bangkokpost.com A Bangkok court sentenced Wisuk Setsawat, of Santika pub, and Boonchu Laosenat, of Focus Light Sound System, to three years' jail for negligence over the fire at the Santika pub early on New Year's Day, 2009. Sixty-six people were killed and many others injured.

thailand-business-news.com The court gave Mr Wisuth and Mr Boonchoo the highest penalty possible under Thailand's Criminal Code, Article 290. Focus Light System was fined 20,000 baht. The defendants were ordered to pay 87 million baht in compensation as requested by the plaintiffs.

vancouversun.com A Canadian who has been fighting extradition for 15 years was quietly sent back to Thailand this month to face charges he killed and dismembered his Thai girlfriend in 1996. While Michael Karas, 55, was flown out with no public acknowledgment in Canada, the suspect's arrival in Pattaya on September 9 was a major media event.


PHUKET: A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

thestar.com.my The Muslim community in Sungai Golok was warned to take precautions 48 hours before the multiple blasts that killed four Malaysians and a Thai national and injured 50 on Friday. ''The government is clueless about what is happening here and has no idea how to quell the escalating vilolence,'' said a Narathiwat MP.

cnngo.com As flooding continues to wreak havoc in Thailand, tourists are being warned to stay away from the country's worst-hit areas and avoid activities like white-water rafting and visits to waterfalls.

todayonline.com Heavy rains since July 25 have caused flooding in 55 of Thailand's 77 provinces, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said. The death toll from floods has risen to 112.

nationmultimedia.com More rain is forecast, as a monsoon trough is expected across Thailand's Central and lower northeastern regions from Tuesday through Friday. Deputy Bangkok Governor Pornthep Techapaiboon said the Chao Phraya River was almost at the overflow point.

smh.com.au Copy that: Former Billabong chief executive Matthew Perrin repeatedly forged the signatures of his wife and his brother to secure a $13.5 million loan from an Australian bank, a court has found.

upi.com Malaysia is looking to the US, Australia and Britain for models of security laws after repeal of the Internal Security Act. From now on, extension of detention can be done only through a court order, except in the law concerning terrorism where the power remained with the minister.

Associated Press Bold farmers in Indonesia ignore orders to evacuate the slopes of live volcanoes, but those living on Tambora took no chances when history's deadliest mountain rumbled ominously this month. The April 1815 eruption of Tambora left a crater 11 kilometers wide and one kilometre deep, spewing an estimated 400 million tons of sulfuric gases into the atmosphere and leading to "the year without summer" in the US and Europe.

marketwatch.com Singapore Airlines has announced the launch of the world's largest aircraft, the Airbus A380, on the New York - Frankfurt - Singapore route, operating from January 16 next year.

blackjackchamp.com A Finnish tourist on a long vacation in Pattaya committed suicide by jumping from the fourth floor of his serviced apartments unit. The only lesson to be learned from this senseless death is to never gamble under the influence of drugs, while drunk, or in shady illegal casinos in third world countries.

smh.com.au Travellers who push the boundaries face risks. On any given day as many as 1600 Australians might be in difficulty overseas; in the past 10 years there had been six cases of Australians kidnapped for criminal, financial or political motives.

telegraph.co.uk Michelle Jana Chan compares Malaysia Airlines, the country's national carrier, with Air Asia X, its no-frills rival: Malaysia Airlines offers a generally better experience. If you are booking several months ahead or very late, however, AirAsia X can come up trumps on price.

thegloss.com Want bigger boobs but scared of getting surgery? How about a prettier face and a rounder butt? All you need to do is travel to Bangkok, where Khunying-Tobnom Na Songkhla will slap the ugly right out of you. She offers face and buttock slapping treatments as well and for a tidy sum, she might just teach you how to do it on other people.

Associated Press Celebrities are gabbing about it openly. A growing number of grooming products cater to it. And a recent TV commercial hails it as ''the cradle of life'' and ''the centre of civilisation.'' The vagina is becoming big business on American TV.

bbc.co.uk Leading UK polar scientists say the Times Atlas of the World was wrong to assert that it has had to re-draw its map of Greenland due to climate change. Scientists from the Scott Polar Research Institute say the ice has not shrunk so much.



guardian.co.uk Andy Murray has warned that the biggest names in tennis could go on strike to push through changes to the sport's exhausting calendar. Murray will take part in talks at the Shanghai Masters next month, when the players will discuss what can be done to reduce the amount of tournaments they are expected to play.

bangkokpost.com Defending champions Thailand lost to Japan in straight sets for their second consecutive defeat at the 16th Asian Women's Volleyball Championship in Taiwan. In a round-robin competition in Group F, world No. 10 Thailand were defeated by fourth-ranked Japan 23-25, 21-25, 19-25.



September 21-24 Quiksilver Thailand Surf Competition 2011, Patong

September 27-October 5 Vegetarian Festival, Phuket

November 1-6 Women's Beach Volleyball Series at Karon on Phuket

November 26-27 9th Phuket International Soccer 7s

November 27 Laguna Phuket Triathlon

December 3-4 6th Andaman International Soccer 7s

December 4 Ironman 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship, Laguna



March 18-28 National Youth Games, Phuket

March 29-April 1 Phuket International Boat Show, Royal Phuket Marina



November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket