Dead Norwegian Woman On The Beach

[LivinLOS]

As reported in a local news source..

65 year old woman found dead on a beach near Ao Yon.. No mention of foul play..

[markg]

As reported in a local news source..

65 year old woman found dead on a beach near Ao Yon.. No mention of foul play..

I was there and can confirm it's true. A sailing buddy of mine pulled her out of the water. Very sad news indeed. Her husband was at the scene. Seems she got into difficulty whilst swimming and drowned. Very great shame. And before anyone jumps to conclusions about red flags/life guards etc, let me explain quickly that AO Yon bay is like a swimming pool all year round. There are no waves nor rip tides. That's why there is an oyster farm in the bay and also so many boats moor there.

There are no lifeguards on duty and generally only a handful of tourists around.

I was sailing there on Sunday afternoon and conditions were calm, with a flat sea, and a light 8 - 10 knot breeze.

Police and ambulance attended the scene promptly and took the lady away to the hospital.

Sincere condolances to the family. A very sad tragedy.

Mark

[LeungKen]

Thanks for the calm reporting of the facts Mark.

Condolences to the family.

[baabaabobo]

Norwegian tourist drowns in calm waters off Phuket

Jorunn Olden, 65, was on vacation with her husband when she drowned in Ao Yon, Phuket yesterday.

WICHIT, PHUKET: An elderly Norwegian tourist drowned off Phuket in calm waters yesterday after the lilo she was sunbathing on drifted out to sea.

Oslo native Jorunn Olden, 65, was on vacation with her husband in Ao Yon, on Phuket’s east coast, when the tragedy struck.

Witnesses told Phuket City Police Inspector Anek Mongkol they saw her drift out at least 40 meters to sea before she fell in the water at around 1.30pm.

Local people and foreigners swam out to help her but they were too late to save her life.

A spate of tourist drownings off Phuket’s west coast, particularly at Karon Beach, has generated international attention during this year’s monsoon season.

Most deaths have involved foreigners entering rough seas after ignoring red flags warning of dangerous conditions.

The sea at Ao Yon is generally much calmer than the waters off Phuket’s west coast and was calm today when the tragedy happened.

The couple had been renting a house around half a kilometer from where Mrs Olden died.

Mr Olden (first name unknown) told police his wife had been sunbathing on a lilo for three or four hours that day, while he stayed indoors drinking with a friend.

Lt Col Anek said he thought Mrs Olden had probably fallen asleep before her lilo got carried away from the beach by the tides.

“She may have woken with a start and fallen in,” Lt Col Anek said.

When Lt Col Anek arrived at Ao Yon Beach, he found a crowd of people standing around Mrs Olden’s lifeless body.

Her husband was holding her hand, sobbing. The lilo was still floating in the water.

Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers took her body to Bangkok Hospital Phuket for an autopsy, the results of which have yet to be released.

– Khunakorn Terdkiatkhachorn

-- Phuket Gazette 21/9/09

[Jonathanpattaya]

How very unfortunate.

R.I.P.

[grumpyoldman]

RIP and condolences to the family, truly a tragic accident.

[tonititan]

That is so sad. Just reading about her poor husband holding her hand makes me want to cry.

Can I get some clarification, though? What is a lilo? Is that the same as an inflatable raft?

[sbk]

inflatable mattress usually for a single person

That is very sad, my condolences to her husband and family.

[Mario2008]

Sad story, but also old news as this is an old thread.

CLOSED.