Phuket News
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Sea turtles fitted with GPS in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Researchers from the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) have fastened GPS electronic tracking devices to the backs of eight young green turtles, which were released off the coast in Phang Nga. The small GPS transmitters will transfer important research data back to the PMBC at Cape Panwa. These turtles will provide much needed information about the behavior patterns…
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Readers’ Poll: CCTV expansion in Phuket Town
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) is installing 53 more CCTV cameras in and around Phuket Town at a cost of 17 million baht. The stated aim is to improve security for residents and tourists alike. The PPAO says it plans to extend coverage to other parts of the island, including Chalong, in the future. Do you think this…
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The Sam Van Treeck case: five years on
PHUKET CITY: Thailand’s five-year effort to extradite fugitive murder suspect Sam Van Treeck to stand trial for the stabbing murder of Chompoonut ‘Jeab’ Kobram in Pattaya in 2004 appeared to take a step backwards on December 31 when a Belgian court granted his release from prison on a conditional basis. Van Treeck, a former tour guide in Thailand, was charged…
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Phuket holiday road deaths at provincial average – so far
PHUKET: New Year’s Day in Thailand saw 686 road accidents kill 70 people and injure another 737, bringing the cumulative casualty count for the long holiday to 238 deaths and 2,725 injuries from 2,510 accidents. Of the 238 deaths, 3 have been recorded in Phuket, in line with the average for the country’s 78 provinces. But Phuket’s serious injury count,…
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Boy, age 10, Phuket’s first drowning victim of 2010
RAWAI, PHUKET: A ten-year-old boy celebrating New Year’s Day with his family at Nai Harn Beach is the first drowning victim of the year in Phuket. Duty Officer Chingchai Duangsuwan of the Chalong Police identified the victim as 10-year-old Apichet ‘Nong Max’ Srinakarak, a student at Wat Thep Nimit School in Wichit. Notified of the drowning at 5pm, Chalong Police…
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New Year’s Eve shooting murder in Phuket
RAWAI, PHUKET: Police are searching for the gunmen who shot and killed a man celebrating the New Year holiday early yesterday morning in what police believe was a revenge killing by rival gang members. Chalong Police Investigator Boonlert Onklang identified the deceased as 24-year-old Wanchai Withaya, a Chalong resident. Police received a report of the shooting at the popular Icon…
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53 more CCTV cameras for Phuket
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) has provided 17 million baht in funding for the installation of 53 more closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in and around Phuket Town. PPAO President Paiboon Upatising met with Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pekad Thantipong and other high ranking police officers on Wednesday morning at the CCTV monitoring center in Phuket City Police Station.…
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Phuket Gov pushes for ‘ring road’
PHUKET CITY: Phuket’s Governor continues to push for new road projects on the island, the latest a ‘ring road’ though the east side of Phuket Town connecting Wichit and Rasada. Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop told a meeting of provincial department heads on Tuesday that he is hoping the controversial Klong Koh Pee (‘Ghost Canal’) Road project will get the green light…
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Phuket jet-ski woes continue
PATONG, PHUKET: Despite the mandatory insurance scheme for rental jet-skis that went into effect last month, problems between jet-ski operators and tourists persist and scores of unregistered jet-skis continue to operate in Patong Bay. Marine Transport Department officer Songchai Na Nakorn told the Gazette forty-one jet skis in Patong are currently out of service because their insurance applications are still…
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Phuket tuk-tuk driver goes into hiding after assault on tourists
KARON, PHUKET: The tuk-tuk driver wanted in connection with the savage beating of French tourists in Kata last Saturday has gone into hiding, the Gazette has learned. “Now, the suspect has run away. He is not at his house and didn’t show up at the tuk-tuk parking area as normal,” Chalong Police Investigator Chana Sutthimaat told the Gazette today. The…
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Phuket minimum wage increased 7 baht
PHUKET CITY: Minimum wage workers will get a very modest wage rise on New Year’s Day, when an increase in the minimum pay rate in Phuket increases from 197 baht to 204 baht. Phuket Provincial Labor Office chief Suttipong Saisakares confirmed the pay hike, saying it was just two baht lower than the requested rise of nine baht. Phuket was…
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Student dies of electrocution in Phuket
CHALONG, PHUKET: A 17-year-old student of the British International School died from an accidental electrocution on Christmas Day. Chalong Police Investigator Boonlert Onklang identified the deceased as Anurak Gottschalk, son of a German photographer and his Thai companion who works as a cook aboard a tour boat. At about 5:30pm, the boy’s German uncle and a housemaid found Anurak dead…
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Phuket gets THB 10 billion for development projects
PHUKET CITY: Cabinet has approved a 2010 budget that includes ten billion baht (approx US$ 295 million) in funding for Phuket under the Finance Ministry’s ‘Thai Khem Khaeng’ (Strong Thailand) stimulus package. The new budget green lights projects intended to solidify Phuket’s position as one of Southeast Asia’s leading tourist destinations. Highlights of the plan include a major airport expansion,…
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TAT ‘worried’ about Phuket tuk-tuk gangs
PHUKET CITY: The director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in Phuket says her agency is ‘working on a plan’ to deal with aggressive tuk-tuk drivers in Phuket, the Gazette has learned. Bangornrat Shinaprayoon, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) South Region Four office in Phuket, told the Gazette today that she was aware of the…
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Phuket Red Cross Fair starts tomorrow
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Governor and his wife this morning took part in a ceremony praying for good luck during the annual Red Cross Fair that starts at Saphan Hin tomorrow. The ceremony was led by Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngob and his wife Thaisika, who as the governor’s wife, is president of the Phuket chapter of the Thai Red Cross Society.…
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Malacca Strait security meeting in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Royal Thai Navy officers and their counterparts from Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia are taking part in the four-day ‘Intelligence Exchange Group Meetings’ aimed at boosting security in the Malacca Strait.Leading the Thai contingent is Commander Suchart Thammapitak, Director of the Naval Civil Affairs Department at the Royal Thai Navy Third Naval Area Command Base at Cape Panwa.The talks,…
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Phuket Gov calls evacuation drill a success
MAI KHAO, PHUKET: Five years after the tsunami that devastated parts of the Phuket coastline, authorities set out to prove that the island is ready to cope if a similar tragedy occurred today. Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop pronounced the Christmas Day simulation a success. “Everybody took it seriously,” he said. The exercise came as part of activities organized to mark…
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Phuket Rajabhat Students to take census data
PHUKET CITY: The National Statistical Office (NSO) will get the help of 650 Phuket Rajabhat University students when it collects data in Phuket throughout July as part of its 11th National Census. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) formalizing the agreement was signed at Phuket Provincial Hall last week. The document was signed by NSO Director-General Jirawan Boonperm, Rajabhat Phuket University…
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Tsunami Memorial Day in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Patong held tsunami memorial activities on Saturday December 26, the fifth anniversary of the disaster and now National Disaster Prevention Day in Thailand. After an early morning alms-giving ceremony, activities began as planned with Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop reading out a letter from Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. Many elected officials and high-ranking government officers attended, including Patong Mayor…
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New Phuket flyover under consideration
PHUKET CITY: The Highways Department is studying the possibility of building a flyover or tunnel to relieve traffic congestion at the Darasamuth School Intersection near Central Festival Phuket.The first in a series of five planned public hearings on the issue took place at The Metropole Hotel on Thursday morning.The Highways Department has included the project in its 10-year development plan…
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Colorful Phuket Countdown 2010
PHUKET CITY: With Christmas 2009 now in the past, Phuket is gearing up for the arrival of 2010 with a three-day ‘Colorful Phuket Countdown 2010’ festival to take place at the main stage at Saphin Hin from December 29 to 31…and well into the opening hours of 2010. The event is being jointly organized by the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization…
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Patong’s “Neighborhood Watch’ to boost security
PATONG, PHUKET: Kathu Police are calling on the help of local residents to help in the never-ending war against crime in Patong. Kathu Police Superintendent Grissak Songmoonnark told the Gazette today that Kathu Police are now holding monthly meetings with community leaders participating in a ‘Neighborhood Watch’ program. “We have set security measures for Patong, not only for high season…
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Phuket’s ‘Seven Days of Danger’ announced
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Police are gearing up for the annual ‘Seven Days of Danger’ road safety period that will this year run from December 29 to January 4. Nine main police checkpoints on major roads and 18 more on local roads will be manned around the clock to ensure public safety, according to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation…
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Government support for Phuket investments
PHUKET: Phuket OEM Co plans to build a 76-million-baht surgical-mesh factory on the island following a grant of tax incentives from Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI). Surgical mesh is used to help surgical wounds heal better and more quickly. BOI senior executive investment adviser Hirunya Suchinai said the company had been successful in turning a Swedish company’s research on synthetic…
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Child labor ‘not a big problem’ in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Workplace inspections by the Phuket Provincial Labor Protection Office have found that minors make up a very small fraction of the Phuket workforce. At a meeting at the Phuket Provincial Labor Protection Office chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha yesterday morning, it was revealed that inspection tours in fiscal 2009 discovered 24 unregistered workers under the age…
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Thailand to raise excise tax on booze
PHUKET CITY (The Nation): An executive decree will be issued shortly to raise the excise tax ceiling on alcoholic beverages in preparation for the implementation of the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) agreement on January 1, a Finance Ministry source said yesterday. The Cabinet is expected to consider the measure on Tuesday, just before the arrival of 2010, when the…
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TOT rolls out fiber optic Internet service in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: TOT has launched a new fiber optic internet service in Phuket. Starting at 8,600 baht per month, the long-awaited ‘Fiber To You’ service offers internet speeds of 10-20 megabits per second. TOT President Varut Suvakorn said the state-owned company invested 200 million baht to install its ‘fiber to the x’ (FTTx) network in selected parts in each of…
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Catholic mass schedule for Phuket
PHUKET CITY: While Christmas is little more than a celebration of consumerism for most people in Phuket, for the island’s small Catholic community – and many Catholics here on holiday – it remains a Holy Day of Obligation under canon 1247 of Canon Law, which states: ‘On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are obliged to participate…
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Opening of new Phuket Bus Station on hold
PHUKET CITY: The opening of Phuket’s new 128-million-baht bus station is on hold while authorities work out which organization will be put in charge of its operation. Structural work on the station was completed earlier this month, with project contractor Anda Phuket Construction Co Ltd officially handing the structure over to the Land Transport Department on December 4. No date…
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Blackout in Rawai tomorrow
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) has announced a blackout in Rawai tomorrow in order to continue its work on high-voltage power lines. The affected area will be along both sides on Patak Road, from Chalong Circle west to the Shell Station. The power will be cut from approximately 9am to 4pm. The PPEA apologizes for any inconvenience.…
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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