PHUKET: Immigration Police say they know who was behind the mass escape of 18 Rohingya from the Phang Nga shelter on July 21 and are closing in to arrest them.
PHUKET: A Russian man’s car erupted in flames early this morning after he accidentally veered off a road and hit a concrete water tank in the hills near Phuket’s famed Big Buddha, in Chalong. Maxim Kasutin, 27, was on his way to a friend’s house at about 1:30am when he missed a curve in the darkness, explained Capt Patiwat Yodkwan of the Chalong Police. “Fortunately, Mr Kasutin was able to get out of the car while it was on fire,” he said.
PHUKET: Kathu District Chief Veera Kerdsirimongkol has requested Patong Municipality to clear all vendors – including sun bed operators – from a large section of Patong Beach. The affected area will stretch more than 500 meters from Loma Park to the area opposite the Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa (map
PHUKET: A police officer on his way to work early yesterday morning lost control of his pickup truck on the bypass road and crashed into a tree. Though the impact demolished the front end of his pickup, he narrowly missed a nearby light pole and escaped injury. Police and Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers responding to a 5:30am call found a pickup straddling the center divider in front of the Premium Outlet shopping complex.
PHUKET: A boat captain was charged with reckless driving resulting in death after the pickup he was driving on Chao Fa East road Saturday night struck a man on a motorbike, killing him. A-thit Hannongbua, 35, was travelling toward Phuket Town on Chao Fa East Road when 55-year-old Kittichai Prapanan pulled out from Soi Thanuthep on his motorbike, a witness told police.
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette would like to inform our readers and advertisers that our office in Koh Kaew is closed today in observance of Asarnha Bucha Day (story
PHUKET: A 19-year-old man charged for assisting in the attack on Vorasit “Pla wan” Issara last year (story
PHUKET: Underpasses are the new mega-project craze on Phuket as officials scramble to find long-term solutions to the island’s mounting traffic congestion. Work is already well underway for Phuket’s first underpass at the Darasamuth Intersection in front of the Central Festival Phuket shopping mall, which was started on November 23 last year (story
PHUKET: In what seems to be the last shuffle of dates for the launch of the long-awaited Phuket Airport Express bus service, wheels are now to be rolling by July 19, operator Prakob Panyawai confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. “The airport buses will be ready to run on July 19. We thought we could start on July 15, but we had to delay it for a few days,” Mr Prakob, the owner of the bus operating company, said.
PHUKET: After hosting the world’s largest underwater cleanup last year, local marine conservation group Go Eco Phuket and the Thai Government are joining forces again this year to break last year’s record by garnering support from over 1,000 participants for the reef and beach cleanup in honor of HM Queen Sirikit’s 81st birthday on August 12. The day after Her Majesty’s birthday on August 13, Phuket’s dive community, supported by the Royal Thai Navy, Marine Police, Marine and Coastal Resources Conservation Department and local government bodies are joining together in a mass effort to raise the world’s awareness of the importance of marine and coastal eco-systems