Phuket tour boats overturn in storm, rescue mission launched

 

all available ambulances stand ready at Chalong Pier. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

 

PHUKET:-- Rescue operations are underway to recover more than 120 tourists, including many children, in danger after the tour boats they were on overturned in separate incidents in rough seas in the storm that hit Phuket late this afternoon (July 5).

 

Chalong Police reported that the dive tour boat "Phoenix Diving" overturned near Koh Hei, south of Phuket, at about 5:45pm with a reported 97 people on board.

Another tour boat, named by police in Thai as "Zanetta", with a reported 39 people on board overturned near Koh Mai Thon, southeast from Phuket.

 

Full Story: https://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-tour-boats-overturn-in-storm-rescue-mission-launched-67762.php#emWdgiVhUWDUd5ae.97

 

-- © Copyright Phuket News 2018-7-5

 

 

Not surprised boats got in trouble in that wind. I am surprised they were out there and hadn't made all haste back to shore before the weather hit. 

It was forecast and even I knew it was coming.

 

Hope all are ok.

51 minutes ago, Old Croc said:

Not surprised boats got in trouble in that wind. I am surprised they were out there and hadn't made all haste back to shore before the weather hit. 

It was forecast and even I knew it was coming.

 

Hope all are ok.

I see Phoenix often at Racha noi, seems she was out later than usual. Maybe she was waiting it out, but after some time decided to return to chalong.

Rethinking, looks like Phoenix returned same time as usual.

 

The name of the other boat doesn't ring a bell.

I haven't dived for a while around Phuket but the biggest boat I have ever boarded had about 40 divers max, it seems incredible to host 97 people on a diving boat.

How can a boat this size can capsize in those waters? It's not the roaring forties...

Is it like an old big fishing boat refurbished and with many decks added that would drastically worsen its stability?

Search mounted for 49 people missing in sea off Phuket

 

 

Forty-nine people are still missing while 89 others were plucked from the rough sea off Phuket this afternoon after one dive boat and a yacht capsized.

 

Phuket governor Norapat Plodthong said at about 9 pm search teams were still looking for the remaining 49 people from the two ill-fated vessels.

 

It was reported that the dive boat with about 90 divers and their dive masters capsized off Koh Hey (Hey island) whereas a yacht with 39 passengers and crews went down in the stormy sea off Mai Thon island.

 

Rescue boats were rushed to their rescue off the two islands and managed to pluck from the sea altogether 89 people from the two vessels.  Of the 89 people, nine of them were injured and one in serious condition.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/search-mounted-49-people-missing-sea-off-phuket/

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2018-07-05

Hopefully this version is the correct one.

Sorry to be a bit cynical, but these boat operators knew exactly what the weather conditions were like, and the forecast, but as always money is the driving factor. Not safety.

Two Phuket tour boats sink in storm

By The Nation

 

Photo from: Phuket Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation

 

Two tour boats sank off Phuket on Thursday evening, forcing about 130 tourists into the sea until fishermen and marine police came to their rescue.
 

There are currently no reports of casualties but a relief operation centre has been set up at Chalong Bay for the victims. 

 

Photo from: Phuket Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation

 

Both accidents took place amid a rainstorm and rough seas. 

 

Photo from: Phuket Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation

 

There was also a report that two Russians went missing while riding a jet ski off Phuket’s Koh Racha during the storm. The authorities are now trying to locate them.

 

Photo from: Phuket Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30349418

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-07-06

The sea in the pictures doesn't look that rough to me. Maybe these photos were taken after 'the storm'.

 

I have to question how sea worthy these vessels are.

Forty nine missing after boat capsizes off Thailand's Phuket island

 

Image: Phuketotnews, people  given treatment after being rescued from capsized boat

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Forty nine people are missing after a boat carrying 97 people, including Chinese tourists and Thai crew, capsized in rough seas off Thailand's tourist island of Phuket, the Thai navy said on Thursday.

 

Thailand is in the middle of its monsoon season which brings with it adverse weather conditions.

 

"Right now we are still looking for 49 people. We have helped 48 people from the capsized boat. We have sent boats to help," Rear Admiral Somnuk Prempramote, commander of the Royal Thai Navy Region 3.

 

"They were all wearing life jackets," he added.

 

The boat was one of three to encounter difficulties at sea in the area on Thursday, the navy said. Another two boats, including a yacht carrying 39 people, also capsized but its passengers have been brought to safety.

 

Thailand is already making international headlines after 12 boys and their junior soccer coach were found alive this week after becoming trapped inside a cave in the country's north.

 

Rescuers found the boys after 10 days and a multinational rescue operation to extract the boys is still ongoing.

Road and boat accidents involving tourists are common in Thailand, where safety standards are sometimes well below international norms.

 

However, accidents barely make a dent on Thailand's tourism industry, one of the few bright spots in an otherwise lackluster economy.

 

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre; Editing by Gareth Jones)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-07-06

 

 

Carnage off the coast of Phuket

By Kritsada Mueanhawong

 

 

Two tour boats sank off Phuket late this afternoon, forcing about 130 tourists into the sea until fishermen and marine police came to their rescue.

 

There are currently no reports of casualties but a relief operation centre has been set up at Chalong Bay for the victims. A local fishing boat retrieved passengers from a liferaft following one of the many problems for tour boats off the coast of Phuket late this afternoon.

 

The first incident reported was a Russian couple on a jet-ski who disappeared at Koh Racha. They have been saved and were heading back to shore.

 

Full story:  https://thethaiger.com/news/phuket/carnage-off-the-coast-of-phuket

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2018-07-06

Shocking news

 

But 97 souls on one diving boat. Seems a bit overloaded ... mai

97 people on a dive boat? Not my idea of fun.  Good luck to the search teams.

97 divers on a boat sounds improbable. I scuba dive a lot and for this many people PLUS all the gear, you are talking a very large vessel. More likely a group of snorkelers judging from the photos.
Questions will be asked, and "valuable lessons will be learned", e.g. a whitewash will happen. LOS tourism is not for changing.
This could be avoided by having an empowered harbourmaster ( I know I am dreaming ) who has a team responsible for ensuring boats are not overloaded and is able to red flag any passenger boats going out on bad weather days. Like the life guards do on the beach.

3 minutes ago, dcsw53 said:

97 divers on a boat sounds improbable. I scuba dive a lot and for this many people PLUS all the gear, you are talking a very large vessel. More likely a group of snorkelers judging from the photos.
Questions will be asked, and "valuable lessons will be learned", e.g. a whitewash will happen. LOS tourism is not for changing.
This could be avoided by having an empowered harbourmaster ( I know I am dreaming ) who has a team responsible for ensuring boats are not overloaded and is able to red flag any passenger boats going out on bad weather days. Like the life guards do on the beach.

This boat was not overloaded.

 

Most of the people on this boat, exclusively Chinese, are snorkeling, with diving upsoald on the boat. 

 

And yes, all boats leaving there are checked daily for number of people, life jackets and maximum allowance.

LATEST: One dead, 53 people missing after boat capsizes near Phuket

 

 

One man has died and 53 people are still missing after a boat capsized in rough seas near Phuket.

 

The boat, named Phoenix, was carrying 105 passengers - 93 tourists, 12 crew and guides -  when it started to keel over after being hit by large waves as it travelled back from Koh Racha at around 4pm.

 

The body of a man, believed to be Chinese was pulled ashore late on Thursday evening.

 

53 people, who are mostly thought to be Chinese tourists, are still missing, Phuket governor Noraphat Plodthong told Thai news site Daily News.

 

The rescue mission which was suspended late on Thursday was set to resume at first light on Friday.

 

 

Images shared to Facebook showed survivors receiving treatment from medics, while others showed some of the tourists clinging to inflatable rafts.

 

The Phoenix was out at sea despite officials in Phuket issuing a weather warning on Wednesday that storms were set to hit the island.

 

There were also two other boats that capsized in waters off Phuket on Thursday.

 

A boat named Zanetta capsized in the same area with all 39 passengers rescued, officials said.

 

A Russian couple also had to be rescued after their jet ski capsized near Koh Racha.

 

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2018-07-06

 

 

 

 

Sad news for tourists and locals. Will

The authorities in charge learn from it. Not sure. 

4 hours ago, webfact said:

There are currently no reports of casualties

The British Press are reporting 49 dead.

Troll posts removed 

 

2 minutes ago, heybuz said:

pheonix diving says capacity of boat 55.

Not correct, boat is licensed for 100 or 120, don't know exactly how much by heart.

1 minute ago, stevenl said:

Not correct, boat is licensed for 100 or 120, don't know exactly how much by heart.

they better change theiy web page well.

After officials in Thailand already announced plans to promote Tham Luang cave to tourists, I wonder if they have any plans to make sinking, exploding and burning boats a tourist attraction.

What people have to remember in Thailand is that when you see something sold, be it a service or a product, even a boat trip! Don’t automatically think it must be safe or legal just because it’s “There”! In Thailand anything goes and many things are not what they appear !


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

8 minutes ago, heybuz said:

they better change theiy web page well.

Could it be you're looking at the wrong website? Phoenix is the boat, rented out to Chinese companies booking the snorkelers, on board trying to upgrade them to divers.

ok apology if wrong

 

If there has indeed been  53 ( or even  49 ) people bobbing around out there for 16 hours then this is a truly catastrophic event and the losses will be way more serious than previously announced.

Many still missing, one dead. Search resumes this morning off Phuket

By The Thaiger

 

 

Chinese tourists are still missing following a capsize off Phuket late yesterday afternoon (Thursday). Divers are currently scouring the sunken vessel, the Phoenix, for missing people. The tour boat was one of two reported to have capsized yesterday late afternoon.

 

Phuket’s Governor Plodthong is keeping the media up to date with regular briefings. A sudden wind equal hit the Andaman coast around 4.30 pm yesterday surprising many of the hundreds of tour boats returning from day trips to islands off Phuket’s coast.

 

“We will conduct air searches and send divers to check inside the sunken Phoenix boat.”

 

Full story:  https://thethaiger.com/news/phuket/many-still-missing-one-dead-search-resumes-this-morning-off-phuket

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2018-07-06

Why not close ports for tourist boats if have dangerous conditions ? Clearly captains can’t be trusted to postpone or cancel trips when conditions are unsafe. This happens every year. Someone needs to protect the tourists and their families. 

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$  before safety; Thainess