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

Latest Japan media report 1300 dead, 300,000 needing emergency shelter. About 10,000 people are reportedly unaccounted for in the Japanese port town of Minamisanriku, says broadcaster NHK.

NUCLEAR meltdown warnings follow earthquake and tsunami devastation in Japan. Four trains reported missing. Towns washed away. Ten-kilometre evacuation zone declared around Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant, later expanded to 20 kilometeres.

cnn.com Crews at a nuclear plant struck by an earthquake, then a tsunami and then an explosion in the span of 36 hours resorted to flooding a feverish nuclear reactor with sea water in hopes of preventing a meltdown of its core.

bloomberg Fuel rods at the reactor may be melting after radioactive cesium material left by atomic fission was detected near the site, Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency spokesman Yuji Kakizaki said.

Earlier reports:

telegraph.co.uk Japan is battling to avoid a nuclear disaster after an explosion at a power plant in the aftermath of the country's biggest earthquake and a devastating tsunami.

bloomberg.com A nuclear reactor in the Fukushima Dai-Ichi power station about 220 kilometers north of Tokyo may be starting to melt down after Japan's biggest earthquake on record hit the area.

heraldsun.com.au Four people have been injured in an explosion that occurred at the No. 1 reactor of the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, the operator Tokyo Electric Power Co said.

scmp.com A ferocious tsunami spawned by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded slammed Japan's eastern coast, killing hundreds of people as it swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control. [Toll at 378 dead early Saturday, with hundreds missing. Devastation widespread, as in Greater Phuket 2004.]

compareaway.co.uk The Japanese earthquake has already sent panic among the travel industry. In March and April there is a school break in Japan and many families choose to travel to Thailand [And especially Phuket]. Obviously the people effected will not be travelling and even those further afield from where the earthquake hit will find it difficult to plan a trip, with transport networks damaged and the financial cost of the disaster effecting many people.

theaustralian.com.auThousands within a three-kilometre radius of the Fukushima nuclear plant in the north-east were urged to evacuate. However, authorities on Saturday said the plant was "under control" after water was pumped into the reactor's cooling system.

nationmultimedia.com In the wake of a massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan, many Thais have lost contact with their relatives there, partly because of communication system failures. There are now about 42,200 Thais in Japan, 19,700 of whom are workers.

wsj.com Friday's quake occurred where the Pacific plate, moving at a speed of about three inches a year, slides under the Eurasian plate. The last big quake there occurred in 1933, causing 3000 deaths. Since then, the plates have been trying to move past each other, but have been jammed in place.

scpr.org In Southern California, the tsunami waves have remained at one to three feet. Still, Kate Long of the California Emergency Management Agency says such waves can pack a powerful punch.

abcnews.go.com A man who went to the California coast to photograph the tsunami wave spawned by the Japanese earthquake was washed out to sea and the Coast Guard has mounted a search for him.

guardian.co.uk From floods to volcanoes, man is in constant battle with nature. Japan shows us the tsunami may be beyond our control.

Phuket Update Phuket Drug Dealer Nabbed, Say Police: Phuket City police arrested Kwanta Khoputtanupap, 36, near the old bus station about 9pm on Thursday. Officers say they found her in possession of 1830 yah ba (methamphetamine) tablets. Another 600 tablets had been left near a phone booth for dealers to pick up, police say.

Associated Press Thailand's prime minister says he will dissolve parliament in May, a move that would pave the way for new elections and defuse growing political tensions ahead of a major anti-government rally this weekend. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's announcement is the firmest timeframe he has set so far for elections.

todayonline.com It is likely that Thailand will hold a general election in June, amid growing political uncertainties. Mr Abhisit has remained upbeat and is confident that his Democrat Party will win the next election.

bloomberg.com Parties aligned with Thaksin Shinawatra have won the past four national elections.

nationmultimedia.com The Indonesian government has decided to donate 12 confiscated orang-utans in Thailand to a commercial zoo on the outskirts of Bangkok. Eleven of the orang-utans at a tiger and crocodile zoo on Phuket were not found on the day of the raid that took place in January 2009. But a month later they were found on the side of a rural road and were taken into custody of the authorities "as they had no owner".

telegraph.co.uk Lighting joss sticks in temples and shrines as an offering releases cancer-causing toxins just as deadly as cigarette smoke and traffic fumes. A study into the effects and the levels of toxins that fill the air has resulted in Thailand's public health ministry releasing a new set of guidelines to cut the risks to worshippers and temple workers.

travelmole.com The UK, New Zealand and US are reportedly applying diplomatic pressure on Thailand to investigate the deaths of tourists in the northern resort of Chiang Mai following revelation of a fifth fatality within six weeks.

Phuket Update Minister of Public Health Jurin Laksanawisit toured new and proposed hospital facilities on Phuket and reaffirmed that Phuket was growing into an urban island so fast that setting up facilities north, south, east and west had become a priority. Among several new 24-hour outlets, Vachira Hospital Phuket plans a ''branch'' in Karon.

afp More than 20 years after the Berlin Wall fell, Germany is pulling in tourists as never before, setting itself up as a serious rival to more established European destinations like France and Italy. The German tourism industry was in bullish mood at the world's biggest trade fair, the ITB, as holidaymakers flock in ever-greater numbers to see historic Berlin, Bavarian castles and Baltic coast beaches.

slate.com Posting a comment is a public act. You're responding to an author who made his identity known, and your purpose, in posting the comment, is to inform the world of your point of view. If you want to do something so public, you are naturally ceding some measure of your privacy. If you're not happy with that trade, don't take part - keep your views to yourself.

property-report.com Aviation enthusiasts will soon be able to truly ''fly home'' at the new Phuket Airpark, currently under development on a 50 acre lot in the less traveled rice fields of the Paklok area. The development will be comprised of ''Thai-hat'' style villas, condominium buildings, a large rental hanger, mini-shopping mall, and 800-metre grass airstrip, which is currently being expanded from its 500-metre length.

bbc.co.uk People stuck for a stamp in Denmark will soon be able to send a text message to pay the postage on a letter.



The HEROINES FESTIVAL offers stage presentations from Sunday to Tuesday with Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha in a starring role. The spectacular show recreating Thalang's history, including the legend of the Phuket sisters who fought off the Burmese, is held from 7pm at the Thalang Victory Memorial Field, on Dom Tom Chao Road, in Thepkasattri subdistrict. The cast numbers about 1000 people.

LIVERPOOL Legends, a team made up of ex Liverpool Football Club players, are set to play two friendly games against the Legends of Thailand. The first match is scheduled for June 15 at Bangkok's Yamaha stadium followed by a second game at Surakul Stadium on Phuket on June 18.

Until March 19 Heroine's Monument Festival
March 14-19 ADFEST 2011 at Movenpick Resort, Phuket
March 26 St Patrick's Day Ball, Movenpick Resort and Spa, Karon. Details 081 3979809 or 086 9469232
March 27 Earth Hour commemoration on Phuket
April 13-15 Songkran Festival
May New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City
June 12 Laguna Phuket International Marathon
June 23-26 Phuket Fun Fly paragliding, Nai Harn

March 18-28 National Youth Games, Phuket

Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket