A 41-year-old tourist from Uzbekistan tragically drowned in a rip current at Kata Noi Beach in Phuket. This beach is known for its dangerous rip currents, especially during certain wave and wind conditions. The unfortunate incident occurred on Monday, and the man, identified as Sadullo Tashtemirovich Saidov, was pronounced dead at Chalong Hospital that afternoon.

 

Reports indicate that Saidov was part of an 11-person tourist group staying at a nearby resort. He ignored red flag warnings indicating a swimming ban due to dangerous conditions and went into the water alone around midday. Witnesses claim that within just five minutes, Saidov was caught in a rip current that swept him away from the shore.

 

His desperate cries for help and struggles to swim back to shore were overwhelmed by the current, and he was later found face down in the water. Despite lifeguards quickly rushing to Saidov's aid, they were unable to revive him. He was immediately taken to Chalong Hospital, where he was confirmed dead.

 

File photo for reference only. Courtesy of Google

 

-- 2024-05-08

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I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

I've spent enough time in the ocean surfing and boogie-boarding to understand rips.  Keep you head, keep your cool and you can find a way back to shore.  Lose you head and panic? 

13 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

Someone with more knowledge may correct me but I understand that you cannot tread water in a rip. The current is too strong.

You need to float and let the current take you out until it slows down and then you swim diagonally back to the shallows.

Most people panic and try to swim against the rip as this poor guy seems to have done.

 

42 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

His desperate cries for help and struggles to swim back to shore were overwhelmed by the current

 

17 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

Probably panic.

Thailand desperately needs PiFs (Public Information Films).

 

Passé back home but here ...

 

 

20 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to 

Unreal comment, maybe taxi mafia or whats your theory? Panic is what happens to those that cant read red flags,, sheez! 

3 minutes ago, Crossy said:

Thailand desperately needs PiFs (Public Information Films).

 

Passé back home but here ...

 

 

A light hearted way to get an important message across.

As a child i loved these.

21 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

Very easily. If you haven't learned about rips and how to survive them your natural instinct is to swim directly to shore and try to fight it, but you still keep going backwards, you get tired and you drown.

It happened to me many years ago at this very same beach and it was terrifying. I was lucky and eventually caught a wave that got me to where I could tip toe and I just got back to shore, collapsed, exhausted. Since then I know what to do and also how to spot a rip to avoid it in the first place and I have taught my kids, but many many people don't know. And let's not forget this guy was from Uzbekistan which is a land locked country so he certainly wouldn't have been taught.

3 minutes ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

A light hearted way to get an important message across.

As a child i loved these.

 

Me too, and by all accounts they did actually work, apart from maybe the awful "SPLINK" ones with Jon Pertwee.

 

The later ones did become rather "dark" mind.

 

 

27 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

Your attitude could get people hurt or even killed.

 

Kids: ” Dad, what do those red flags mean ? “

RP: ”how should i know, go on, get yourselves in the water then “

29 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

 

you clearly don't understand rip tides. neither did i until visiting my sister and BIL in aus, the two things he told me about; red back spiders - yes i saw one, and what to do in a rip, they lived right by a beach. rips can be deadly, but are relatively easy to get out of as long as you stay calm and don't try to swim against it.

46 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

I don’t even understand how one could die this way. I mean he must have been able to tread water. I’d bet something else happened to him. 

 

Have you ever even been in water with a current? I guess not or you wouldn't suggest such crazy life threatening stuff. Even an olympic gold medal winner would likely lose against a decent rip current over a given distance.

25 minutes ago, josephbloggs said:

Very easily. If you haven't learned about rips and how to survive them your natural instinct is to swim directly to shore and try to fight it, but you still keep going backwards, you get tired and you drown.

It happened to me many years ago at this very same beach and it was terrifying. I was lucky and eventually caught a wave that got me to where I could tip toe and I just got back to shore, collapsed, exhausted.

 

Exactly the same thing happened to me in Bali.

 

If it wasn't for that big wave that brought me in, I'd probably have drowned. 

 

It was so confusing and almost funny cos I was only slightly out my depth and very close to the beach, only a few meters away, but I was exhausted fighting that rip.

48 minutes ago, Crossy said:

Thailand desperately needs PiFs (Public Information Films).

RNLI (UK) provide good advice here:  https://rnli.org/safety/float

 

The PIFs back in 70s and 80s were certainly educational and mildly entertaining at same time. Atomic bombs to crossing the road with Darth Vadar.

 

It was good stuff.

... and not forgetting Charley Says. 

2 minutes ago, torturedsole said:

... and not forgetting Charley Says. 

 

That we are remembering these says something about the impact they had on us!!!

 

I was a member of the Tufty Club! You??

 

I also admit to having owned a Robertson's "Golli" badge

2 minutes ago, Crossy said:

That we are remembering these says something about the impact they had on us!!!

...or our age. Haha. Joking aside, millions of kids viewed these PiFs, particularly as there were only three channels back then, so captive audience (in between Grange Hill).

 

2 minutes ago, Crossy said:

I was a member of the Tufty Club! You??

Wasn't a member of Tufty Club, but was in the Cubs, Scouts and Army Cadets with their strong emphasis on health and safety. I also passed my cycling proficiency in juniors.

1 hour ago, josephbloggs said:

Very easily. If you haven't learned about rips and how to survive them your natural instinct is to swim directly to shore and try to fight it, but you still keep going backwards, you get tired and you drown.

Exactly.  It's ignorance and panic that is a deadly combination when encountering rips.

1 hour ago, Tropicalevo said:

Someone with more knowledge may correct me but I understand that you cannot tread water in a rip. The current is too strong.

You need to float and let the current take you out until it slows down and then you swim diagonally back to the shallows.

Most people panic and try to swim against the rip as this poor guy seems to have done.

 

 

Me. I have more knowledge. If you can swim in Thailand you should never drown. The waves are tiny even in the large wave season. “Rips” aren’t even a thing. People don’t even know what rips are.
 

There is only things in the ocean that could be described as a rip. One is when a huge set of waves comes in and all that water needs to get back out in a rush. Doesn’t really happen in Thailand. More like places like Hawaii. And if there is one in Thailand, it’s gonna be rather light.

 

my expert opinion is either the guy was a horrible, terrible swimmer that could hardly tread water or barely even swim, or something else happened to him, like who knows a bad jellyfish or knocked his head or something.

3 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

Me. I have more knowledge. If you can swim in Thailand you should never drown. The waves are tiny even in the large wave season. “Rips” aren’t even a thing. People don’t even know what rips are.
 

There is only things in the ocean that could be described as a rip. One is when a huge set of waves comes in and all that water needs to get back out in a rush. Doesn’t really happen in Thailand. More like places like Hawaii. And if there is one in Thailand, it’s gonna be rather light.

 

my expert opinion is either the guy was a horrible, terrible swimmer that could hardly tread water or barely even swim, or something else happened to him, like who knows a bad jellyfish or knocked his head or something.

Good to have an expert on board !!

In your “ expert opinion “ why would they be flying red flags at this particular beach then .

1 minute ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

Good to have an expert on board !!

In your “ expert opinion “ why would they be flying red flags at this particular beach then .

Because the waves are big for them. But the waves are not big. 

2 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

Me. I have more knowledge. If you can swim in Thailand you should never drown. The waves are tiny even in the large wave season. “Rips” aren’t even a thing. People don’t even know what rips are.
 

There is only things in the ocean that could be described as a rip. One is when a huge set of waves comes in and all that water needs to get back out in a rush. Doesn’t really happen in Thailand. More like places like Hawaii. And if there is one in Thailand, it’s gonna be rather light.

 

my expert opinion is either the guy was a horrible, terrible swimmer that could hardly tread water or barely even swim, or something else happened to him, like who knows a bad jellyfish or knocked his head or something.

 

You are not an expert you have no clue. There are very dangerous rips in Thailand and they cause real deaths. Most people don't know what a rip tide is or how to deal with it. It's extremely easy to get exhausted and/or panic and drown. I'm a seasoned swimmer and have rescued people who got exhausted in the past. I have at times for fun attempted to swim against some currents in the sea for a bit and wasn't even close to beating them. To claim that there are no rip currents in Thailand is completely disconnected from reality and dangerous to the uninformed reader.

4 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

Because the waves are big for them. But the waves are not big. 

Them ??

Is that Thai only or are you including Uzbekistan tourists in your ridiculous statement also ?

So there were witnesses that “saw him get swept out within 5 minutes”. Then it goes on to say nobody helped him. So I guess those witnesses just saw him get swept out and he must have looked like he was struggling and they walked away?! Something doesn’t add up. 
 

Don’t worry though the thai detective are working some leads 

3 minutes ago, eisfeld said:

 

You are not an expert you have no clue. There are very dangerous rips in Thailand and they cause real deaths. Most people don't know what a rip tide is or how to deal with it. It's extremely easy to get exhausted and/or panic and drown. I'm a seasoned swimmer and have rescued people who got exhausted in the past. I have at times for fun attempted to swim against some currents in the sea for a bit and wasn't even close to beating them. To claim that there are no rip currents in Thailand is completely disconnected from reality and dangerous to the uninformed reader.

You have zero clue. 

I should have added to my prognosis that he could have possible purposefully swam out. But to not be able to swim back in while in thai waters would be like not being able to make it back to the ledge in a swimming pool. In other words, he had no business swimming out there. 

People don’t understand at all. “Rips tides” are not even a thing. A real rip tide would be like somewhere that water bottlenecks like at an outlet for boats and the tide is outgoing. That’s a riptide you can swim against. There’s none of this on the beaches of phuket. There’s way action which is very small, and tidal currents which don’t pull close to the shore when there is no bottleneck effect 

29 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

Me. I have more knowledge. If you can swim in Thailand you should never drown. The waves are tiny even in the large wave season. “Rips” aren’t even a thing. People don’t even know what rips are.
 

There is only things in the ocean that could be described as a rip. One is when a huge set of waves comes in and all that water needs to get back out in a rush. Doesn’t really happen in Thailand. More like places like Hawaii. And if there is one in Thailand, it’s gonna be rather light.

 

my expert opinion is either the guy was a horrible, terrible swimmer that could hardly tread water or barely even swim, or something else happened to him, like who knows a bad jellyfish or knocked his head or something.

It's not about waves. Your expert opinion is totally wrong.

4 minutes ago, Robert Paulson said:

People don’t understand at all. “Rips tides” are not even a thing. A real rip tide would be like somewhere that water bottlenecks like at an outlet for boats and the tide is outgoing. That’s a riptide you can swim against. There’s none of this on the beaches of phuket. There’s way action which is very small, and tidal currents which don’t pull close to the shore when there is no bottleneck effect 

I won't say what I really think as I would get a suspension, but you clearly have not a single clue what you are talking about - you are completely and utterly wrong. 

And your earlier ridiculous post saying Thailand has small waves - riptides have nothing at all to do with wave size. Please take your misinformation and pathetic drivel elsewhere, what you are saying is potentially dangerous.