Andaman Storm Sinks Dive Boat: Seven dead

[Luxius]

So many people enter a discussion with yet another trump card played, "See...it's Thailand's fault, it's the government's fault, it's the ministry of this or that's fault, it's the Thai people's fault..."

If Thailand bugs you so much, why do you bother with it at all?

Yes, I come from somewhere else and am a visitor here, but it's not easy seeing a child playing in the street with open holes in the sewers, open wells 15 meters deep with children playing around them no rules of the road, or at least no one follows any, zoning laws?, hospitals that turn dying people away, and now boats that are unsafe.

Does the government care? I like to think so. Hey, they put up lights after the murders between Nai Harn and Kata, even though now a year later, only a few of them work.

Infrastructure is lacking here. So are safety concerns. We are just trying to make it a better, safer place.

... so are tax payers, legal businesses, uncorrupted officials, and so on. Thailand is lacking a many lot of things, but it also have so much to offer. It doesn't matter how much you praise or glorify your standards and/or home values, TIT = This Is Thailand.

Give them time to evolve through the century they missed out on, so to speak. They are behind in many areas of government, but I am sure that even your country has a similar retrospective.

Everything cost money, and when the mafias are controlling a big chunk of resources you are not going to see development overnight.

On topic, this accident could have happened in ANY country.

[petercr]

Have been working here on Phuket 22y ago in the diving industrie. When I look at the shape of Dive Asia 1 I,m wondering why at all it can float. It's too high, it takes a breeze and it rolls over. The safest dive boat in Phuket???? THis boat should have had never get the certification to sail. Anyhow, I'm very sorry that this has happend.

My thoughts exactly when I first looked at photographs of the boat..............Not a scientific judgment but an impression gained through many years of life onboard different boats. If this is a recent build from a reputable boatyard there must be design and stabilty calculations available

Whatever the reason this is a terrible waste of life

[MisterMan]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

Well considering both of them are missing at sea I think it would be difficult to say that they were in the same cabin.

However I do know of another boat that sunk years ago where the male Thai cook had an ongiong relationship with a female Japanese customer. She did 5 trips in one season and he didnt even get commission, however he did get married to her.....

Not sure if they were both on the boat when it sunk...

..edit:

Just read the Phuketwan article

Divers swam into the sleeping compartments where a missing Japanese and a Thai staffer were recorded to be staying,

Compartments!

Edited March 11, 2009 by MisterMan

[Dap]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

WHAT!!!!!! What world do you live in? A male and female (or whatever grouping) in the same cabin has NOTHING to do with this tragedy. I am genuinly surprised at your post. Get a life.

[Syduan]

Have been working here on Phuket 22y ago in the diving industrie. When I look at the shape of Dive Asia 1 I,m wondering why at all it can float. It's too high, it takes a breeze and it rolls over. The safest dive boat in Phuket???? THis boat should have had never get the certification to sail. Anyhow, I'm very sorry that this has happend.

My thoughts exactly when I first looked at photographs of the boat..............Not a scientific judgment but an impression gained through many years of life onboard different boats. If this is a recent build from a reputable boatyard there must be design and stabilty calculations available

Whatever the reason this is a terrible waste of life

Welcome to the land of smiles, I've been here for 20 years and nothing has changed and I don't think it will in my life time. Money, corruption, greed has always been the major point of worship in Thailand, buddismn Thai style. Having said that "he who casts the first stone, etc"

[thefalang]

So many people enter a discussion with yet another trump card played, "See...it's Thailand's fault, it's the government's fault, it's the ministry of this or that's fault, it's the Thai people's fault..."

If Thailand bugs you so much, why do you bother with it at all?

I try to keep negativity out of my posts.

But I believe many of us on here would like to see the standards for safety improved somewhat.

Yes, I come from somewhere else and am a visitor here, but it's not easy seeing a child playing in the street with open holes in the sewers, open wells 15 meters deep with children playing around them no rules of the road, or at least no one follows any, zoning laws?, hospitals that turn dying people away, and now boats that are unsafe.

Does the government care? I like to think so. Hey, they put up lights after the murders between Nai Harn and Kata, even though now a year later, only a few of them work.

Infrastructure is lacking here. So are safety concerns. We are just trying to make it a better, safer place.

We all end up playing the blame game i guess even though sometimes there is no one to blame. (I'm thinking of the weather is sometimes the cause and might be in this case) But when the standards are so low, some of us try to get things improved.

Whether the government is listening or not is another question though.

I come from "somewhere else" also.

I am a licensed captain (not in Thailand!) and have sailed Thai waters for 20-years. What happened here is a tragedy that could have been avoided.

Firstly, Thai law requires(or did require) these type of vessels to have a Thai captain and a Thai engineer in command. Many (or most) Thai captains & engineers are not qualified and safe operating procedures are severely lacking, not to mention the lack of requirements (or protocol) regarding vessel design.

The "rules of the road" on the high seas in Thailand are abided by (and enforced) in a similar fashion as the road traffic laws. Need I say more?

Hopefully the "cause & effect" rule will prevail here and the Thai authorities will take action for traffic deaths, murders, robberies, & other crimes which resonate through the expat community and tourist industry only once the "ripple effect" on their pocketbooks is felt.

[pippomusic]

Welcome to the land of smiles, I've been here for 20 years and nothing has changed and I don't think it will in my life time. Money, corruption, greed has always been the major point of worship in Thailand, buddismn Thai style. Having said that "he who casts the first stone, etc"

Eheheh I dont know where you come from... I am from Italy, and in my country greed, corruption, suicidal mismanagement and administration got WORSE!

Thailand is just like many other countries but hey... try to get a living in Rome! Trty to drive in Rome!!!! I feel much safer driving a scooter with no helmet here than a car in Rome!

RIP for the poor people died

[cognos]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

Why do you care if the Japanese was in the same quarters as the Thai?Why do you make this insensitive remark in light of this horrible tragedy?Maybe you should go work for the National Enquirer,digging up garbage.Posts like this will make me quit TV soon.Give your self-serving head a shake.Do you mention this to get brownie points from your heavy drinking expat freinds who may guffaw at anything?

[cognos]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

Why do you care if the Japanese was in the same quarters as the Thai?Why do you make this insensitive remark in light of this horrible tragedy?Maybe you should go work for the National Enquirer,digging up garbage.Posts like this will make me quit TV soon.Give your self-serving head a shake.Do you mention this to get brownie points from your heavy drinking expat freinds who may guffaw at anything?

One more comment..would you phone the owner of the company,or Austria or Switzerland and ask the victim's familes why the Japanese and Thai were in the same quarters?Maybe you are jai dee mak,but if this is the only post for one to go on,holy smokes.I am not saying you are this,but in my many trips to Thailand one observes the lowest common denominator of farang.Please consider focusing on the tragedy,not sensationalistic crap.God bless all the victims and their families.

[ComicBum]

Sure, this tragic event could of happened in waters off shore of any country in the world, but in Thailand there simply isn't any recourse from irresponsibility. Its a 'Mai-Pen-Rai' operation. In todays world of instance communication it is going to be much more difficult to fool all the people all the time.

[Dap]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

Why do you care if the Japanese was in the same quarters as the Thai?Why do you make this insensitive remark in light of this horrible tragedy?Maybe you should go work for the National Enquirer,digging up garbage.Posts like this will make me quit TV soon.Give your self-serving head a shake.Do you mention this to get brownie points from your heavy drinking expat freinds who may guffaw at anything?

"Cognos" don't give up the ship because "a crew member" has a decidedly different view point. Only decry the point of view. No points given to the "insensitive" remarks!

[peecee]

Question. Did the skipper not check the radar frequently as he must have had a weather report from the Met before he set sail?

Answer. TIT; proberbly didn't know how to switch it on.

[cognos]

Why was a Japanese national (male) in the same quarters with the Thai cook (female)? Strange.

I guess, with the two shootings in the news and now this, you can just never know when live will be taken from you. But I'm not sure that ever stops us from the everyday acts that end up randomly in people dying...

Why do you care if the Japanese was in the same quarters as the Thai?Why do you make this insensitive remark in light of this horrible tragedy?Maybe you should go work for the National Enquirer,digging up garbage.Posts like this will make me quit TV soon.Give your self-serving head a shake.Do you mention this to get brownie points from your heavy drinking expat freinds who may guffaw at anything?

"Cognos" don't give up the ship because "a crew member" has a decidedly different view point. Only decry the point of view. No points given to the "insensitive" remarks!

Point taken..its now my bpen rai khrap for the remarks.In hindsite I was a little harsh;maybe this flu and my wife stuck in Thailand and me stuck in Vancouver made me ornery.Its bloody cold here,a 50 year record low temperature.After being in LOS alot,I can no longer handle this cold very well.Never mind;lets pray for the victim's families that they will heal in time,or at least keep our remarks respectfull.

[thefalang]

Welcome to the land of smiles, I've been here for 20 years and nothing has changed and I don't think it will in my life time. Money, corruption, greed has always been the major point of worship in Thailand, buddismn Thai style. Having said that "he who casts the first stone, etc"

Eheheh I dont know where you come from... I am from Italy, and in my country greed, corruption, suicidal mismanagement and administration got WORSE!

Thailand is just like many other countries but hey... try to get a living in Rome! Trty to drive in Rome!!!! I feel much safer driving a scooter with no helmet here than a car in Rome!

RIP for the poor people died

You should review the statistics before you make unfounded statements regarding the level of safety in Thailand. You may "feel" safer in Thailand than Italy (or perhaps even the US), but the statistics prove otherwise.

As per the OECD Factbook 2007: Economic, Environmental and Social Statistics for 2005, road fatalities/million population for Italy and the US were 90 and 145 respectively. As per the Department of Highways of Thailand, road fatalities for the same period were 504(per million population)! That’s almost 6 times the fatality rate in Italy for the same year.

The homicide with firearms rates in Thailand are equally as staggering. Based on the 8^th UN survey 2002, Thailand rated 3^rd in the world for murders with firearms, surpassed only by Columbia and South Africa. On a per capita basis, Thailand’s murder rate was approximately 6 times that of the US. Thailand’s murder rate (all causes) was double that of the US.

[brahmburgers]

Sure, this tragic event could of happened in waters off shore of any country in the world, but in Thailand there simply isn't any recourse from irresponsibility. Its a 'Mai-Pen-Rai' operation.

Yes, lax standards are prevalent across the board. But how to go about instilling better attitudes about safety? One way is to begin with kids, ....with their influences in school (from teachers) and at home from parents and elders. Show them there are consequences from being overly lax, of not taking precautions, in not wearing protective gear, or trusting too much in 'benevolent spirits' etc. Teach them about taking personal responsibility for their actions. Don't let them slip out of taking responsibility with soggy excuses or by saying they didn't know. Such adjustments in national character will take lots of time, if they happen at all. In the meantime, expect attitudes to slither along - much the same as they have been.

[jacknorman]

This tragedy does raise a number of serious questions in an industry

that could be best described as 'self regulating'.

snip

Should the boat be salvageable, she might not be sailing under Dive Asia's flag in the future;

but she will certainly not be sitting idle in Chalong Bay...

Thank you for the well written post. At least your concern about the vessel being used again has been answered by the report of it's being broken in 2. (I assume that occurred when it hit the bottom.) Do they do structural analysis here after a boat is located to see if there was inherent device/defect? What if the boat's sinking was caused by a structural breach when a wave hit it? That info might be of use if the "shipyard" built similar vesels, or am I delusional? This is going to be very hard on some people when the bodies are not recovered. At least a proper investigation would offer some closure and perhaps prevent a similar tragedy.

I am however very surprised by Dive Asia's apparent lax SOPs [standard Operating Proceedures] when reacting to a late boat.

The boat was not expected back in port untill around 08.00 in the morning. So it was not missed until then as well.

I am ignorant on dive boat practices, but wouldn't it make sense to be calling in to the office every so often and reporting the vessel location? When we would go out into the bush, we had to radio in every 6 hours to provide our co-ordinates and condition. With the current satellite technology and gps, surely there are affordable systems that can do this for a small boat. I'm just curious as to the practice for sea vessels since I know squat on marine operations.

It really is a blow to tourism if you look at the type of people that were on that boat. These were the visitors you want. A week doesn't go by when there isn't a thread in TV lamenting the negative aspects of the tourist trade, and here is a positive activity that ends in tragedy.

Do they not have plotters that report to somewhere or same device as a black box on planes ? i dont' know

Jack

[Moothon]

Condolences to the families of the deceased.

I hope Thailand stays the way it is. I like Thailand the way it is and I live here because of the freedom and lack of bullshit bureaucracies.

Thailand leaves alot open for "common sense" issues to be determined by each individual. NO, I'm not saying that the people that died on that ferry had no common sense, so spare me the bs.

Of course every boat should have an EPERB on board, but if it doesn't, you can bring your own, they are not expensive, and you can also wear your life jacket the entire time you are on the boat and can even buy your own boat if you want to. Some may ask "If EPERBS are not expensive, then why don't all the boats have them?" And the answer is because tourists, and everyone else as well, want CHEAP tickets.

Also, as with many things in life, complacency is the downfall. You get what you pay for, prepare for and train for.

I get so tired of people trying to push their opinions and concepts on other people and other countries, so I will spare you mine.

I also really get tired of hearing tourists happily chatting about how CHEAP the ferries, busses etc. are and then when something happens on one of the THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS of trips these boats and buses make, they make it sound like everything in Thailand is a catastrophe.

I won't go as far as saying "accept it or leave ", but I don't think this country should be like your or any other country, or it wouldn't be Thailand.

[Bodi]

Welcome to the land of smiles, I've been here for 20 years and nothing has changed and I don't think it will in my life time. Money, corruption, greed has always been the major point of worship in Thailand, buddismn Thai style. Having said that "he who casts the first stone, etc"

Eheheh I dont know where you come from... I am from Italy, and in my country greed, corruption, suicidal mismanagement and administration got WORSE!

Thailand is just like many other countries but hey... try to get a living in Rome! Trty to drive in Rome!!!! I feel much safer driving a scooter with no helmet here than a car in Rome!

RIP for the poor people died

You should review the statistics before you make unfounded statements regarding the level of safety in Thailand. You may "feel" safer in Thailand than Italy (or perhaps even the US), but the statistics prove otherwise.

As per the OECD Factbook 2007: Economic, Environmental and Social Statistics for 2005, road fatalities/million population for Italy and the US were 90 and 145 respectively. As per the Department of Highways of Thailand, road fatalities for the same period were 504(per million population)! That’s almost 6 times the fatality rate in Italy for the same year.

The homicide with firearms rates in Thailand are equally as staggering. Based on the 8^th UN survey 2002, Thailand rated 3^rd in the world for murders with firearms, surpassed only by Columbia and South Africa. On a per capita basis, Thailand’s murder rate was approximately 6 times that of the US. Thailand’s murder rate (all causes) was double that of the US.

These are not surprising statistics, as most ex-pats would agree. However, Thailand is about the same size as the State of Texas in the United States, with almost four times it's population. While I still work abroad, I have called Thailand my home for nearly 8 years. I have a home and a family. I have been to Pattaya twice during that time, and Bangkok only a bit more(for immigration purposes), so for just about all my time in Thailand I have been surrounded by Thais, in areas where western influences and temptations have yet to overwhelm the Thais. I came here alone, and on my first trip, stayed in the village and home of a Thai friend from the US. I can undoubtedly say that I have never felt threatened of unsafe in anyway. I have witnessed crime and "firearm abuse" upcountry, in the small village where I reside, but no more than in the well policed suburbs of the US. Considering I can usually go weeks without seeing a policeman and the density of the population in the surrounding area, the amount of crime seems minimal. I am one of 2 westerners, that I know of, within a 50 sq/mile radius, and make an easy target, yet I have never experienced an incident, nor has my family in my absence. I have however had my home robbed 6 times during my short 30 year life, all of which occurred in the US. I was assaulted twice, once in Belgium, and once in Italy( no offense intended, as I love both of these countries). Perhaps it is because I am fluent in Thai? I think not. I believe that outside of a few small areas of the country, culture, tradition, and religious values still take precedence; still determine ones actions. Not in every case, not always, but on the average. This being said, Thailand still has a considerable amount of crime, violent, and not violent. Standards are absent, or no existent, and where they exist there is little or no enforcement. This will continue to develop into a greater and more wide spread problem if actions are not taken by the Thais. The United States and most other countries were no different before the public started to become aware of the problems, the corruption, the mistakes being made. Thais will at some point have to open their eyes, and I believe this is slowly starting to happen across the country. Only when the Thai population is willing to make a concerted effort, will laws and standards start to hold weight.

Excuse me if what I have written is unclear or difficult to read. Writing, or explaining myself has never been one of my strong points. I love this county, it's people, it's culture and it's tradition. If I did not, I would leave "their" country. Lastly, be aware of your circumstances, surroundings, and conditions no matter where you are in the world. It's your responsibility, and will keep you out of trouble most of the time.

[PhilHarries]

Condolences to the families of the deceased.

I hope Thailand stays the way it is. I like Thailand the way it is and I live here because of the freedom and lack of bullshit bureaucracies.

I won't go as far as saying "accept it or leave ", but I don't think this country should be like your or any other country, or it wouldn't be Thailand.

Whilst I agree in principle with what you are saying vis-a-vis freedom of choice and personal responsibility you are doing a disservice to the ordinary Thais who deserve better safety standards across the board not just on tourist related facilities. Please also note that a Thai woman also lost her life leaving quite likely a bereaved family and friends. You may wish that Thailand could remain unchanged for your own personal, low cost pleasure but do not condemn it to remain forever a developing nation. The Thai people deserve better than that

SAFETY IS EVERYBODY'S RESPONSIBILITY

[brickroad]

our thoughts are with the family and friends of those who died.

[Rhodiebkk]

Much of what has been said so far has been speculation.

Whilst a lot has rightly been said regarding the standards of the dive industry in Phuket,

Dive Asia is one of the more experienced & professional outfits & one of the first operating liveaboards in Thailand.

Until the boat has been properly surveyed little more can be said - we can only hope that findings are truly made public

and not sanitised to save face or avoid legal responsibility.

For my untrained marine architect's eye but with considerable dive boat experience,

there may well be design issues regarding the height of the superstructure and the boat's stability.

My only reservation to "my conclusion", is Dive Asia's considerable experience

and why they would buy/commission a boat with such a tall superstructure.

A few questions also arise regarding the emergency equipment aboard -

why was there no emergency signalling equipment/beacon.

A mobile phone is hardly sufficient when faced with a capsized sinking boat.

Also on every dive boat I've been aboard, the crew at the wheel at night are normally watching Thai soaps on TV.

They now need to be fully debriefed by those with knowledge of industry practices.

Regarding the cabin arrangements of the Japanese diver & a member of the Thai crew,

rather than suspect a more prurient explanation, I believe it may suggest that boat was overbooked.

There also appears to be a discrepency about when the Thai authorities were alerted.

In one of the previous posts it is suggesting that Dive Asia alerted them on the Sunday evening,

yet DA staff were surprised when they turned up at the dock the next morning to find no boat.

Maybe this is confused reporting, but I would suggest that when an operator has a boat coming in,

whatever time it may be [2am was what was originally said], a member of staff should be there to meet it.

With so many souls in their care both customers & crew, not to mention an expensive boat,

it behoves operators to be far more responsible for the lives of their customers and safety conscious.

I know from my own experience of one company using a boat for their day trips, where the dive deck [not platform] was 'live',

with a gap moving separately from the main hull by 2-3 inches.

The Thai diving industry is indeed in need of real regulation.

Whilst PADI are only intrested in the throughput of certs and the Thai authorities can always be squared away

with the ever ready tea money.

As Dive Asia is considered by many in the know as one of the truly better operators, this tragic incident may illustrate

how far the bar has dropped regrding the laxity of safety proceedures and staff training,

as well as the paucity of necessary emergency equipment.

What with the economic climate and the general lethargy of changing the way things have been done in the industry

- please note this is not a diatribe against Thailand, rather a critique of the dive industry that happens to be based here -

I won't be holding my breath!

The question now, is whether these poor people will have lost their lives in vain, or,

whether the authorities will act to rectify any shortcomings in boat design,

emergency equipment and operating proceedures an investigation may find.

[grantbkk]

Tragedy after tragedy has occurred in Thailand since the Santika nightclub fire in Bangkok a few minutes past midnight on January 1st. Fires, murders, rapes, beheadings, etc. plague Thailand just like any developing country rife with corruption. On the one hand we flock here for cheap vacations and brag to our friends back in our home countries how cheap and beautiful it is here. On the other hand, when something goes terribly wrong many tend to react with outrage regarding the lack of safety and security standards. The exact same dive trip would have cost more than twice as much in Hawaii where much of the money goes to crew training, mandatory safety standards and government safety checks.

Travelers to Thailand do not realize that this is one of the most dangerous places on earth if one is not careful. Where else can you travel to a region where there is a full blown civil war between the government of the day and radicalized Muslim terrorists? The body count now rivals Afghanistan and Iraq. Now that is called "Extreme Tourism". What do people think is going to happen when they travel to the #2 sex tourist destination in the world? Never mind that pesky little nightclub fire that killed 64, including tourists, by lighting fireworks indoors to celebrate the new year. The police originally wanted to charge the manager with allowing underage patrons into the club because the ownership was traced to a high ranking police official.

Because the government puts pressure on the media here we will never know the number of tourists murders and rapes here in the Land of Smiles. It is bad for the tourist industry and the exact numbers have been obscured for years. Where else do they have a name for committing suicide by jumping from high buildings. The "Pattaya Plunge" has been around since those high buildings were built. At one point we were warned to be careful walking by the high-rise condos and hotels. We also know now that many of those purported suicides were actually homicides.

Traveler beware.

[saneroad]

Update today:

A TEAM of six technical divers left Chalong Pier at 8.30am and about 11am will begin a 70-metre dive to the sunken dive boat to recover the four bodies found inside yesterday.

Four bodies believed to be the missing two Austrians and two Swiss were located by a team of four divers yesterday, but due to the time restraints in making such a deep and dangerous dive, a recovery was not possible.

An official identification of the dead will be made after they are brought to the surface.

The remaining two men unaccounted for - a Japanese tourist and the dive company's cook - are believed to be inside the boat, says Jurgen Schenker of Dive Asia. Divers will be searching all remaining cabins for them.

Full story: Dive Boat Sinking: Recovery Effort Underway

[NBT TV Phuket]

VDO: Four more bodies of foreign divers were discovered in the sunken boat in Phuket while the family of an Austrian diver collected the body from hospital.

http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/prev...hp?news_id=1010

or

The Austrian Consul from Bangkok led the family of Gabrielle Jetzinger, who died in the boat accident in Phuket on Sunday night, to collect her body from Wachira Hospital in Phuket city on Wednesday morning. Mrs. Jetzinger was among seven people who were missing after the accident. Her body was found on Tuesday morning. After that the family was led to Phuket police for legal procedures and to confirm her belongings such as a watch and ring. A TAT official in Phuket said the family wishes to have a simple Buddhist service for her in Phuket. Meanwhile Japanese Embassy officials are also working with police to have the family of a victim confirm the identification according to police processes yesterday afternoon. At about 4 pm yesterday Andaman News also got confirmation from Phuket Governor Mr. Preecha Ruangjan that scuba diving teams from Dive Asia have discovered the sunken boat with four people trapped in their cabins. Two were believed to be Austrian and two were Swiss nationals. The team however has to wait until this morning (Thursday) to recover the bodies from the boat due to its bad condition. This leaves two people missing: one Thai and one Japanese.

This morning 4 scuba divers and staff from Kusoltham Foundation left Rasada port with a marine police boat TOR 814 to rescue the 4 bodies. It is expected to be a tough job due to the deep water.

Andaman News NBT TV (VHF dial) + Radio Thailand FM90.5 at 8.30am & perhaps repeats on Phuket Cable TV channel 1 at 7pm & 1am, broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket provinces & maybe Mazz Radio FM108 at 7pm in Phuket, Thursday 12th March 2009 & http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/

& www.YouTube.com/AndamanNews Send comments to [email protected]

[stiggy]

Wow this thread really has brought out all the speculative gossiping wan53rs.

Family members are probably reading this.

Get a life and wait to see the outcome.

[stevenl]

Question. Did the skipper not check the radar frequently as he must have had a weather report from the Met before he set sail?

Answer. TIT; proberbly didn't know how to switch it on

This is not only a cruel remark, but also ridiculous.

[saneroad]

Phuketwan latest:

FIVE bodies were brought to the surface at 12.25pm today by a team of six technical divers and supporting recovery crew in two boats.

Three recovery crew from Dive Asia boarded a dinghy off the Dive Asia boat at 12.20pm and picked up two Marine Police officials wearing rubber gloves from the police boat.

The five are in a dinghy near the buoy that marks the area of the sunken vessel, set to handle the transfer of the bodies to boat.

The bodies will be taken by Marine Police back to Phuket for identification.

One out of the seven who went missing in the storm remains missing.

Edited March 12, 2009 by saneroad

[HakimKlunker]

I have seen here many comments about safety and attitude. Obviously, the standard is not at the level where most people want it.

I think, we should not try to change people because firstly there is no right to do so (it is indeed THEIR country) and secondly because time has shown that it does not work if we try. So why not changing ourselves? If we seek the lowest price, we also get the lowest standard. If I do not have confidence in "this Thai captain" - well: is it so hard not to do the trip with him? We seemingly have forgotten to take responsibility for our own activities; there are so often people who know it better - unfortunately always only afterwards...

The best we can make from this accident now, is to find what happened and how. From there, someone can carry on and do it better and his/her efforts should be honoured; those who do not thrive for (active, please!) improvement better go down as well.

Is Dive Asia to blame? For the victims that does not make a difference. I am sure that this company followed all requirements - if they are sufficient or not - and obviously did more for the standard than many other competitors. It seems that everyone knows about those "typically Thai" conditions and so each individual must be aware of taking a risk probably. That is the price of being an adult.

The vivid discussion about a dead couple found is indeed somehow displaced. On the other hand: If it is true what we all seem to think here - if we cannot change the fact that we die, it seems best not to die alone but in company with someone we love. I think there was a successful movie about a similar topic...

I personally decided to let everyone get away with everything - - - as long as they don't get away with ME!

Up to now I am still breathing

[baabaabobo]

Update today:

A TEAM of six technical divers left Chalong Pier at 8.30am and about 11am will begin a 70-metre dive to the sunken dive boat to recover the four bodies found inside yesterday.

Four bodies believed to be the missing two Austrians and two Swiss were located by a team of four divers yesterday, but due to the time restraints in making such a deep and dangerous dive, a recovery was not possible.

An official identification of the dead will be made after they are brought to the surface.

The remaining two men unaccounted for - a Japanese tourist and the dive company's cook - are believed to be inside the boat, says Jurgen Schenker of Dive Asia. Divers will be searching all remaining cabins for them.

Full story: Dive Boat Sinking: Recovery Effort Underway

I thought I read the company's cook was a woman... Condolences to all families involved in this tragedy.

[seri thai]

"I am sure that this company followed all requirements - if they are sufficient or not - and obviously did more for the standard than many other competitors. It seems that everyone knows about those "typically Thai" conditions and so each individual must be aware of taking a risk probably. That is the price of being an adult."

That's it in a nutshell. requirements/legislation by western standards are minimum or unenforced. This is why I got out of the SCUBA business in Thailand. I felt sick seeing and hearing of near-misses and bereavements through lack of care and responsibility.

It is very difficult to run a business on a safe, professional basis and remain competitive.

Before the flamers start, look into your hearts and acknowledge the truth if you can face it or care. I would also say many people who learn their craft here have a minimum concept of responsibility and duty of care or pay lip service to it.

On the second point I can assure you that the majority of people learning to dive here and some experienced dive tourists have no concept of personal safety and what it entails. They rely on operators to take care of them and training agencies condone and encourage this for commercial reasons.

This is the case in all developing country resorts and less regularly in countries with stronger legislation. Unfortunately for me I come from a society that places a greater ethical and monetary value on human-life and I am appalled at first world foreigners who come here and develop a third world attitude to it.

Apologies for the rant

No man is an island, entire of itself

every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main

if a clod be washed away by the sea,

Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were,

as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were

any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind

and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls

it tolls for thee.