As of yesterday day, Sunday, much of the city of Phuket and surrounding areas were underwater, after heavy flooding saw tourists finding it almost impossible to reach, or indeed depart from the airport on the island. With the old quarter of Phuket city seen as flooded throughout, and major routes unpassable, bus passengers were warned to expect 4 hour journeys instead of the normal 1, with some routes being canceled completely.
Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub
Weather forecasts for the region are not encouraging either, heavy storms are overhead this morning and runs off are predicted from most areas on the island, some of which has seen waist high water levels, with others reporting mudslides, power outages and debris blocking roads. The flooded areas include Thep Kasattri, Si Sunthorn, Patong, Kamala, Choeng Thalay and Pa Khlok in Thalang district.
Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub
In Buriram water authorities report that 11 of the 16 major reservoirs are overfull with rainwater. Fears of flooding continue among locals especially on lower ground as more storms for the region too are predicted this week.
Motorists in Thailand CAN legally use their mobile phones under new regulations that are now in force BUT they have to have a hands free connection. Driving and dialing, holding to chat or text are all now illegal here. Oddly, speaker phones are listed as acceptable, which woud allow the use of a phone, if held on a mount attached to the dashboard, and with the speakerphone in use. Get spotted holding your phone and, from now on, you face a fine. Obviously, texting, or taking photographs while driving is also banned.
PAYPAL is losing more and more users in Thailand BY choice as its draconian restrictions now mean that only those with a THAI ID card can currently register or verify accounts. That then leaves expats out in the cold, in a similar way though, the blanket closure of business accounts in the past. Good news though, as most are discovering alternatives, such as wise, formerly transfer wise, which offers less expensive fees for transfers anyway, and links happily to your Thai bank and cards.
An explosion was reported on the Burmese side of the border bridge between Thailand and Myanmar in Mae Sot this weekend. Local media claim two separate explosions were heard with no reports of deaths. Burmese authorities were said to be clearing debris yesterday, in an area where disputes between army and locals continue close to the Thai border.
In the capital, a 20 something year old man was arrested after he and his, probably now ex, wife, met with her new beau to discuss their relationship issues. With the wife less than supportive, and her 30 year old boyfriend unwilling to back off, a fight ensued, the husband wasn’t coming out on top, so he drew a gun and shot the boyfriend 3 times.
After enduring the unimaginable pain of 72 days in ICU following the harrowing pub fire at the Mountain B in sattahip, a 26 year old female Saturday succumbed to her injuries. In addition to 75% burns, the lady, the 25th victim of the still unexplained fire, endured fatal damage to internal organs which finally led to her passing. She had received treatment at Queen sirikit hospital sattahip before transfer to King Chulalongkorn in bangkok. Funeral preparations were yesterday underway in Rayong as 32 others are reportedly still in hospital following the fire which resulted from the poorest of construction and fire safety. This as word hit the newswires that the club owners have bulldozed the remains of the club and cleared all memory of it from the site YET still no court date for the owners, no word on proper insurance coverage to aid those injured and support the families AND in Pattaya STILL no word on the repairs and amendments recommended and in some cases allegedly ORDERED for many nighttime venues here in the city that do not meet fire regs.
When a British expat decided to doze off behind the wheel of his car rather than drive, all, to him at least, seemed well. But when woken by worried police on patrol, he aniced, sped off and slightly injured a local lady giving alms to monks at the roadside and crashing into her parked car. Cops took the brit, named only as Martin, away for alcohol testing.
An Indian hotel keeper in the city reported an assault which left him with a nasty gash to the face. Seems one of his residents lost her room card, unable to access her room she requested a second, only to be told the fee for the plastic was 1000 baht. That ticked her off, we are told, enough to cause the altercation before staff says he fled into the night. Unless there is more to this than we are told, well it should be easy to trace her, as all hotels are required by law to make copies of ID cards. So, we are sure that the hotel will have shared this with the boys in brown.
The city was exceptionally busy over the long weekend. Traffic began to build up on exit roads yesterday and today will also see congestion in the direction of Bangkok. Minor altercation aside, the police sheets show little in the way of problems reported and hotels report high occupancy.
HEADLINE NEWS from Pattaya & Thailand (14 October 2022) from Fabulous 103fm Gun control in Thailand as the government and Police discuss various possibilities. With some referring to it as a knee-jerk reaction to last week's slaughter of over 3 dozen children and adults in the northeast, others are referring to gun control laws introduced decades ago in many countries of the Western world, which see licenses issued ONLY to […]
