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A demonstration is now in progress at Karon Beach of a parasail boat where the rider is winched up and down from a platform on the boat. There is no 'monkey' hanging on to the lines by his fingernails. This has cost advantages as there is no need for the 'monkey' nor for so many aggressive, whistle-blowing ground crew touts on the beach. Of course, the operators will not accept this as the parachute flies much lower, the customers will lose the thrill of sweeping over the heads of beachgoers while the speed boat ploughs dangerously through the swimmers to make a beach landing. Touts will not have direct access to customers, customer turnover will be slower as riders will have to be ferried out to the speedboat when (as most of the year) waves are breaking on the shore. Let's see if government can 'sell' this safer system to the operators who have long been accustomed to being left to get on with their business without much care about safety.

The last serious injury of a parasail rider in Karon Beach was ireported in February 2024. As with the current accident, the ambulance took two hours to arrive. The parasail operator was the same as involved in the current incident. He's either unlucky, or careless! Phuket – A female Chinese tourist has broken her leg after a parasailing accident at Karon Beach. The news went viral on Thai social media this week after the Facebook Page ‘Luijeen’ posted her story which is originally from the Chinese media., as seen below. https://www.douyin.com/video/7340246270566567203 The tourist said that on February 24th she was parasailing at Karon Beach but was unable to control the parasail causing it to hit the ground. Her leg broke in the incident. The parasail operator then called emergency services. The tourist said that she waited for two hours for an ambulance to arrive at the beach because of a traffic jam. After she arrived at a hospital, she waited for another six hours until she was transferred to a private hospital because the first hospital did not have enough equipment. She had her leg stitched for an injury approximately 15 centimeters long. By Goongnang Suksawat Full story: THE PHUKET EXPRESS 2024-02-29

The parasail rides take off and land on the (crowded) beach. The jockey is required to pull the lines that steer the parachute over the beach to land while the speed boat remains outside the wave zone. Operating from the beach enables the touts to have direct contact with potential customers, keeps the chute out of the water and enables very quick changeover of riders, maximisesing revenue. However, the speedboat sweeps along the shore line, dangerously close to swimmers and causes noise and exhaust fumes. The boats have exposed propellers and usually only one crewman who is unabl to watch both the parachute behind and the swimmers in front, so the risks to swimmers is very severe.

The same operator on Karon Beach

Did anyone manage to book a visit? The Amerigo Vespucci website has a label under the tour schehule saying "Sold Out". A pity that Phuket News only published this opportunity after it had already begun!

Parachute Boat.mp4 Karon Beach, January 2024. A parasail boat speeds through the swimming zone close to the beach. No segregation of speedboats and swimmers. Only one boat driver has to look above and behind at the parachute, and below and in front for the swimmers. An accident waiting to happen.

Phuket light-rail bids set for mid-2020 PHUKET: Bidding for construction of the light-rail system in Phuket is likely to take place in the middle of next year, according to the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA). transporttourismconstruction By The Phuket News Monday 2 December 2019, 09:37AM image: https://www.thephuketnews.com/photo/listing/2019/1575254277_1-org.jpg Bids to start building Phase 1 of Phuket’s light-rail system are expected to open mid-2020, says MRTA Governor Pakapong Sirikantaramas. Image: OTP

The next marine tragedy waiting to happen: Speed boats pulling parachutes operate dangerously close to swimmers near the shore at Karon Beach. Shouldn't these boats (i) operate at a safe distance from the shore - say 300 metres, (ii) be fitted with propeller guards and (iii) have at least two crew, one to look forward for swimmers and another to watch the parachute? A swimmer snorkelling with his head underwater is at great risk. Parachute Boat2.mp4

The OP claims that the black effluent crossing the beach from 'the pool' was 'unexpected', something new. Google Earth takes an aerial photo every year or so, and this black stream appears in many of them. See for example, this image from February 2014.

The Mayor omitted to mention that 'the pool' that forms as the effluent reaches the back of the beach is fed from two sources: 1. the outflow from Nong Han Lake 2. A drainage sewer that originates in the foothills and runs through Karon, in a conduit down the main street and emerging as an open ditch around Nong Han Lake. At the time of the image, the tide appears to be about half height and the outfall of the lake is filled with water. The route of the open sewer is shown on the image as a red line. The attached aerial view from December 2022 shows the black effluent from 'the pool' spreading along the beach in front of a big hotel. It's a frequent occurrence. In the rainy season the sewer is flushed continuously by rain water and is dissipated by the waves. In the dry season the 'sediment' accumulates in 'the pool' until it is flushed out by a rain shower in a high concentration, is slow to dissipate and more visible and smelly.

Anyone familiar with Bangkok in the 1990's, before the urban railways were built, will recognise the strategy of 'self-limiting congestion' (or 'do nothing') that Phuket is now experiencing. It's the inevitable result of decades of propulation and income growth with no increase in transport capacity. 'Self-limiting' means that congestion was the main restraint on car use. When it might take several hours to drive a few kilometres only essential trips will be made. In Bangkok, the government made no serious attempt to manage the gridlock at ground level and instead embarked on a strategy of building elevated roads and railways above the chaos. For various reasons, building new infrastructure is much more attractive than trying to manage the chaos which would have required intensive traffic management and enforcement. and restraints on car use. Lacking capability and political will to manage traffic, and with severe constraints on building elevated highways, 'self-limiting congestion' in Phuket is now inevitable. The proposed new roads and LRT cannot provide significant relief while demand continues to escalate. As traffic density increases more junctions lock up and the installation of simple fixed-cycle traffic lights without vehicle actuation increases delays in every case . The Governor clearly does not want to acknowledge these uncomfortable truths, and he resorts to token measures such as diverting main road traffic 'to small roads'. The consequences of such a strategy are very negative, spreading danger, noise, pollution and congestion to sois and residential streets and creating more junction conflicts.

It's not only coconuts that can drop on you in Phuket. This part of an Indian rocket made of carbon fibre, washed up this morning on Karon Beach, but, judging by the barnacles, it came most of the way by sea.