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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020326

Indorama plant in Nakhon Pathom partially closed after chemical leak

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

Indorama Polyester Industries Plc was ordered by the authorities to partially suspend operations at its plant in Nakhon Pathom province following a chemical leak on Thursday morning.

The Nakhon Pathom Industry Office ordered Indorama to suspend operations in the area where the chemical leak had occurred until the problem was fixed and it was certified by an engineer.

The office cited Section 39 of the Factories Act to order partial suspension of the operation.

The Indorama factory in question is located in Moo 4 village in Tambon Khun Kaew in Nakhon Chai Si district of the province.

The authorities said the chemical leak occurred at 6am and workers managed to close a valve to stop the leak at 6.15am.

The smell of the leaked chemical spread in the vicinity.

Nakhon Pathom provincial Governor Surasak Charoensirichote and Nakhon Pathom chief industry officer Samruay Khemthonglang led officials from government agencies concerned to inspect the factory at 10am.

The officials found that the leakage had occurred inside the second plant that refined plastic.

They found that about 30 litres of a chemical used for a cooling system called hot oil dowtherm DT1. The chemical is made of biphenyl and diphenyl oxide.

Officials said as the chemical is light, it spreads easily across a wide area. Inhaling it can cause inflammation in the respiratory system hence people living in nearby areas were advised to wear masks and to stay in the areas with good ventilation.

Indorama Polyester Industries manufactures polyester chips, polyester staple fibres, polyester pre-oriented yarns, polyester filament yarns and fully-drawn yarns The company makes about 127,000 tonnes of polyester products a year.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020315

Senator confident arrested Myanmar business partner not involved in drugs

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

A Thai senator on Thursday gave the benefit of the doubt to his Myanmar business partner Tun Min Latt, who was among suspects arrested in Bangkok for alleged drug trafficking.

Senator Uppakit Pachareeyangkun made the comments after more than 100 police from the Metropolitan Police Bureau’s Division 2 raided five spots to arrest drug suspects, including Tun, on September 17.

Uppakit said he needed to study the details of the case after which he would hold a press conference on Friday.

He admitted that he had business dealings along the border with Tun but he believed the Myanmar man was not involved in drug trafficking.

Uppakit added that he was involved in a hotel business with Tun and he used to report this business to the National Anti-Corruption Commission, but he has stopped doing the hotel business since 2015.

The senator said Tun was an agent of a weapons trader from Israel, and represented the firm to deal with the Myanmar government. Uppakit said he was not involved in the weapons business because it went against his religious belief.

“Since my parents passed away, I have entered Buddhism to make merit and I have stopped taking the lives of animals, so I’m not interested in this kind of business,” Uppakit said.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020313

Schools closed as chemical leak at Nakhon Pathom factory pollutes air

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

Some schools in Nakhon Pathom suspended classes for a day on Thursday after chemical leaked from a factory in Nakhon Chai Si district.

The Phraram 199 emergency radio centre reported at 9am that the leak occurred at a facility in Tambon Khun Kaew, and an offensive smell spread across a wide area, including to adjacent Thawi Watthana district.

District firefighters and rescuers rushed to the factory to help get workers to safety and plug the leak.

According to the Thawi Wattana district office, the factory was Indorama Polyester Industries on Phetkasem Road in Tambon Khun Kaew.

The office said the factory managed to shut the valve to stop the leak, but the chemical that had already seeped out had caused a stench across many areas, as well as those adjacent to Bangkok.

Officials said the chemical was sulphur dioxide and the seepage occurred from a leaked oil coil of a machine.

The leakage prompted Mahidol University, located in Tambon Salaya of Nakhon Pathom’s Buddha Monthon district, to warn its students to stay inside buildings and wear face masks all the time to prevent possible respiratory issues.

The university advised its students and personnel to meet doctors immediately if they developed any breathing difficulty.

Mahidol Demonstration International School, Phra Tamnak Suan Kularb School and Kanchanapisek College announced they had suspended classes on Thursday for the safety of students and teachers.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020310

Allowing venues to open till 4am will eliminate ‘under the table’ deals: Chadchart

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt believes that extending the opening hours of entertainment venues to 4am will eliminate any “under the table” deals and put everything under the eye of the law.

Chadchart was answering press queries after speaking at a seminar titled “Bangkok’s Vision in Tourism and the Hospitality Industry”, hosted by the Thai Hotels Association on Wednesday.

“Extending the hours will put everything that is under the table on the topside [of the table]. Operators can no longer bribe officials to look the other way while they exceed the closing hours,” Chadchart said.

He pointed out that these “under the table” deals could be a safety loophole as officials would skip inspecting these venues for safety and legal compliance.

“Once these deals are gone, officials can fully inspect these venues,” he said. “I personally do not oppose the move, as long as it does not affect surrounding communities or businesses.”

The move to extend the opening hours of entertainment venues to 4am was proposed in August by Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, who eyes Bangkok’s Khao San Road as a pilot area to test out the measure.

The move is aimed at boosting tourism and helping entrepreneurs get back on their feet amid an economic downturn.

The 4am closing will be allowed only on weekends – Friday, Saturday, Sunday – in selected zones in eight tourist destinations, namely Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi, Phang-nga, Pattaya, Hua Hin, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai.

The ministry is working with authorities to draft regulations to control any noise so these businesses don’t become a nuisance to surrounding communities, said Phiphat.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020307

Govt helped almost 100,000 settle legal disputes over debt in 8 months

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

The Justice Ministry has helped nearly 100,000 people settle legal disputes regarding debt repayments in eight months of 2022, saving them legal expenses of nearly 7 billion baht.

Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin said on Wednesday that the ministry had organised 78 debt settlement fairs so far this year in several provinces, in line with government policy that 2022 would be a year for fixing household debt problems.

During the fairs, creditors and debtors were invited to settle disputes in front of ministry mediators, who helped them reach terms acceptable to both parties.

In the eight months of 2022, precisely 92,531 people successfully settled their debts amounting to 22.28 billion baht.

“The ministry’s efforts have saved people from paying legal expenses of 6.95 billion baht had the cases been taken to court,” said Somsak.

So far this year the ministry had also disbursed 382 million baht to 7,540 crime victims under the Damages for Injured Persons and Compensation and Expenses for the Accused in Criminal Cases Act, and disbursed 310 million baht under the Justice Fund Act to pay for legal consultation for 2,458 people who could not afford such fees during trial, he said.

The ministry is also pushing for an amendment of a law to prevent recidivism, especially for serious or sexual offences, the minister said.

One of the planned measures is to use electronic monitoring bracelets for up to 10 years.

“This is also a year in which the ministry has taken concrete action against drug sellers, with total assets seized from suspects exceeding 10 billion baht so far, much higher than the average of 600 million baht annually in past years,” Somsak added.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020304

Police Nab Man Who Allegedly Snatched Millions From Pickup

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

Chonburi Police On Wednesday Caught A Wily Bag Snatcher Who Allegedly Took Off With Almost 3.5 Million Baht Belonging To A Siam Commercial Bank Customer In Ban Bueng District.

The robbery took place on Tuesday when Praphaporn Boonmeesanom, 29, had just left the bank with a bag containing 3.46 million baht in cash that she had withdrawn to pay her employees.

As she was getting into her pickup truck, a man wearing a green jacket of a delivery service appeared out of nowhere, yanked open the vehicle’s door and attacked her driver, Kritchaphat Surakul, 24, while yelling in anger that Kritchaphat was sleeping with his wife and that he has a gun.

An obviously terrified Kritchaphat managed to escape the attacker’s clutches and darted into a nearby soi. The assailant looked like he was about to give chase but changed his mind and went back to the vehicle.

Praphaporn frantically tried to explain that he had the wrong person.

The man then grabbed her bag of cash and scooted away on a grey motorcycle with no licence plate.

Using CCTV footage and a video clip taken by a witness, police found the bike abandoned in a sugarcane field about 100 metres from the road.

The trail eventually led to a man named Jatuphol and his sister Praphaporn (last name withheld), who were promptly nabbed at their home on Wednesday with the allegedly stolen cash. The siblings reportedly confessed to the crime.

Police suspect the attack on the pickup driver was a ploy to get him to run away so the thief could grab the bag with ease.

Officials are interrogating the siblings and will have them re-enact their alleged crime on Thursday.

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40020303

EC Sets May 7 As General Election Day: News Source

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

THE NATION

The Election Commission (EC) Has Set May 7, 2023, As The General Election Date, With Candidates Required To File Their Applications From April 3 To 7, A News Source Said On Wednesday.

The source said the commission based its schedule on Section 102 of the Constitution, which stipulates that an election must be held within 45 days after the House of Representatives’ four-year term ends [which is on March 23].

According to the source, the timeline for the next general election is:

March 31 – EC announces the election date and the candidate application period.

April 3-7 – Application registration for MP candidates.

April 11 – The last day the EC announces the polling stations and list of eligible voters.

April 14 – The EC announces the list of MP candidates.

April 16 – The last day the EC sends voting notifications to each residence and appoints polling station officials.

April 26 – The last day the EC announces a change of polling stations, and also the last day that residents can add/remove their names from households.

April 30 – Early voting.

May 1-6 – The period when people can notify the EC why they cannot cast their vote on election day.

May 7 – General election.

May 8-14 – The period when people can notify the EC why they did not cast their vote.

Last week the commission barred politicians and political parties from giving any “handouts” after September 23 as they may be violating the electoral law.

In a statement, the EC said the election campaign period goes into effect on September 24 – that is 180 days before the House of Representatives’ four-year term ends on March 23.

Election candidates would be violating the organic electoral law if they distribute items to potential voters after Friday, as doing so would be construed as buying votes.

THE NATION