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Sponsored Top 5 luxury villas in Phuket and Koh Samui for your next holiday
Ask people to name the most beautiful places in Thailand, and you'll often hear Phuket and Koh Samui being mentioned. Who would disagree? One is renowned for its bustling nightlife, vibrant culture, and lively beach scene, while the other is...
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ENGLISH FOOTBALL ROUNDUP: Man City draw on recent memory for New Year title fight
PHUKET (Reuters): Champions Manchester City go into 2013 facing a daunting seven-point deficit on Premier League leaders Manchester United and a testing encounter against stubborn Stoke City on Tuesday.Roberto Mancini’s side ended the year which delivered their first Premier League title with a gritty 4-3 triumph over Norwich City, proving their high-profile players also have the mettle for a fight.It’s…
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Letter from the Phuket Governor: Working together for a brighter new year
Maitri Inthusut arrived on the island to take up the position of Governor of Phuket on October 8. With a master’s degree in political science from Thammasat University, he joined the National Security Council, rising to the position of NSC Secretary-General, before taking up the position of Chief Secretary for Secretariat of the Cabinet. He has also served as Governor…
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Phuket hospitality running on a full tank
As Phuket looks back a year full many negative news reports, the Phuket Gazette is happy to publish this reader’s first-person account of what makes living in Phuket great. PHUKET: Phuket is the Thailand I know and love. Having flown straight to the island and stayed, I have only heard rumors of “mainland” hospitality and the kindness Thai people are…
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Heavy showers set to dampen Phuket new year
PHUKET: The heavy thunderstorm showers that have drenched Phuket over the past few days are forecast to continue until at least Wednesday, according to the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD). The TMD today issued a forecast for heavy showers for New Year’s Eve and Day, with a 60% chance of precipitation across the island. Those celebrating the new year in the…
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Two dead in Phuket motorbike crash
PHUKET: Police are attempting to identify a foreign man and a woman killed in a motorcycle accident in Cherng Talay, on central Phuket’s west coast, last night.The pair were riding a motorcycle along the Cherng Talay-Baan Don Road when they were struck by a pickup truck in front of Soi Pasak 3 at about 9:15pm, Lt Col Rassada of the…
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Sydictive Phuket beach bash kicks off today – amid confusion and stringent rules
PHUKET: The Sydictive Element Phuket beach party has jumped its last bureaucratic hurdle, and with the setup for the mega-event now said to be 90 per cent complete, it’s finally “a go” for Patong Beach. However, the party organizers were handed a 15-point list of rules the party must adhere to or face the possibility of being shut down. “We…
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Aldhouse pleads “not guilty’ to Phuket murder charge
PHUKET: British national Lee Aldhouse entered a plea of not guilty this week for the murder of former US Marine Dashawn Longfellow in Phuket in 2010.Aldhouse was presented to the Phuket Provincial Court on Wednesday and formally charged with murder. The maximum penalty under the charge is death.“He has been charged with premeditated murder under Section 288 of the Thai…
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Day two of Seven Days of Danger witnesses another road-death
PHUKET: Phuket’s road-death toll increased by one as the second day of the “Seven Days of Danger” came to a close at midnight on Friday, according to the official Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket branch (DDPM-Phuket) statistics. The death toll increased after a family riding a motorbike southbound on Thepkrasattri Road near the Thalang Tesco Lotus was hit…
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Colorful Countdown Phuket kicks off today
PHUKET: The New Year celebrations on the island starts at 6pm today as the annual “Colorful Countdown Phuket” for 2013 kicks off. The event, put on by the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization, will be held at Chai Field (map here), opposite Provincial Hall in Phuket Town. The event will host a variety of top Thai artists, including Thai-country rock singer…
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Corruption in Phuket: Is there now hope for a cure?
PHUKET: Loosely in formed in 2010, the Anti-Corruption Network this year has become a key organisation that has shed unprecedented light on corruption in Thailand. This group, comprising entities from the public and private sectors, is pushing hard in its campaign against corruption at the corporate and national levels, with the ultimate goal of ensuring fairness to all Thais and…
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Phuket human traffickers jailed for deaths of 54 illegal Burmese
PHUKET: Four Thais found guilty of human trafficking were sentenced to between three and 10 years’ imprisonment yesterday for their intricate involvement in the 2008 “death truck” that left 54 Burmese dead from suffocation inside a seafood container bound for Phuket. Of the 121 Burmese found in the sealed container heading from Ranong, 17 men, 36 women and one 8-year-old…
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Phuket United cancel Brazilian player’s contract
PHUKET: Phuket United have canceled the contract of Brazilian player Rogerio Moreira and sent him back to Brazil. Mr Suphol Senapeng, Phuket United’s head coach, told the Phuket Gazette: “Rogerio was unhappy because we refused to pay for an air ticket for his wife to come to Thailand from Brazil. He didn’t want his wife to pay for the ticket…
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Phuket tour bus driver charged for 18-vehicle pileup
PHUKET: The driver of the tour bus that caused an 18-vehicle pileup in Patong last night was today charged with reckless driving causing damage to property and health. Prawet Wongthai, 51, was driving towards Patong from Kata Beach when he realized the bus brakes had failed. Unable to stop, he caused a collision involving 17 vehicles before coming to a…
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Two dead in Phuket on first day of new year road-safety blitz
PHUKET: Two people have died on Phuket’s roads within the first 24 hours of the annual Seven Days of Danger new year road-safety campaign, according to the official Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket branch (DDPM-Phuket) statistics issued today. Yuthapong Taempetch, 37, died after the motorbike he was riding and a pickup truck collided on Kwang Road (see map)…
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World News: Americans still want their guns, with some restrictions
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community After Newtown, Americans want their guns, with some restrictions Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Nearly seven in 10 Americans support the idea of placing strong or moderate limits gun ownership following the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, a Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed yesterday.But laws that permit citizens…
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Former Phuket FC player Camara Ahmed dies
PHUKET: Former Phuket FC player Camara Ahmed passed away last week at his home in the Ivory Coast. Camara suffered a cardiac arrest on October 30, 2010, during a 1-0 playoff win over Chainat FC. The popular footballer was moved from a hospital in Phuket back to his native Ivory Coast a few months ago. Phuket FC’s manager, Mr Jakkapop…
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Thailand News: A look back at some of the memorable moments for Thai athletes in 2012
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Triumphs, tears and TV rights The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: This year was a mixed bag for Thai athletes on the international front. The Nation looks back at some of the memorable moments and missed opportunities and wishes Thailand’s sportsmen and women a brighter future on the…
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Four injured after lorry jumps lanes, smashes Phuket sedan and hits motorbike
PHUKET: A lorry jumped lanes and struck a sedan and then a motorbike before coming to rest in the far lane of Lim San Curve in Kathu, at about 2:30pm today. Four were injured, but no one was killed. The black Honda Dream motorbike was still caught beneath the six-wheeled lorry, when duty officer Watthanathorn Bumrungthin of the Thung Thong…
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World News: Residents evacuated as Nicaragua volcano spews ash
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Nicaragua volcano spews ash cloud, residents evacuated Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Nicaragua’s tallest volcano has belched an ash cloud hundreds of meters into the sky in the latest bout of sporadic activity, prompting the evacuation of nearby residents, the government said yesterday. The 5,725-foot (1,745-meter)…
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International Sports: Sri Lanka fight back
Clarke scores ton as Sri Lanka fight back Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Michael Clarke struck a sparkling century to help drive Australia to a first innings lead of 176 runs at tea on day two of the second test today, but Sri Lanka hit back with three wickets to hold hopes of saving the match. The Australian skipper combined…
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Phuket tsunami memorial service sets Patong Beach aglow
PHUKET: Patong Beach was set aglow last night as hundreds of local residents and tourists joined the annual Light Up Phuket memorial service to honor those who died in the tsunami that struck the island eight years ago. Thai official figures state that the tsunami killed over 5,000 people and more than 3,700 disappeared in the waves that struck the…
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World News: Former US President Bush snr. in intensive care
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush in intensive care – spokesman Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Former President George H.W. Bush is in the intensive care unit of a Houston hospital and is in “guarded condition,” family spokesman Jim McGrath said yesterday. “The president is alert…
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Phuket gifted “zero death start’ to Seven Days of Danger
PHUKET: Phuket woke up to the first dawn of the annual “Seven Days of Danger” new year national road-safety campaign without recording a single death on the roads. However, the first casualty recorded since the campaign began at midnight last night was a 33-year-old woman who crashed her motorbike at high speed on Sakdidet Road in Phuket Town at about…
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Phuket Sports: Premier League Boxing Day delights
Spurs hail Bale after hat-trick makes Villa wail Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Tottenham Hotspur’s Gareth Bale is among the most special talents in world football, manager Andre Villas-Boas said after the left winger grabbed a hat-trick in yesterday’s 4-0 mauling of Aston Villa. Jermain Defoe put Spurs in front in the 58th minute at Villa Park before Bale blew…
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Tsunami memorial morning service draws “handful of foreigners’
PHUKET: About 100 people joined the tsunami remembrance service at the Tsunami Memorial Wall in Mai Khao this morning to mark eight years passing since the devastating tsunami struck Phuket’s shores. Among the attendees, only five were foreigners. The service began with Buddhist monks conducting a mass prayer, followed by a Muslim service and then a Christian service. After the…
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Rape test results for Burmese teen handed over to Phuket Public Prosecutor
PHUKET: Police have confirmed that the Phuket Provincial Public Prosecutor is now in possession of the case notes needed to proceed with bringing to trial a 29-year-old man who raped an 18-year-old Burmese woman in Phuket in October. “Even if the attacker confesses to having raped a person, we still conduct a rape test so that the scientific results can…
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Phuket votes for tough action against illegal taxis
PHUKET: In our most recent Phuket Gazette poll, readers have overwhelmingly voted for local authorities to take a tough approach in tackling illegal taxi drivers on the island. The poll, launched a month ago, highlighted the recent efforts by the Phuket authorities to bring order to the long-running problem of illegal taxis, and all the violent repercussions they have had…
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Phuket Live Wire: An Einsteinian speed anomaly
PHUKET: Last week I talked about the best-known internet speed measuring web sites – not the ones your Internet Service Provider (ISP) sets up and gooses to show impossible scores, but the sites that are internationally recognized as providing a reasonable indication of the speed your line actually delivers. Some of you wrote to me and said that you don’t…
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Phuket tourists run for their lives as Patong hotel fire breaks out
PHUKET: Tourists staying at a luxury hotel in Phuket ran for their lives after waking up to smoke and fire in the pre-dawn dark today. Seven fire trucks arrived at the well-known Royal Phawadee Village hotel in Sawatdirak Road, near the Patong beachfront, at about 5:30am. Firefighters took about an hour to bring the flames under control. Suchanart Khonkaew and…
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Man found hanged at Phuket park
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a man who was found hanged early yesterday morning near the entrance to the Bang Neaw Dum reservoir, a popular recreational park located in the heart of Phuket. Police believe the man’s body remained undiscovered for about five days before it was spotted by local villagers. “The man was hanged by a blue…
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