, the country’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department reported on Friday. About 3,652 villages in 80 districts of nine provinces in the…
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Driver charged over death of pregnant Phuket resort worker
PHUKET: The driver of the six-wheeled truck that struck and killed 27-year-old resort worker Arayada Budsayakul on the Patong beach road last month has been charged with reckless driving causing death. Ms Arayada was four months pregnant when she died in the accident on November 8. Lt Pathapee Srichai of Patong Police yesterday told the Phuket Gazette that the driver,…
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Phuket Media Watch – Six bombs defused in eastern Bangkok, man arrested
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Six bombs found and defused in eastern Bangkok Phuket Gazette / The NationThai police found and defused six home-made explosive devices at three separate locations in Bangkok, officials said. One suspect has been arrested. One explosive device was placed in front of a Bangkok Bank branch;…
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Phuket TB outbreak prompts call for “better migrant worker tracking’
PHUKET: An outbreak of tuberculosis in Phuket that has hospitalized nearly 60 Burmese workers has prompted the Phuket Immigration chief to call for a more integrated approach to tracking their growing numbers on the island. Phuket Immigration Superintendent Panuwat Ruamrak called for more comprehensive tracking of migrant workers during a fact-finding visit to Phuket by the House Committee on Labor…
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Phuket parties as Patong Carnival gets underway
PHUKET: Heavy downpours stopped just in time last night as thousands of people lined the streets of Patong to watch the parade and opening ceremonies of Phuket’s annual Patong Carnival. The colorful parade comprised of floats from 23 Phuket organizations along with countless more people who joined in the celebrations at the last moment. “Phuket has many beautiful tourist attractions…
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Phuket Media Watch – dengue outbreak; alcohol update; New York woman crushed by lift
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Dengue fever outbreak in western Indonesia kills 27 Phuket GazetteAn ongoing outbreak of dengue fever in western Indonesia has killed at least 27 people in the past two months, officials said on Thursday. Hundreds more have been affected. Health officials on Thursday confirmed that two more…
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Tesco launches ‘green bag’ project in Phuket
PHUKET: Leading retail chain Tesco Lotus launched a pilot project at its new Thalang branch in Phuket yesterday with the aim of reducing plastic bag use nationwide. The project is intended to encourage customers at all its stores in Phuket to use fewer plastic bags in order to help preserve the island’s natural beauty for future generations. The project is…
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Man burns brother in a bizarre urine-provoked attack
PHUKET: An elderly Samut Prakan man allegedly doused his own cancer-stricken younger brother in gasoline before setting him on fire in a case of almost unbelievable savagery last week. Before launching the attack, Thawat Limyothin, 61, was apparently hit by drops of liquid that fell from the ceiling below a room in which his brother Kiatchai Limyothin, 50, was convalescing.…
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FC Phuket scramble to score funding
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) will cease its financial support of the island’s professional football club, FC Phuket, starting next season, one of the club’s managers confirmed today.Narubas “Ko Lek” Aryupong told the Phuket Gazette that the team is now seeking new sponsorship channels to pay for players’ salaries and training allowances.He confirmed that Thailand’s Auditor-General’s Office had…
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World Vision rolls out anti-polio campaign in Phuket
PHUKET: The Phuket office of the World Vision Foundation in Thailand, operating under the Supanimit Foundation, yesterday stepped up its anti-polio campaign, in line with the World Health Organization (WHO) push to eradicate the disease.Supanimit Foundation workers, joined by Phuket Provincial Public Health Office officials, targeted Burmese communities in and around Phuket Town and elsewhere around Phuket.The anti-polio task force…
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Phuket police defuse hostage situation
PHUKET: After a 30-minute standoff, Phuket Police on Tuesday rescued a woman held hostage by a knife-wielding glue addict at a local gas station. Chalong Police were notified of the attack at 11am. Arriving at the scene, the PTT service station on Chao Fa West Road in Chalong, they found a Phuket man holding a knife to the throat of…
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Tsunami blamed for Phuket beach encroachment confusion
PHUKET: A Phuket hotel representative yesterday claimed that the 2004 tsunami washed away property boundary markers between his resort and public beach land, thus causing confusion over alleged beach encroachment. The Surin Phuket, formerly known as The Chedi, situated on Pansea Beach on Phuket’s northwest coast, is in the final stages of renovation in preparation of reopening under the new…
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Phuket tourists warned of drink-spiking thieves
PHUKET: Tourists visiting nightspots in Phuket should not leave their drinks unattended as there have been incidents of people having their drinks “spiked” with potent sedatives in recent weeks, Tourist Police volunteers have warned. Frank Tomensen, Group Leader of the Phuket Tourist Police Foreign Volunteers in Patong, has instructed his patrol units to be on the lookout for victims who…
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Phuket Sport – tour survival for Tabuena and Thanyakon at Thailand Golf Championship
Filipino teenager Miguel Tabuena and Thailand’s Thanyakon Khrongpha have prepared for the biggest test in their young golfing careers as the duo seek to earn full Asian Tour cards at the season-ending Thailand Golf Championship starting today. The 17-year-old Tabuena, the youngest member on the Asian Tour this year, is currently three spots outside the top-61 of the Order of…
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Thailand golf championship – a symbol of strength for Asian tour
This week’s inaugural US$1 million Thailand Golf Championship reflects the growing strength of the game in Asia, say the world stars who have gathered for the Asian Tour’s season finale which starts on Thursday. A starry line-up has gathered at the magnificent Amata Spring Country Club on the outskirts of Bangkok and will feature this year’s Major champions Darren Clarke…
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Phuket Island Charity Golf Tournament a huge success
PHUKET: Thailand is Southeast Asia’s premiere destination for its irresistible combination of breathtaking natural beauty, inspiring temples, outstanding hospitality and superb cuisine. Thailand is often called the “land of smiles”, and rightly so because you will see more smiling people here than anywhere else in the world. What it is not commonly mentioned is also that Thai people are also…
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Phuket Carnival reaches zero hour
PHUKET: The countdown to Phuket’s annual Patong Carnival is over. The six-day event began at 9am today with ceremonial offering of food to monks at Loma Park on the Patong beachfront. After the alms-giving ceremony, at 10:15am the sea of vendors at the park opened their stalls to sell food and drinks. The Phuket Flying Club will join the opening…
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Phuket Sports – Village lead the league, Tigers flatter to deceive
PHUKET: A second win for the Village in the Phuket Island Furniture League ensured a leap frog into first place after a demolition of league newcomers, Thanyapura Tigers at the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) on Sunday. Compared with previous seasons when the Village were more a social side, this season their squad shows a good balance of experienced batsmen and…
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Blaze destroys Phuket fishermen’s homes
PHUKET: A fire believed to have started from an explosion quickly engulfed several fishermen’s huts in Baan Bang Tao, Cherng Talay, on Phuket’s west coast, yesterday afternoon. No injuries were reported. Officials at Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) rushed two fire trucks to the scene on Soi Bang Tao 12, near the southern end of Phuket’s popular Bang Tao…
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Phuket Media Watch – 60 die after drinking illicit alcohol
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community At least 60 die after drinking illicit alcohol in eastern India Phuket Gazette More than 60 people have died after consuming illegal liquor in India’s eastern state of West Bengal, police said on Wednesday. Dozens more are seriously ill. The victims fell ill on early Wednesday…
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Phuket Media Watch – Courts in England and Wales relax reporting rules
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Courts in England and Wales to allow journalists to tweet, text and email Phuket Gazette / Agencies PHUKET: The head of the judiciary and courts in England and Wales yesterday announced his decision to allow journalists to use e-mail, text messaging and social media while inside…
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Finnish tourist death in Phuket possibly a suicide
PHUKET: Police do not suspect foul play in the death of a Finnish tourist Veijo Armas Vallius, found dead in his Phuket hotel room last week. The body of 52-year-old Mr Vallius was discovered in a hotel room in Kamala on December 8. Somnerk Damkeaw of the Kamala Police told the Gazette today that the body of Mr Vallius remains…
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Manhunt launched for Phuket MMA brawler
PHUKET: American Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter Junie Browning is the subject of an island-wide manhunt following two brawls in Phuket on Sunday and his subsequent escape from Patong Hospital. The manhunt was launched following local media reports that an unnamed American man had been involved in a brawl at a bar in Karon. The man then continued fighting with…
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Phuket convention center project gets Cabinet extension
PHUKET: Following a Cabinet meeting in Bangkok yesterday, the Finance Ministry has been given more time to build a world-class convention center in Phuket. The Treasury Department, which is responsible for bringing the decades-old dream to reality, now has until 2014 to sign a construction contract for the mega-project. Prior to yesterday’s extension, the Treasury Department had expressed mounting concern…
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