Swimmers at Surin Beach left without lifesavers as Council removes funding

By The Thaiger

 

 

The President of the Cherng Talay OrBorTor (municipality), Ma Ann Samran, has not renewed the monthly contract for lifeguards protecting Surin Beach on Phuket’s west coast.

 

As of yesterday, there are now no duty lifeguards keeping swimmers out of the water when the waves become dangerous, or saving them when they get into difficulty.

 

Police arrived late yesterday afternoon at Surin Beach and removed the red ‘no swimming’ flags along the beach. At the same time a Filipino couple were caught in a rip current close to the shore, requiring local surfer Danny Hyams to grab a long board and paddle out, not once but twice, to rescue the couple one by one. The female tourist had been swept out several hundred metres before she was rescued by M. Hyams.

 

Witnesses say the woman was in bad condition when she arrived onshore and was taken to a nearby hospital.

 

Last week lifeguards were busy plucking swimmers out of the island’s west coast beach waters as conditions deteriorated with a strengthening of the annual south west monsoon.

 

Daren Jenner, spokesperson for the International Surf Lifesaving Association, SE Asia, says the removal of lifeguard services on a popular Phuket beach, in the middle of the monsoon is an accident waiting to happen.

 

“ISLA has a high level of concern after the local municipality, who control the budget for lifeguards on the popular west coast Surin Beach, have withdrawn funding for ongoing patrols to protect the beach and swimmers.”

 

“We are right in the middle of the monsoon season. Only last week there were up to 30 people pulled out of the west coast coastal waters because tourists keep entering the water whilst dangerous conditions persist. Without lifeguards staffing these beaches we will have drownings.”

 

On Tuesday last week, Patong Lifeguards reported a total  of 18 people rescued, in just one day at one Phuket beach – Patong beach. They said the situation was very challenging, with limited manpower, equipment and poor weather conditions hampering their efforts.

 

The situation with the funding of lifeguards on Phuket’s beaches has been a hot topic for the past three years as local municipalities put tourists’ lives in danger without providing adequate protection and internationally-recognised services for one of the world’s most popular beach resorts.

 

 

 

Source: https://thethaiger.com/hot-news/weather/swimmers-at-surin-beach-left-without-lifesavers-as-council-removes-funding

 

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2019-09-02

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Recon more drown now they know some kind persons there to rescue Idiots.!. In my day you looked after yer own hide.


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people drowning around the coast of Thailand, and what do the government do,? buy bloody vehicles for the army, and they wonder why tourists stay away from these dangerous polluted shores, there should be central funding for life saving, it seems a few drownings are low on their list. they still havent grasped social media yet, have they. ?

Didn't I read somewhere that tourism in Thailand is upwards of 10% of GDP?

And they can't find the funds for a few lifeguards on one of the most popular beaches?

maybe they just moved the life guards to a more Chinese populated area - as they seem the only tourists worth saving

Welcome to phuket.

At the very least leave the flags!!!! Why were the police removing them???

A couple of months ago this guy was "scrambling to find lifeguards", now he is sacking them.

Managed to spend the allocated funds already?  Think everyone will have forgotten the former Governor's edict to keep the beaches patrolled?

 

Council pockets funding

This makes a lot of sense since most Thais cannot swim and Phuket beaches are not keeping up with international standards. ( What is city council doing with the revenue that tourists bring in $$??)

2 hours ago, Damaz6052 said:

At the very least leave the flags!!!! Why were the police removing them???

Souvenirs?

 

A distinct lack of high order thinking among Thai authority! Starts at the top and flows down I guess.

6 hours ago, edwinchester said:

Didn't I read somewhere that tourism in Thailand is upwards of 10% of GDP?

And they can't find the funds for a few lifeguards on one of the most popular beaches?

Funds may well be made available, however where and in whose hands they end up in is another question altogether.

1 hour ago, toenail said:

This makes a lot of sense since most Thais cannot swim and Phuket beaches are not keeping up with international standards. ( What is city council doing with the revenue that tourists bring in $$??)

I think I may have an answer for you.......................

 

There really is no room left at the asylum is there????  

9 hours ago, Old Croc said:

A couple of months ago this guy was "scrambling to find lifeguards", now he is sacking them.

Managed to spend the allocated funds already?  Think everyone will have forgotten the former Governor's edict to keep the beaches patrolled?

 

Well said Old Croc - the guards were there for all of 3 weeks.

What a total muck around.

 

What a total mess of a  formerly pristine beach...

12 hours ago, mercman24 said:

people drowning around the coast of Thailand, and what do the government do,? buy bloody vehicles for the army, and they wonder why tourists stay away from these dangerous polluted shores, there should be central funding for life saving, it seems a few drownings are low on their list. they still havent grasped social media yet, have they. ?

But they working on the fake media now

15 hours ago, White Christmas13 said:

But they working on the fake media now

And, Red plates now not Red flags

Watched two tourists being rescued from a rip by surfers last evening.  If the surfers hadn't been there we could well be reading about two more deaths in the news this morning.

 

 

On 9/2/2019 at 4:58 AM, alan grice said:

Recon more drown now they know some kind persons there to rescue Idiots.!. In my day you looked after yer own hide.


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Yes, 'self-responsibility' is almost an unknown word these days.

On ‎9‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 11:58 AM, alan grice said:

n my day you looked after yer own hide.

I agree and I don't get this! In my better days together with a couple Foreign and Thai acquaintance we swimmed approximately 150K at Bangtao and Nai Harn annually but we would never enter the Ocean between mid April - mid November due to information and warnings to do so from local people.

Yes of course that time fewer people lived from luring tourist here so maybe its time the authorities are a bit more transparent, pick up the stick and goes on where the locals let go. 

It's a very sad fact that it's a case of he/they genuinely do not care, dead tourists aren't something that's to high on his/their list of priorities.