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Sponsored Pullman Phuket Panwa Beach Resort puts sustainability at its heart
The term sustainability is often thrown around as a buzzword in the hospitality industry, but at Pullman Phuket Panwa Beach Resort, it’s genuinely part of their mission. Located in Makham Bay, just south of Phuket Town, the beautiful resort puts...
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BISP/JSA swim academy team racks up records, two members qualify for Olympic games
PHUKET: When the BISP / JSA Swim Academy at British International School Phuket first took to the pool in August 2013, the team had five international swimmers on scholarship, four swimmers from the school’s Flying Fish club team and high hopes. During the August to December 2014 swim season, the team’s nine swimmers (five girls and four boys) competed in…
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Woman charged for Phuket airport bomb threat
PHUKET: The woman who threatened a bomb attack on departing flight Thai AirAsia FD 3002 from Phuket International Airport this morning has been charged for her actions – despite not having any explosive devices on her person. “Phanarat Nopphakhun, 37, is being charged for the fake bomb scare at the airport. She faces a maximum fine of 200,000 baht, five…
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Phuket rescuers helpless as Swiss man dies in elevator shaft
PHUKET: Rescuers helplessly watched a Swiss national stuck in an elevator shaft in a Patong hotel die early this morning. “We think that the doors to the elevator opened up before the lift had arrived and that he stepped into the shaft, unaware that there wasn’t actually an elevator there,” said Maj Teerasak Boonsang of the Patong Police. “An employee…
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Opinion: NCPO battles Thai hydra of corruption
PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has taken swift action to show the European Union (EU) that it intends to do more to tackle the problem of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing practices in Thailand and its territorial waters. Whether or not real order can be imposed within just six months on the huge hydra of…
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Jet-skis wrangle more Patong sand space with new zones
PHUKET: Two jet-ski and parasailing zones and two swimming zones have been added to Patong Beach to fulfill the needs of tourists, Governor Nisit Jansomwong told the Phuket Gazette yesterday. When the zones were first established last year (story here), there were three swimming areas, each 500 meters wide and extending 150 meters offshore, and two jet-ski zones each about…
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Phang Nga newborn found dead in canal
PHUKET: Police are hunting for the mother of a newborn girl who was found dead in a canal in Phang Nga, north of Phuket, yesterday morning. “When we arrived we found the baby’s body inside a well-tied plastic bag,” said Lt Sarawut Phanpan of the Thung Ka Ngok Police. “Inside the bag we also found an umbilical cord and three…
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Thailand U-23 squad mashes Myanmar
PHUKET: Thailand’s national football team’s under-23 squad enjoyed their warm-up match on Tuesday night against their arch rival Myanmar. The squad walked away from Ratchamangkala Stadium in Bangkok with a 4-0 win. In this friendly warm-up match, all four goals came in the second half after multiple chances to score were spoiled in the beginning of the game. Thailand made…
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Belgian-Thai local dominates at Annual King’s Cup
PHUKET: Phuket local James Van Herzeele, 12, dominated his age group in both singles and doubles categories at the Annual King’s Cup in Bangkok, a tournament held by the Lawn Tennis Association of Thailand. “When I played the championship point I felt so happy and relieved that I could achieve my goal to win this most important tournament of the…
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Witness spots Phuket arson suspects
PHUKET: A witness told police that he saw two people set fire to a Phuket restaurant in the early hours of yesterday morning. “It was dark, so the witness wasn’t able to give us any details to help identify the suspects. However, he saw two people park a car a good distance from the restaurant and then return with cans…
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Fishing net catches blame for Krabi manatee death
PHUKET: Fishery Department officers believe that a fishing net was to blame for the death of a 300-kilogram manatee found dead near Koh Kurong in Krabi yesterday. “There were scratch marks on its body and a deep cut along its neck. We believe it died just hours before it was spotted by a local fisherman,” said Prawet Awirutphanit, head of…
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Finance: Investment ideals for new oil and gas realities
PHUKET: Late last year, legendary oil and gas entrepreneur Thomas Boone Pickens said during a CNBC interview: “Energy is cheap in America. We still have the cheapest energy in the world…Take advantage of it, play the demand side.” Since then, Pickens has repeatedly stated in public appearances that he believes oil will rise to US$70 a barrel this year and…
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Video Report: Phuket tsunami drill hailed as a success
PHUKET: A total of about 200 emergency-response officers and locals joined the full-scale tsunami evacuation drill at Koh Sireh, eastern coast of Phuket, on Tuesday. “Every department handled the rescue role-playing situations very well and acted appropriately. However, the locals seemed to be more uncomfortable, as this was their first time,” said Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong. The drill simulated a…
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Fire on Patong’s Soi Bangla guts hotel room
PHUKET: Tourists on Soi Bangla panicked after a hotel room along the popular party road burst into flames last night. Three fire trucks spent about 20 minutes dousing the flames coming from a fourth-floor rental room above Rico’s Restaurant*. No one was injured in the incident, confirmed police. However, the blaze completely destroyed the room and its contents, causing an…
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No resolution on horizon for Phuket lifeguard conundrum
PHUKET: There is no solution in sight for the Phuket lifeguard contract conundrum, which leaves the island’s beaches without essential life-saving services as the annual southwest monsoon season stirs up dangerous seas on the west coast, confirmed officials to the Phuket Gazette yesterday. However, the president of the Phuket Lifeguard Club (PLC) proposed two solutions. “One option would be for…
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Rohingya “help-on’ policy announced in Phuket
PHUKET: Deputy Prime Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan explained to the press in Phuket that Thailand would be proceeding with a clear ‘help-on’ policy when dealing with Rohingya and Bangladeshi entering the country. “We will never push away these people. However, if they do land in Thailand they will have to face the same laws that apply to anyone illegally entering…
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High-voltage power-line project sparks reactions in Phuket
PHUKET: More than 100 locals from Thalang villages filed a complaint at Phuket Provincial Hall on Friday over the potentially negative effects a high-voltage power line project could have on their communities. The project would see land expropriated to have 500 kilovolt poles installed in Pa Khlok and Baan Para and would require many villagers to relocate their businesses, said…
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Family feud leads to fatal Phuket fruit vendor shooting
PHUKET: A gunman who shot his fruit-selling aunt in the head in Phuket Town turned himself into police yesterday. Santipap Kosuk, 28, surrendered to Phuket City Police following the fatal shooting of his 46-year-old aunt, Sriroong Kosuk, yesterday. Mr Santipap stashed his homemade gun and ammunition in a shoe box near Surakul Stadium before he called his father and asked…
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Video Report: Superyacht charter licence floated by Marine Dept
PHUKET: Standardized criteria for foreign-flagged superyacht chartering licences, which are designed to move Phuket and Thailand toward the goal of becoming the regional maritime hub, will be finalized by the end of the month, it was announced last week. The current issuance of such licences is subjective and dealt with case by case, explained Marine Department Director-General Chula Sukmanop. “We…
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Woman killed crossing Phuket road
PHUKET: A 78-year-old woman was killed by a pick-up truck as she attempted to cross Phuket’s busy Thepkasattri Road yesterday. Sian Phetlamul had just disembarked from a local songtaew after visiting relatives and was crossing the road on her way home, her relatives told police. “The truck driver, 27-year-old Sutjaiai Sriphut, was driving from Phuket Town with his mother-in-law to…
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Australian English teacher in coma after Phuket motorbike accident
PHUKET: Australian expat Louise Warren is in a coma at Vachira Phuket Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit following a motorbike crash in Patong on Friday night. Ms Warren, working as a teacher at Patong Language School, is expected to be transferred to Bangkok Phuket Hospital today, confirmed a nurse at Vachira Hospital. “Her heart has stopped twice. However, we were able…
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Unidentified body found floating off Koh Khai
PHUKET: Kusoldham Foundation rescue workers recovered the body of an unidentified man yesterday afternoon, found floating off the coast of Koh Khai, 20km east of Phuket. “We are unable to identify the nationality of the man, but we believe he was 30 to 40 years old and was approximately 160 to 170 centimeters in height,” Lt Col Panya Chaichana of…
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Swiss national killed in Phuket car crash
PHUKET: A Swiss national was killed in a car crash on Kata Hill early this morning. Gaetano Pensovecchio, 39, was removed from his pick-up truck and rushed to Vachira Phuket Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. “The pick-up truck being driven by Mr Pensovecchio was ascending Kata Hill toward Chalong when it collided with a six-wheeled truck,” explained Lt…
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Video Report: Special task force created to combat IUUs
PHUKET: A ‘Special Navy Team’ was put into action in Phuket last week to combat the severe economic and ecological damage caused by illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing vessels (IUU) that are taking advantage of legal loop holes and poor enforcement in the region. The joint task force will be operating 12 boats and one helicopter, as they attempt to…
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Thalang lights up Laguna, will face Patong in cricket grand final
PHUKET: The Thalang Cricket Team (TCT) made light work of a depleted Laguna cricket side in Sunday’s Phuket Cricket Group semifinal. After dismissing Laguna for only 114 runs, TCT passed the total in the 22nd over with seven wickets still in hand. The coin toss fell the way of Laguna’s captain Stuart Reading who chose for his team to bat…
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One killed, 31 injured in Krabi bus crash
PHUKET: A bus en route from Phuket to Narathiwat flipped on a wet road in Krabi last night, killing one passenger and injuring 31 others. The body of 26-year-old Marina Sama-ae, a nurse from Narathiwat, was trapped inside the bus when police arrived just after midnight, said Capt Prasan Khongkaew of the Ao Luek Police. “The bus was turned over…
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Finnish man killed in Phuket
PHUKET: A Finnish man was hit by a car and killed while crossing Patak Road near Chalong Circle early this morning. A damaged Honda CRV was parked in the road, and the body of a 26-year-old man, named by police as Joonas Hotti, was found nearby when police and rescue workers arrived at the scene. “The Honda driver was heading…
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20 injured in Deep South bomb attacks
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Two more injured in further small blasts in Yala town Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: Bomb attacks continued to erupt in Yala’s Muang district yesterday, raising the number of injured over the past two days to 20. Despite that, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister…
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No Rohingya holding center for Phuket, says Gov
PHUKET: Top Phuket and Navy officials have voiced support for the government’s move to find islands on which migrants, Rohingya and otherwise, can stop over on their way to their destination. However, they expressed concern about Phuket and islands which are part of Thailand’s National Marine Parks system being used as stop-over points. The move follows an order from Prime…
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Woman dies in car crash on slippery Krabi road
PHUKET: A woman died yesterday when she lost control of her pick-up truck on a wet road in Krabi and slammed into a pole. Police arrived at the scene on Petchkasem Road in Khlong Thom district at about 10am to find a pick-up truck wrapped around a sign pole in the median of the road. “Phonphan Khongyot, 31, died instantly…
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Opinion: Road improvements to relieve Phuket’s traffic congestion
Samak Luedwonghad, 48, is the director of the Phuket Highways Office, under the Department of Highways. Originally from Nakhon Sri Thammarat province, he graduated from Mahanakorn University of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He has been the director of the Phuket Highways Office since 2012. Here, he talks about the ever-worsening traffic congestion on the island and…
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