Do You Take Notice Of The Red Flags?

[phuketrex]

After the French and Thai men drowned at Karon beach friday a British 21 year old drowned there too on saturday making it 3 in 2 days.

Do you take any notice of the red flags on the beaches and not swim when they are up? I've noticed over the years that at some they tend to put the flags up at the first sign of bad weather and rough seas...and then they stay up for months regardless of the weather conditions. North end of Kamala is one that does this.

[phuketrex]

A 12 year old Thai girl drowned on Surin Beach yesterday.

[PST]

Drove along kata and karon beaches today.alot more red flags flying now.

Far too late.

PST.

[Sir Burr]

The red flags fly every day of the year.

[HDRIDER]

HI

And what about the people there dont know about red flags?? get some big signs up, but then again better not, the tourist will stay away.

[ScubaBuddha]

Drove along kata and karon beaches today.alot more red flags flying now.

Far too late.

PST.

Funny I was noticing all the flags out today as well, but I'm not sure if it's just because I was looking for it. Saw some no swimming signs up too.

I do take note of the flags and signs, but I have to admit, for me they are just one piece to a larger puzzle when it comes to respecting the ocean and determining if conditions are too dangerous to enter. As previous posters mentioned, the flags are often unnecessarily flying, which limits their credibility. And usually I am entering the water in scuba gear or attached to a surf board, so I am not actually "swimming." When you combine weak swimmers and people that don't know they can duck under most waves to avoid getting pounded, and that they must swim parallel to shore in a rip current, it's a recipe for disaster. Often people panic and don't realize they are in water just a foot or two deeper than they are tall and thus can push off the bottom if they sink just a little bit first.

[fiddlehead]

The red flags fly every day of the year.

I only really frequent Nai Harn but the above statement is not true at that beach.

The red flags go up around April 1st, and stay there until about December.

It is too bad that on some days, the sea looks very calm, yet the red flags stay up.

It just makes most people not take them seriously.

But I imagine no Thai people would want to take the responsibility of a decision like this.

With 4 or 5 deaths in the past week or 10 days, something should be done.

[Globalguppy]

I also go to Nai Harn frequently and I've been noticing Thai guys with body boards and whistles keeping an eye on the crowd. Life guards? Humanitarians? I don't know, but I saw a one of them go in after an older gent to help him from being sucked in and pounded by the brutal waves yesterday.

Two weeks ago a couple of older Thai guys were just watching the waves and ran screaming to me for my board to help a girl who nearly drowned in the huge waves. The red flags are up and people are still swimming. It's just nice to see the community keeping an eye out for those who are in the water.

[waza]

I remember swimming at Karon beach one day. The surf was too heavy so I got out, a few minutes later a guy came along and red flagged the area I was swimming in.

Edited June 8, 2009 by waza

[morrobay]

Would some of the local members please post some photos of these "large waves" in Phuket.

Inexperienced swimmers can drown anywhere , even in a lake.

This sounds like a strong point to point longshore current : where the waves/current are coming in at one point and sweeping along the shore and going back out at the other point. Like others have said you have some good options here, you can powerswim in or bodysurf in or just go for a ride and dive under any waves on the way.

A pair of fins can almost double your swimming power.

Ive bodysurfed from Boomers in La jolla to Brooks st. to Steamer Lane up north to name a few.

morrobay

pattaya

[stevenl]

To answer the OP: no, I don't take notice of the red flags, because they offer no value at all since they don't say anything about the swimming conditions, only about the time of year.

I don't believe in signs, since also these signs will be there for the whole summer/green/low season, so they also don't offer any valuable information. In potential the red flags could, provided they are pulled up and down, depending on the safety situation.

[katabeachbum]

Drove along kata and karon beaches today.alot more red flags flying now.

Far too late.

PST.

2 or 3 red flags on Kata Beach every day. Before the drownings and during the drownings. Not that easy to spot from the road.

Even if the sea looks calm, you can be dragged out. High tide has the last weeks been between 9-10am, making the currens even stronger for swimmers until 5 pm.

[katabeachbum]

Would some of the local members please post some photos of these "large waves" in Phuket.

Inexperienced swimmers can drown anywhere , even in a lake.

This sounds like a strong point to point longshore current : where the waves/current are coming in at one point and sweeping along the shore and going back out at the other point. Like others have said you have some good options here, you can powerswim in or bodysurf in or just go for a ride and dive under any waves on the way.

A pair of fins can almost double your swimming power.

Ive bodysurfed from Boomers in La jolla to Brooks st. to Steamer Lane up north to name a few.

morrobay

pattaya

The waves are not large, max 2 meters. Nothing compared to French westcoast or North Sea.

Kata Beach,Phuket, 06th June 2009 07-08Am

Edited June 9, 2009 by katabeachbum

[LivinginKata]

From what I understand it's not just about wave height. It's a lot more to do with strong currents & rips. So even when the sea looks calm, there will always be the unseen danger (in the Summer Season).

[huggybear]

Would some of the local members please post some photos of these "large waves" in Phuket.

Inexperienced swimmers can drown anywhere , even in a lake.

This sounds like a strong point to point longshore current : where the waves/current are coming in at one point and sweeping along the shore and going back out at the other point. Like others have said you have some good options here, you can powerswim in or bodysurf in or just go for a ride and dive under any waves on the way.

A pair of fins can almost double your swimming power.

Ive bodysurfed from Boomers in La jolla to Brooks st. to Steamer Lane up north to name a few.

morrobay

pattaya

The waves are not large, max 2 meters. Nothing compared to French westcoast or North Sea.

Kata Beach,Phuket, 06th June 2009 07-08Am

morrobay, this isn't Mavericks for sure, but the other side of the coin are people who are only experienced swimmers when in a pool.

BTW-Brooks St. is my hometown. In Phuket we definitley will get stronger currents, maybe the waves are not as strong but due to the nature of water moving around an island, coupled with sand bottm changes causing undertows in specific spots, the waters here for sure are different than California.

You put that together with people who go into panic mode when they realize they are in trouble, who are not strong swimmers, and bang, drowning.

[MyphuketLife]

I have never noticed the flags, I almost drowned last year, stuck in a rip tide, panic set in and I was swimming as hard as I could back to shore only to not be moving forward, instead backwards.... its easy to panic and forget to swim parrell to the beach...

[katabeachbum]

I have never noticed the flags, I almost drowned last year, stuck in a rip tide, panic set in and I was swimming as hard as I could back to shore only to not be moving forward, instead backwards.... its easy to panic and forget to swim parrell to the beach...

I used to ignore the flags when calm, and have had the same scary experince couple of times. Its a long swim paralell to beach in Karon for sure

[LivinLOS]

This sounds like a strong point to point longshore current : where the waves/current are coming in at one point and sweeping along the shore and going back out at the other point. Like others have said you have some good options here, you can powerswim in or bodysurf in or just go for a ride and dive under any waves on the way.

Thats exactly the setup at north Karon.. Strong side rip then outbound..

As I have been saying in a different thread, rips themselves are not dangerous, we still float, its panicing in the rip, tiring yourself out, then not having enough gas to swim in the wave action.. Simply remaining calm and not working against the sea is 90% of it.

[phuketsub]

I agree that it has nothing to do with the wave heights. I used to swim for hours along the gulf coast and enjoyed the 2-3 meter waves, even bigger.

I think part of the problem is that the most dangerous areas, where the rip current is, actually appears calmer and thus attracts the unknowing to enter there -- with some of the tragic results we have been witnessing lately.

I had a similar experience at Karon to MyPhuketLife when I first moved here.

Another problem with the beach guard is that people don't take them, or the red flags, seriously.

As othesr have mentioned, with the red flags they leave them up even when conditions are completely safe.

As for the beach guard, there are so many pesky characters at some of the more popular beaches (especially Patong) that tourists quickly become conditioned to ignoring people who come up and accost them or try to get their attention.

The touting is so bad over there I honestly believe it has reached life threatening proportions.

end of rant

[Sir Burr]

Considering that Thailand doesn't have a culture of teaching it's children how to swim, plus, do you really think a strange Thai male will put his life at risk, to save yours?

Trusting the "life-guards" is a good way to get killed.

Edited June 9, 2009 by Sir Burr

[mistersinister]

Anyone knows if the body of the 12 year old girl that drowned on Surin already is recoverd?

Buddy of mine got the other girl out on surin that day! And the day before did CPR on an schottisch tourist that dreagged on land by locals .... they already said "thai leaw".... ( but the expats got him back with CPR) The thais already wrote him off.... nice

The day afther My other buddy's got two out on Kamala, and yesterday another buddy of my dragged 2 out on kata...

tsss surfing here means your a lifeguard.... The toll could be already 3 times as high... Good promotion for Phuket...

Put the mail road full of palmtrees (there ar already some nice plants in)

But no Lifeguards...... why doesn't it surpise me....

[phuketsub]

Anyone knows if the body of the 12 year old girl that drowned on Surin already is recoverd?

Buddy of mine got the other girl out on surin that day! And the day before did CPR on an schottisch tourist that dreagged on land by locals .... they already said "thai leaw".... ( but the expats got him back with CPR) The thais already wrote him off.... nice

The day afther My other buddy's got two out on Kamala, and yesterday another buddy of my dragged 2 out on kata...

tsss surfing here means your a lifeguard.... The toll could be already 3 times as high... Good promotion for Phuket...

Put the mail road full of palmtrees (there ar already some nice plants in)

But no Lifeguards...... why doesn't it surpise me....

The body was recovered two days later. She was a Burmese girl called Gigi. The mother claimed the body already. There will be a story about it in the next Gazette.

[NBT TV Phuket]

VDO on http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/prev...hp?news_id=1162

or

item--1--- A Burmese girl’s body was found after a drowning incident at Surin beach while the Phuket provincial authority orders local governments to have officials stationed at popular beaches to warn tourists about safety.

A body of a Burmese girl who reportedly drowned at Surin beach on Sunday has been retrieved. Cherng Thalay police said her body was washed ashore on the same beach. The 12 year old girl went swimming and got swept away by a high wave on Sunday, June 7th. Marine police were able to rescue two German survivors. The mother of the girl identified her body and took her for religious ceremony. The girl was the fourth victim to drown in Phuket during the past week. Following the incident, Phuket Vice Governor Smith Palawatwichai held a meeting with related agencies and instructed local governments to have their uniformed officials, such as civil volunteers or police, to station at beaches to warn tourists who are not acquainted with the local beaches and tell them not go swimming when they see red flags. This measure will be implemented awaiting the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization or Or Bor Jor’s beach guards to be stationed at beaches. Karon Municipality Chief of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office Suppachai Chanpetch stressed that red flags are up to warn tourists that they should not swim at sea during this season. Warnings in written forms are also distributed both in Thai and English to hotels & beach operators to give out and explain to their guests since June 3rd. A rescue centre is also set up for emergency. It can be reached at 076 330913

item—1.1 --- PPAO expects to sign contract with a private firm to operate beach guards by mid June.

The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization is reportedly about to sign a contract with a private firm to provide beach guards at beaches across the island. The Vice President of the Organization Chavalit Na Nakorn explained that he expects the contract to be signed by the middle of this month. The beach guards will be stationed on main beaches including two at Nai Harn, Kata, Karon, Patong, Laem Sing, Kamala, Surin, Bang Tao, Nai Ton, Nai Yang and Mai Khao. Under the contract, 67 staff will attend the beaches for five months. It costs the organizations over 10 million baht to carry out the work. The PPAO had contracted beach guards for the past 4 years, but later stopped the previous company. This year several drowning cases have happened already.

Andaman News NBT TV (VHF dial) at 8.30am & perhaps repeats on Phuket Cable TV channel 1 at 3.30pm, 7pm 1.30am & 6.30am, broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket provinces & maybe Mazz Radio FM108 at 7pm in Phuket, Thursday 11 June 2009 & http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/ & www.YouTube.com/AndamanNews

[mistersinister]

Thanx man for the info, better get them going those lifeguards. More waves coming sunday....

[CFIT]

Would some of the local members please post some photos of these "large waves" in Phuket.

Inexperienced swimmers can drown anywhere , even in a lake.

This sounds like a strong point to point longshore current : where the waves/current are coming in at one point and sweeping along the shore and going back out at the other point. Like others have said you have some good options here, you can powerswim in or bodysurf in or just go for a ride and dive under any waves on the way.

A pair of fins can almost double your swimming power.

Ive bodysurfed from Boomers in La jolla to Brooks st. to Steamer Lane up north to name a few.

morrobay

pattaya

It's not that the waves are huge, (maybe 3-4 meters ) but are in comparison to winter when they just lap up like you're on a lake, the problem is when the tide is going out ( west ) and the very wind is

blowing in from the west .

I've found, and please don't blame me if you drown, but as long as the tide is coming in, no problem , tide going out, big problem .

Incidentally I think I'll start a new thread, the Phuket Gazette printed a picture on the front page of a young woman on the beach crying because she's just found out her boyfriend has drowned, pretty tasteless.

The Gazette is really heading south

Edited June 12, 2009 by CFIT