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Malaysian breath-hold record set for static apnea
PHUKET: Contestants and spectators held their breath for some time during the WeFreedive Suunto Series static apnea event when a new Malaysian record was set on May 25. “This month’s static freediving competition had the feel of a young green season: small and relaxed,” explained Association Internationale pour le Développement de l’Apnée (AIDA) judge Richard Wonka. Despite the small turnout…
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Flight MH370: Doubt raised over whether pings came from missing Malaysia jet
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Doubt raised over whether ‘pings’ came from missing Malaysia jet Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The U.S. Navy described as “speculative and premature” a media report on Thursday that said four acoustic pings at the centre of the search for a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner are…
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Marina canal dredging resumes despite environmental concerns
PHUKET: The dredging project to improve access to Koh Kaew marinas, which was halted earlier this month due to environmental concerns, has started again. The decision to continue with the dredging of the Koh Kaew Canal (story here) was reached yesterday after lengthy discussions among the Phuket Governor, the Phuket Marine Office chief, the local subdistrict chief and Jitti Intaracharoen…
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Thai junta debunks outrage over Facebook outage
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community ‘No policy to block FB’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) said yesterday that it had no policy to block social media, after there was brief chaos as Facebook faced technical failure at its Internet gateway. Facebook was…
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Egypt’s Sisi sweeps to victory in presidential vote
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Egypt’s Sisi sweeps to victory in presidential vote The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the general who toppled Egypt’s first freely elected leader, swept to victory in a presidential election, provisional results showed on Thursday, joining a long line of leaders drawn from…
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Curfew checkpoints on Phuket, but no political reconciliation center
PHUKET: Coup leader General Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday ordered each of the four Army areas to set up reconciliation centers where people could exchange political views and obtain direct information about the junta. However, the closest center to Phuket is at the Royal Thai Army base in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, to which a Phuket reporter and former island official have already…
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Video Report: Goats go for gold
PHUKET: Crowds of fair-goers hastily gathered last Saturday around the racing lanes at the National Goat Fair in Cherng Talay as anxious farmers corralled their hairy contestants toward the starting line. The ominous, stubborn rain clouds had parted just in time for the long-awaited goat races to begin. Even the sweltering heat could not stifle the excitement among children and…
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Facebook in Phuket not blocked by Army
PHUKET: Facebook crashing worldwide caused a flurry of tweets in Phuket and Thailand over concern that the popular social media site had been blocked by the junta. Downrightnow.com reported “likely service disruption” across the globe at about 4pm, not isolated incidents in Thailand, as many were worried about. Commanding General of the 41st Military Circle Peerapol Wiriyakul told the Phuket…
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Vietnam meth mule caught with 3.2kg of ice at Krabi Airport
PHUKET: A Vietnamese woman has been arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle 3.2 kilograms of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) into Thailand via Krabi International Airport. Customs Department chief Rakhop Srisuppha-at said that the drugs had an estimated street value of 9 million baht. Mr Rakhop told the press yesterday that Vietnamese national Tran Thi Be Hai, 43, arrived in Krabi…
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Phuket night workers start day shift to survive curfew
PHUKET: Patong nightlife operators, desperate to make up for business lost due to the nationwide curfew, have done the only thing they can do: start the party earlier. “Each venue has adjusted its hours to fit the curfew. Discotheques are now opening at about 4pm,” Weerawit Kurasombat, head of the Patong Entertainment Business Association, told the Phuket Gazette. “While it…
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Phuket land encroachment top priority for new park chief
PHUKET: The new chief of Phuket’s Sirinath National Park yesterday vowed to pick up where his predecessor left off in the battle against land encroachment. Chief Kitiphat Taraphiban, who transferred to Phuket from Mae Ping National Park in Chiang Mai, arrived on the island last Friday and reported to Governor Maitri Inthusut for duty yesterday morning. “We have some strong…
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Obama plans to end US troop presence in Afghanistan by 2016
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Obama plans to end US troop presence in Afghanistan by 2016 Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday outlined a plan to withdraw all but 9,800 American troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year and pull out the rest by…
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Army rolls out reconciliation centers; confirms Yingluck free
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Army aims to heal rift The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: To patch up the rifts in society, coup leader Maj Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday ordered the four Army areas to set up reconciliation centres throughout the country. The centres would be forums for people to…
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Rice-pledge agency denies losing 3 million tonnes of rice
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PWO denies losing 3-million tonnes of rice The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Public Warehouse Organisation yesterday denied that it had lost as much as 3 million tonnes of rice as leaked by an audit committee source to the public, saying a figure was missing…
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Thailand News: Now free, PDRC leaders turn to Facebook; Rice farmers thankful for payments
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PDRC members tell their time in military lock-up The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Members of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) freed on Monday from several days of military detention after acknowledging sedition charges are now telling the world of the experience on social media.…
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Singapore’s ‘worst serial rapist’ gets 37.5 years’ jail, 24 strokes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Singapore’s ‘worst serial rapist’ gets 37.5 years’ jail, 24 strokes The Straits Times / ANN PHUKET: A 44-year-old serial rapist who spiked his victims’ drinks with sleeping pills in an unprecedented date rape case, was expressionless as he was sentenced to 371/2 years’ jail on Tuesday.…
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Fire at South Korea hospital for elderly kills 21
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Fire at hospital for elderly kills 21 in latest major South Korea accident Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A fire at a rural South Korean hospital for chronically ill elderly patients on Wednesday killed 21 people and injured eight in the second major fire this week…
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Phuket curfew reduced to four hours
PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has announced that the curfew period will be reduced to four hours a day. The current curfew still effective tonight, banning all unsanctioned travel on the streets, is in effect from 10pm to 5am. The new curfew hours, from midnight to 4am, will come into effect tomorrow night, May 28. The…
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Gun-toting Aussie tourist nabbed with crystal meth in Phuket
PHUKET: Patong Police arrested an Australian tourist today after finding him in possession of 530mg of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine), a gun, and ammunition. Mark Robert Coutelas, 53, was apprehended at the Green Mango Apartment complex on Nanai Road after the police received a tip-off. “We went to the apartment and found Mr Coutelas at his rental room at about…
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Video Report: Phuket tourists talk about Thailand’s coup
PHUKET: Five days into Thailand’s coup d’etat, international travel advisories have been flying thick and fast following the military takeover by Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha. But travel advisories are written in dusty offices far from where the real action is taking place, so Phuket Today decided to find out what the international community really thinks about what’s happening here. We headed…
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Lifeguards back on Phuket beaches, ask PPAO to plan ahead
PHUKET: Lifeguards returned to Phuket beaches today, ending a month-long break after the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization’s (PPAO) 10-month contract with the lifeguard club fell through on April 27 (story here). Waters surrounding the island have become more dangerous with the arrival of the annual southwest monsoon season, and one tourist died during the lifeguard-less month (story here). “I am…
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Grateful Phuket locals praise army
PHUKET: More than 500 locals gathered at Sanam Chai Park this morning to offer roses and letters of thanks to army officers for their hard work. The grateful group of local farmers, students, Reserve Officer Training Corps Students and Civil Defence Volunteers intercepted the officers as they were on their way to meet with Governor Maitri Inthusut at Phuket Provincial…
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Mobile thief tracked down after victim tips off police
PHUKET: Patong Police tracked down a Phuket mobile thief on Sunday after receiving a tip-off about the suspect from the theft victim. Arom Boonsri, 38, notified police that her phone had been stolen, and gave the name of the person she believed had taken it. Police named the suspect as clothing-store staffer Jakkrit Prasertsak, 20, from Chiang Rai. “We learned…
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Last chance to win a flight over Phuket with the Gazette’s Reader Survey
PHUKET: Don’t miss your chance to win a free airplane ride over Phuket by taking part in the Phuket Gazette’s 20th Anniversary Reader Survey (survey here). The two lucky readers who have a chance to jump into the Gazette airplane and tell the pilot where they want to go – home, office, Phang Nga Bay…* will be determined and announced…
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No money to fix caved-in road in Koh Kaew, say officials
PHUKET: A section of a busy road in Koh Kaew has collapsed, but despite a circle of finger-pointing by local officials, no repairs are likely until next year, due to lack of funds. The road, Soi Koh Kaew 33, behind the Isuzu dealership on Thepkrasattri Road, leads to local villages and housing developments and is used as a shortcut to…
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Battle at Donetsk airport; Ukraine leader says no talks with ‘terrorists’
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Battle at Donetsk airport; new Ukraine leader says no talks with ‘terrorists’ Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Ukraine launched air strikes and a paratrooper assault against pro-Russian rebels who seized an airport on Monday, as its newly elected leader rejected any talks with “terrorists” and said…
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Sisi set to take presidency as Egyptians back stability
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Sisi closes on presidency on final day of Egypt vote Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Former army chief Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is expected to emerge from a second and final day of voting on Tuesday as Egypt’s next president, with supporters seeing him as the man…
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Experts divided on Jewish Museum killer: was he lone wolf or hitman?
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Experts divided on Jewish Museum killer: was he lone wolf or hitman? Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A gunman who killed three people at Brussels’ Jewish Museum was “cold-blooded and very determined”, Belgian officials said on Monday, leading some security experts to suggest he may have…
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Lawbreakers face tough action, Prayuth warns
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Lawbreakers face tough action, Prayuth warns The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: General Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday threatened tougher action against law violators, particularly opponents of the military’s power seizure, in a move that is in line with the junta’s priority of maintaining law and order. Prayuth,…
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Pattani bombs hit families hardest
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Pattani bombs hit families hardest The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Among the many victims of simultaneous bomb attacks in Pattani last Saturday were the Sideh family. They lost a son, Isfan, and their bread-winning father was hurt too badly to continue working as a taxi…
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