2 Missing British Tourists In Krabi Rescued By Mobile Phone

[george]

2 missing British tourists in Krabi rescued by mobile phone

KRABI: -- A British couple got lost in a park here Tuesday evening and used their mobile phone to call their hotel for help. They were rescued 8 hours later.

The couple were identified as Paul Davidson, 35, and Lisa Wiwi, 32. Rescuers found them sitting near a creek inside the Nopparat Thara Beach National Park at 0:30 am Wednesday.

Three teams of rescuers began the search for the two at 4 pm Tuesday after their hotel, Amari Vogue Resort Hotel, alerted park officials that the two took a trekking inside the park and got lost.

The two called the hotel for help and rescuers tried to call their mobile phone to try to locate them.

Pol Lt Col Banthit Khaosuwan, a tourist police officer of Krabi, said it was fortunate that the two carried a mobile phone with them.

-- The Nation 2009-06-10

[hkt83100]

KRABI: -- A British couple got lost in a park here Tuesday evening and used their mobile phone to call their hotel for help.

I always recommend to get a mobile phone with built-in GPS. Never get lost again, websites like Google Maps are always there to help you...

[churchill]

or Buy a good local map and learn how to read it

[thaicbr]

Churchil. Could you read Thai when you came on holiday. The map's are in Thai. So the GPS idea is clever.

[churchill]

There are lots of local maps and really to read a map you don't need to understand the language .

[Kan Win]

or Buy a good local map and learn how to read it

Do you know this location? There are no maps as it is near the end of the road proper, hence Nopparat Thara Beach National Park. The Jungle.

If you find some National Parks maps in detail 'churchill' please let us know in Thai and/or English.

Churchil. Could you read Thai when you came on holiday. The map's are in Thai. So the GPS idea is clever.

Good idea 'thaicbr'

Nice to see that 'Amari Vogue Resort Hotel', and park officials took care of the lost tourist.

Yours truly,

Kan Win

[churchill]

So they went into 'The Jungle" with no map and no guide ?

[horsewell]

They went trekking without a map? with a GPS? without a guide? were they drunk? I don't get on my scooter and go to a new beach in Phuket, on roads, without my GPS!

At least they took a phone, it would have been a shame if they are out of range.

Edited June 10, 2009 by horsewell

[norwayeagle]

They went trekking without a map? with a GPS? without a guide? were they drunk? I don't get on my scooter and go to a new beach in Phuket, on roads, without my GPS!

At least they took a phone, it would have been a shame if they are out of range.

[ quote), hehe,,what stroked my mind when i saw this was,What have happened to thee "boy" Scouts .Are they no longer existing.?! should not be that(usually) hard to find "home" without a map and a GPS. Even if you had not been a Scout.

[bjderb]

KRABI: -- A British couple got lost in a park here Tuesday evening and used their mobile phone to call their hotel for help.

I always recommend to get a mobile phone with built-in GPS. Never get lost again, websites like Google Maps are always there to help you...

How much would a mobile with gps cost in Thai.

[norwayeagle]

This eee happening, also remind me of my own lost and at last found story;;;;;;; actually I, was not Lost ,but my car was.I parked it in the city (Oslo) ,,,not thaaat big, (city) . I ran the streets 4 almost two days,Yippiii.there it was,i found it, (because),,,I suddenly remembered my way home..

[BigSnake]

Some good thinking in calling the hotel, getting an English speaker no doubt to alert the local rescue squad, the thing they don't say in a tourist guide, just Good old COMMON SENSE paid off for them. Bet these two were boy/girls scouts when they were growing up

[daveh]

Sounds like they relied on luck. I've read stories from rangers in Yosemite National Park as well as others, complaining about hikers who only bring cell phones instead of being properly prepared for what the hikers were intending to do. In Yosemite, the big danger is dehydration because many popular trails include a major vertical component. Instead of bringing lots of water, the hikers carry a pint plus a cell phone.

I've driven past a sign claiming to be Nopparat Thara Beach National Park many times and often wondered how big this park could possibly be. This beach is next to Ao Nang. If you look at the location on Google Maps, there are lots of roads, so I'm not sure exactly where the park boundaries are. It seems if you got lost, you need only walk south and eventually you'd hit a road.

Is anyone familiar with this park? If it's not immediately adjacent to the beach, where is it? What are the park boundaries?

[norwayeagle]

KRABI: -- A British couple got lost in a park here Tuesday evening and used their mobile phone to call their hotel for help.

I always recommend to get a mobile phone with built-in GPS. Never get lost again, websites like Google Maps are always there to help you...

How much would a mobile with gps cost in Thai.

Ooooo that would be Veeeerrrryyyyy expensive , Buy a pocketwater purifier and a compass.Then you will get some eee "joy out of ur trip into the wiiiilderness.

[eddiemonster]

Sounds like they relied on luck. I've read stories from rangers in Yosemite National Park as well as others, complaining about hikers who only bring cell phones instead of being properly prepared for what the hikers were intending to do. In Yosemite, the big danger is dehydration because many popular trails include a major vertical component. Instead of bringing lots of water, the hikers carry a pint plus a cell phone.

I've driven past a sign claiming to be Nopparat Thara Beach National Park many times and often wondered how big this park could possibly be. This beach is next to Ao Nang. If you look at the location on Google Maps, there are lots of roads, so I'm not sure exactly where the park boundaries are. It seems if you got lost, you need only walk south and eventually you'd hit a road.

Is anyone familiar with this park? If it's not immediately adjacent to the beach, where is it? What are the park boundaries?

I think the impressive thing is that they managed to get lost there. As usual in Thai National Parks plenty of it has been destroyed with developments dotted around all over the place. And, as you say, walk in any direction and you will come to a road or the beach.

However, if you are not familiar with it then I suppose you could imagine you are in a huge 'jungle' (mainly mangrove forest) and erring on the side of caution would just sit down and wait for the cavalry.

I imagine when they get home the story will be of being lost in the rainforests, no food, no maps and wild animals everywhere, instead of probably being 50m from the nearest building

[JoeThePoster]

Couldn't they just follow the trail of plastic bottles?

[grantbkk]

A couple of years ago someone named Eric Bahrt, a vegan, was actually in tears as he wrote a letter to the editor informing all that would listen that he got lost at a Chiang Mai floral exhibition. Not only was he lost because of bad signage there were no vegan food vendors to slake is appetite for no meat, no dairy meals. After a coupe of hours removed from his comfort zone he was rescued and put out of the flower show.

These two Brits were lucky and smart to call the hotel. I hope they find it in their hearts to tip western style.

[jackdanielsesq]

Where does the sun set?

BR>Jack

[TAWP]

Nokia N95, N95 8GB, N96 and other models contains a GPS. Recommended and have saved me on many occasions, including in big cities.

Edited June 11, 2009 by TAWP

[Gonzo the Face]

So they went into 'The Jungle" with no map and no guide ?

What ya xpect, churchy... their Brits'

if they were American's , no doubt they'd be Californians

ps

and blond

[harleyclarkey]

There are lots of local maps and really to read a map you don't need to understand the language .

Eh....yes you do. How do you read cities/towns???

[harleyclarkey]

Was the trail signposted....heck no. Why bother to put up stupid signs for those bl--dy foreigners. Anyway any sign was probably used by the locals for firewood or roof repairs.

[huggybear]

A couple of years ago someone named Eric Bahrt, a vegan, was actually in tears as he wrote a letter to the editor informing all that would listen that he got lost at a Chiang Mai floral exhibition. Not only was he lost because of bad signage there were no vegan food vendors to slake is appetite for no meat, no dairy meals. After a coupe of hours removed from his comfort zone he was rescued and put out of the flower show.

Regular contributor to the BKK Post's letters section and a complete dufus........................could've eaten flowers, quite high in vitamin c actually...........

[Junglejumbo]

I've found most local maps useless, and lacking in any helpful detail except perhaps the town's center.

Even for Bangkok, you must carefully check the date of the map. I recently bought a fairly pricey map from a book store on Silom and after opening it up at home discovered that it was about 15years out of date. Still didn't have the Chongnonse Road which has been in place since 1994 while embassies were in old locations too.

I don't know which is the best map. Some of the helpful ones only give downtown areas. I still haven't found a particularly helpful map for the whole of Bangkok and surrounds yet.

[TAWP]

singhapour>> Your first hand account is appreciated, always good to get stories directly from those involved in the events.

[animatic]

A couple of years ago someone named Eric Bahrt, a vegan, was actually in tears as he wrote a letter to the editor informing all that would listen that he got lost at a Chiang Mai floral exhibition. Not only was he lost because of bad signage there were no vegan food vendors to slake is appetite for no meat, no dairy meals. After a coupe of hours removed from his comfort zone he was rescued and put out of the flower show.

These two Brits were lucky and smart to call the hotel. I hope they find it in their hearts to tip western style.

Yes tip well for this one.

Eric B. is a notorious The Nation letter writer, and I remember this floral exhibit story well.

My though at the time was there were tons of plants AKA vegitables available all around him.

Like eating the centerpiece at a table. Maybe not as tasty as eggplany, but you won't go hungry either.

How can one get lost in a floral park outdoors I also wondered,

what with the sun indicating some sense of east or west, north or south?

Since when is bad signage a odd occurrence in Thailand?

[Treborz]

Am I the only one that finds Lisa Wiwi's name mildly amusing?

[sassienie]

Ay, Ay dirty deeds here.

Jack and Jill went up the hill for a bit of hanky panky.

He only gave her alf a crown, e must ob been a Yanky.

Edited June 24, 2009 by sassienie

[Kimera]

Nokia N95, N95 8GB, N96 and other models contains a GPS. Recommended and have saved me on many occasions, including in big cities.

Really ! You have never used GPS in these phones for any length of time, GPS eats the battery and in the rain forest you would be lucky to get a position

[Datsun240Z]

Should have watch more or Ray Mears survival video's. God they could have a real holiday out there in the jungle!!