THEPHUKETNEWS.COM
FRIDAY, APRIL 12, 2019
thephuketnews thephuketnews1 thephuketnews.com Friday, April 12 – Thursday, April 18, 2019
Since 2011 / Volume IX / No. 15
SONGKRAN SEVEN DAYS OF DANGER BEGINS > PAGE 4
SPLASH DOWN
20 Baht
NEWS
PAGE 3
Phuket Zoo faces allegations of elephant abuse
LIFE
People celebrating Songkran are being urged to conserve water. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub
PAGE 11
How to become the calm in a Songkran storm
SONGKRAN FESTIVITIES FACE WATER RESTRICTIONS AS ISLAND RESERVOIRS HIT RECORD LOWS Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th
O
fficial Songkran Thai New Year celebrations at three of the island’s main areas for festivities this weekend will have little or no water provided by local councils in their bids to conserve water as the long dry spell this year continues and the island’s three main reservoirs hit record lows. Patong Municipality will be providing water only at Bangla Rd, while in Phuket Town no water will be provided for the huge water fights held at Saphan Hin. Revellers will have to bring their own water, Phuket
Town Mayor Somjai Suwansupana said plainly this week. Rawai Municipality, which also includes the Nai Harn area, has yet to figure out if they have enough water to provide for water play, Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos told The Phuket News. “If we do, it will be limited,” Mayor Aroon said. Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup explained, “We know that there is not much water right now, but everyone wants to enjoy water splashing together this one time of the year. I can’t ban them from water playing, but we will provide free water at Bangla Rd only.” She also urged people to be wary
of how much water they use during the festivities. “Please save water. Use small water pistols and please do not use kan containers for splashing people, that wastes too much water,” she said. Mayor Chalermluck said that she had faith that people will try to use water more sparingly than in previous years. “The water pressure has been reduced so much there is a lot less water supplied to the Patong area that people in Patong know well what they have to do. They will use their common sense and converse water, and if they want to play outside the Bangla water-play zone, they must provide
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
@thephuketnews
the water themselves,” she said. In Phuket Town, lack of rain has seen water supply reserves fall to 20% capacity, noted Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupana. “This year we will not be providing water outside of Saphan Hin, like we have done in years past,” she said. Even at Saphan Hin, the traditional focal point for water play for a huge number of Phuket Town residents, the municipality will have just one water truck available on Saturday (Apr 13), and that one water truck will deliver only two loads of water for people to play with, Mayor Somjai explained. “We limited the space for water playing at Sapan Hin, and the water...
SPORT
PAGE 29
Phuket youths dominate at Southern comp