Phuket expat dies in motorbike smash

[webfact]

Phuket expat dies in motorbike smash
Claire Connell

PHUKET: -- Australian Wayne Stone, 49, died this morning (March 13) around 2.30am when he crashed his motorbike on Kamala’s main street.

Kamala Police Volunteer Paul Edden said Mr Stone had been at the Aussie Pub and left around 2.30am, before crashing his bike into the median barrier outside U La La restaurant.

Mr Stone, who had lived in Kamala for around seven years, died on his way to Patong Hospital.

Bar owner Nick Ryan, who witnessed the crash, said Mr Stone was well known in Kamala and owned a guesthouse in Patong and a landscaping company in Kamala. He was originally from Melbourne.

“He was a larrikin character. He would never do wrong by you,” Mr Ryan said.

The Australian Embassy have been notified.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-expat-dies-in-motorbike-smash-45124.php


-- Phuket News 2014-03-13

[LivinginKata]

R.I.P. Wayne.

[emanphoto]

Had to look this up..

Larrikin is an Australian English term which, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, meant "a lout, a hoodlum" or "a young urban rough, a hooligan", meanings which were obsolescent in the later 20th century, when connotations were mostly of "a mischievous young person, an uncultivated, rowdy but good hearted person", or "a person who acts with apparent disregard for social or political conventions".

[NomadJoe]

Is this the same Wayne that was at the Aussie Pub in Kata?

[FritsSikkink]

Don't drink and drive.

[stevehaigh]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

[NamKangMan]

Don't drink and drive.

How else do you get home????

Sad to see yet another killed on the roads here.

RIP

Edited March 14, 2014 by NamKangMan

[NamKangMan]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

How do you get home now after a drink?

[likewise]

lots of taxis about, silly reply !

[BKKBrit]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

One time of wondering should have been enough. And it's not just your luck but also innocent people who die or are injured because of someone thinking he's fine to drive.

[12DrinkMore]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

One time of wondering should have been enough. And it's not just your luck but also innocent people who die or are injured because of someone thinking he's fine to drive.

The majority know they are not fine to drive.

They just reckon they can get away with it, one more time.

[qdinthailand]

Don't drink and drive.

How else do you get home????

Sad to see yet another killed on the roads here.

RIP

You don't go home. You find a vacant lot, hopefully next to a 7-eleven and you roll around in the dirt, sleeping it off!

I read about that somewhere...maybe on ThaiVisa.

[NamKangMan]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

One time of wondering should have been enough. And it's not just your luck but also innocent people who die or are injured because of someone thinking he's fine to drive.

"because of someone thinking he's fine to drive" - I believe most know at the time they are not "fine to drive" but they still have the presence of mind to resist getting ripped off by a tuk-tuk driver, thus, they get on their bike, and sadly, many do not make it home.

[NamKangMan]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

One time of wondering should have been enough. And it's not just your luck but also innocent people who die or are injured because of someone thinking he's fine to drive.

The majority know they are not fine to drive.

They just reckon they can get away with it, one more time.

"They just reckon they can get away with it, one more time." - get away with their life, gaol, paying 10,000 baht to the BiB or not getting ripped off by a tuk-tuk driver.

Which one????

Edited March 14, 2014 by NamKangMan

[NamKangMan]

Don't drink and drive.

How else do you get home????

Sad to see yet another killed on the roads here.

RIP

You don't go home. You find a vacant lot, hopefully next to a 7-eleven and you roll around in the dirt, sleeping it off!

I read about that somewhere...maybe on ThaiVisa.

Your reply is typical of the evasive answers on the Phuket Forum to such a simple question.

The reality is, most drive/ride under the influence here, due to the transport issue.

It's one of the reasons so many are dying on the roads here.

[Dap]

Don't drink and drive.

after too many times wondering to myself, 'how did i get home last night?', i don't go out on the bike to a bar in the evening anymore. my luck can't last forever, sounds like his didn't.

How do you get home now after a drink?

Much slower

But more seriously R.I.P.

Edited March 14, 2014 by Dap

[Mudcrab]

Don't drink and drive.

How else do you get home????

Sad to see yet another killed on the roads here.

RIP

You don't go home. You find a vacant lot, hopefully next to a 7-eleven and you roll around in the dirt, sleeping it off!

I read about that somewhere...maybe on ThaiVisa.

Your reply is typical of the evasive answers on the Phuket Forum to such a simple question.

The reality is, most drive/ride under the influence here, due to the transport issue.

It's one of the reasons so many are dying on the roads here.

garbage. It would be better to pay an outrageous fare then be dead in a motorbike crash. You disagree?

[NamKangMan]

@ Mudcrab

"It would be better to pay an outrageous fare then be dead in a motorbike crash." - clearly, that's simply not happening on Phuket, is it? You disagree?

[searcherkind666]

was there and eye witness to the accident ? and was this well to do chap married to a local ? trust but verify .

[robertthebruce]

I have just read an article in the ''Phuket Gazette'', and i think its the same guy, seemingly he was driving at high speed , with only one hand on the handle bars ??, if so.... , need i say any more....

[LivinginKata]

Australian long-term expat dies after fall from motorbike in Phuket

Phuket Gazette - Saturday, March 15, 2014 11:30:47 AM

Australian expat Wayne Stone died after fallnig from his motorbike on the Kamala main street early yesterday morning. Photo: Google Maps

PHUKET: An Australian expat died early yesterday morning in Phuket after allegedly driving his motorbike one-handed.

“The accident happened at about 1:50am in the morning. Eyewitness accounts described Wayne Anthony Stone driving his motorbike at high speeds with only one hand holding the handlebars,” Navin Petchan of the Kamala Police told the Phuket Gazette.

“Mr Stone fell off his bike at a main junction in Kamala across from a 7-Eleven convenience store.”

Mr Stone was wearing a helmet when police arrived at the scene, confirmed Lt Navin.

“Eyewitnesses said Mr Stone had been drinking at a nearby pub before he left for home. We are waiting for test results to confirm the level of alcohol in his system at the time of the accident,” added Lt Navin.

However, he died on the way to Patong Hospital.

“Mr Stone had lived in Kamala for about seven years and was well-known in the area,” Lt Navin said.

-- Phuket Gazette 2014-03-15

[SDM0712]

Shame, RIP.

Many of us drive home after a night out, and we know we shouldn't. We only have ourselves to blame.

I don't think it's anything to do with transport costs, certainly has never figured in my decision to drive or ride home. It's more to do with the worry about leaving the car/bike over night and the inconvenience of coming back the next day.

I think we all know at the time we shouldn't do it, and probably wouldn't at home, but it seems to be more socially acceptable here and we just say to ourselves, " everyone does it, just take it slow"

SDM

[NamKangMan]

Shame, RIP.

Many of us drive home after a night out, and we know we shouldn't. We only have ourselves to blame.

I don't think it's anything to do with transport costs, certainly has never figured in my decision to drive or ride home. It's more to do with the worry about leaving the car/bike over night and the inconvenience of coming back the next day.

I think we all know at the time we shouldn't do it, and probably wouldn't at home, but it seems to be more socially acceptable here and we just say to ourselves, " everyone does it, just take it slow"

SDM

Probably the most honest post on the issue for sometime. However, if drink driving/riding has nothing to do with "transport costs" - why wouldn't you leave your car/bike at home????

We all know why, and that's because a tuk-tuk driver knows it's late at night, possibly raining, you are drunk, and he can, and will, rip you off.

To avoid this, many drive/ride intoxicated, which eventually becomes a part of living on Phuket, resulting in tragic consequences for many here.

The authorities need to remove the ability of the transport driver to take advantage of the situation, by overcharging, and have a flat fare baht bus system, similar to Pattaya, or proper metered taxis, similar to Bangkok.

Until then, most here will continue to drive/ride intoxicated, and who knows, could wipe out yourself and/or your family, in the future.

[SDM0712]

Probably the most honest post on the issue for sometime. However, if drink driving/riding has nothing to do with "transport costs" - why wouldn't you leave your car/bike at home????

.

I like to tell it as it is.

Ok, let's modify "nothing" to just " one of many factors"

But I think the answer must be because when we go out our intention is not to drink as much as we end up actually drinking. Another issue is that as expats we don't like the people offering the transport services and we don't want to be in their vehicles. It seems crazy I know, but I think if we're honest many of us would rather risk life and limb then give these guys any money at all!

SDM

[NamKangMan]

Probably the most honest post on the issue for sometime. However, if drink driving/riding has nothing to do with "transport costs" - why wouldn't you leave your car/bike at home????

.

I like to tell it as it is.

Ok, let's modify "nothing" to just " one of many factors"

But I think the answer must be because when we go out our intention is not to drink as much as we end up actually drinking. Another issue is that as expats we don't like the people offering the transport services and we don't want to be in their vehicles. It seems crazy I know, but I think if we're honest many of us would rather risk life and limb then give these guys any money at all!

SDM

"as expats we don't like the people offering the transport services and we don't want to be in their vehicles" - true. WHY?

"many of us would rather risk life and limb then give these guys any money at all" - true. WHY?

I have put my reasons for "why" forward. What are yours?

Edited March 15, 2014 by NamKangMan

[SDM0712]

"as expats we don't like the people offering the transport services and we don't want to be in their vehicles" - true. WHY?

"many of us would rather risk life and limb then give these guys any money at all" - true. WHY?

I have put my reasons for "why" forward. What are yours?

Sorry I'm not going to be drawn on that. I know you have lived here a short while, so you should already know the answers most of which you have covered anyway. I will let the far distant "armchair experts" deal with the pros and cons of the local transport system.

SDM

Edited March 15, 2014 by SDM0712

[andreandre]

I have just read an article in the ''Phuket Gazette'', and i think its the same guy, seemingly he was driving at high speed , with only one hand on the handle bars ??, if so.... , need i say any more....

RIP..another tragic loss of life,whatever the cause...

Sounds like a combination of factors being involved....he also was wearing his helmet, but did him no good...

PS ..as an aside to your comment....if any motorcycle rider has not the ability to ride one handed, he is not a competent rider anyway...[even at high speed]

[SDM0712]

With regard to one hand if you are at a constant speed no problem. But if you are accelerating or have to break hard you will almost certainly come off. All depends on speed.

SDM

[SDM0712]

Also the cheap plastic helmets people use here are only marginally better than no helmet at all.

SDM

[HooHaa]

was there and eye witness to the accident ? and was this well to do chap married to a local ? trust but verify .

really? a motorcycle accident in the middle of the main road and you are trying to turn it back on a thai woman?