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Norwegian tourist fatally injured by speed boat rotors near Koh Tao


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Posted
On 12/23/2014 at 8:35 AM, AlQaholic said:

As a diving Instructor in Thailand, I have seen boats running circles around those floats just for fun, not understanding the dangers.

Also I have seen speed boat Captains drive their boats straight through a number of Diving boats anchored and with divers and floats in the surrounding waters.

Why am I not the least bit surprised!

  • Like 2
Posted
3 minutes ago, yogavnture said:

so pura vida is being silent about issue for a reason.  we have clarified that 

So far ....

 

Pura Vida Diving is not saying much.

Their captain Nathakorn Meekwan is not saying much.

Scuba Junction is not saying much.

Their ex-divemaster Ricky Collins is not saying much.

 

The Koh Tao police are not saying much.

The Prosecutor is refusing to talk with Silje’s parents.

 

The mayor is not saying much.

 

PADI is not saying much but they did kick Ricky Collins out of their secretive club.

 

Looks like a cover up or am I missing something? 

 

  • Like 1
Posted
14 minutes ago, gunderhill said:

Why am I not the least bit surprised!

so we are finally getting a few dive instructors to speak out about thier industry . u would think for the safety of othes lives they would do so to expose the truth. i can tell you i dont dive in Thailand due to farang .  i dive in phillipines though and my divemaster always deploys a dive marker when we are at 5 meters and he protects our lives. in thailand if an incident occurs the dive master just leaves the country.  but the boat man who killed her still works at shop but thier is a trial of him next week.?  something dont add up. im starting wonder if life is valued here. farang life is worth something more than money isnt it

  • Like 1
Posted
8 minutes ago, Spectator2020 said:

So far ....

 

Pura Vida Diving is not saying much.

Their captain Nathakorn Meekwan is not saying much.

Scuba Junction is not saying much.

Their ex-divemaster Ricky Collins is not saying much.

 

The Koh Tao police are not saying much.

The Prosecutor is refusing to talk with Silje’s parents.

 

The mayor is not saying much.

 

PADI is not saying much but they did kick Ricky Collins out of their secretive club.

 

Looks like a cover up or am I missing something? 

 

but the trial is next week!

  • Like 1
Posted
1 minute ago, yogavnture said:

so we are finally getting a few dive instructors to speak out about thier industry . u would think for the safety of othes lives they would do so to expose the truth. i can tell you i dont dive in Thailand due to farang .  i dive in phillipines though and my divemaster always deploys a dive marker when we are at 5 meters and he protects our lives. in thailand if an incident occurs the dive master just leaves the country.  but the boat man who killed her still works at shop but thier is a trial of him next week.?  something dont add up. im starting wonder if life is valued here. farang life is worth something more than money isnt it

The Norwegians did report that the captain (probably means Pura Vida would be behind this) did offer some financial compensation to Silje Mathisen’s parents which was refused.

 

The reason stated for the refusal was that the whole matter would go away and the divemaster, Ricky Collins would not have to account for what happened.

Posted
3 minutes ago, yogavnture said:

but the trial is next week!

Yes. The trial is next week starting on Tuesday unless Silje’s parents succeed in getting it postponed, which is probably unlikely.

 

The Prosecutor can organise a weak case against the boat driver.

 

The driver will probably just get a slap on the wrist and the whole diving industry on Koh Tao will hope that everything blows over.

 

They will pray that the outcome is not reported in the media. 

Posted
Just now, yogavnture said:

what would happen if you sent message to Norwegian embassy in BKK. regarding this issue . what would be thier take on this? would they care?

 

Just now, yogavnture said:

what would happen if you sent message to Norwegian embassy in BKK. regarding this issue . what would be thier take on this? would they care?

im gonna send them message

Posted

The Norwegian embassy will probably not be able to help . This is an old case and they only assist Norwegians who is alive and need help. I'm afraid only lawyers / police can do anything.  If I were related to the victim and could afford it I would hire a private investigator .  

 

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)
12 hours ago, balo said:

The Norwegian embassy will probably not be able to help . This is an old case and they only assist Norwegians who is alive and need help. I'm afraid only lawyers / police can do anything.  If I were related to the victim and could afford it I would hire a private investigator .  

 

The Norwegian Embassy and the Norwegian Foreign Office are aware of what’s happening which is obvious to anyone who reads the Dagbladet news stories of the last 4 weeks.

 

Unfortunately foreigners are largely on their own when things go wrong in Thailand, as they sometimes do.

 

Most foreign embassies strive to keep good relations with whoever happens to be running the Kingdom.  There is nothing unusual about the Norwegian government’s low key approach.  

 

They will provide some advice but the help is limited.

Edited by Spectator2020
Posted
22 hours ago, evadgib said:

They will already know & won't be able to discuss the matter with 3rd parties.

i sent them message no reply.  all i can do is all i can do

Posted

im on ko tao now. and i dont know all the history but everytime someone gets murdered here. thier are stories about how like 2 familys basically run the island and thier is massive corruption. its like ko tao is its own little country?  anyways maybe that boat man still works here and continues to mow over tourists. is he is friends with one of the high up family members here...a fish cant catch a break here. now i know why the triggerfish here attack people

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)

On Tuesday, 13 February 2018 a 3 day trial is supposed to start.

 

Reading between the lines of the Dagbladet articles, Ricky Collins won't be there, Silje Mathisen's girlfriend (Sigrid Simensen) won't be there and I bet the two apprentice divemasters won't be there.

 

I would also doubt that the tourists on the Pura Vida boat will be there.

 

There might or might not be a confession that the boat driver made at the time he was first charged.  

 

Then there will probably be a string of witnesses for the defense saying that Nathakorn Meekwan is a good guy and that he is normally very careful and that he wasn't travelling that fast and that the divers should have kept out of his way and that none of them saw anything to signify there were divers below.

 

The bosses at Pura Vida might even say that, out of the goodness of their hearts, they offered compensation to the parents, which was declined.

 

I can see the whole thing being swept under the carpet especially given the prosecutor won't meet with the parents or their lawyers.

 

The parents are just being kept in the dark.

Edited by Spectator2020
Posted
1 hour ago, Spectator2020 said:

On Tuesday, 13 February 2018 a 3 day trial is supposed to start.

 

Reading between the lines of the Dagbladet articles, Ricky Collins won't be there, Silje Mathisen's girlfriend (Sigrid Simensen) won't be there and I bet the two apprentice divemasters won't be there.

 

I would also doubt that the tourists on the Pura Vida boat will be there.

 

There might or might not be a confession that the boat driver made at the time he was first charged.  

 

Then there will probably be a string of witnesses for the defense saying that Nathakorn Meekwan is a good guy and that he is normally very careful and that he wasn't travelling that fast and that the divers should have kept out of his way and that none of them saw anything to signify there were divers below.

 

The bosses at Pura Vida might even say that, out of the goodness of their hearts, they offered compensation to the parents, which was declined.

 

I can see the whole thing being swept under the carpet especially given the prosecutor won't meet with the parents or their lawyers.

 

The parents are just being kept in the dark.

how much did they offer the parents. ? so it will just happen again and then be swept again?  watch where u swim on ko tao. 

Posted
Just now, yogavnture said:

how much did they offer the parents. ? so it will just happen again and then be swept again?  watch where u swim on ko tao. 

can u post the articles here 

Posted
1 hour ago, yogavnture said:

can u post the articles here 

The moderators will probably delete the links because the articles are in Norwegian.

 

Just Google “Dagbladet Silje Mathisen”  and you will find two articles.

 

Once you open the articles you will see that you can translate them into English by clicking the prompt in the top right corner. 

Posted
1 hour ago, Spectator2020 said:

The moderators will probably delete the links because the articles are in Norwegian.

 

Just Google “Dagbladet Silje Mathisen”  and you will find two articles.

 

Once you open the articles you will see that you can translate them into English by clicking the prompt in the top right corner. 

i read them . apparently pura vida offered them money to make the problem go away. the boat man dont have that kind of money. it must be a mix of money from scuba junction and pura vida. that is trying to make this go away.  i did see a pura vida dive man at the supermarket tonight buying a big bottle of whiskey. although alot of the dive shops are basically alcoholics here. im realizing how downright dangerous and deadly the dive shops and boats are here.. come at your own risk. im sure the local cops here are getting money out of these dive shops. its beyond me why farang want to come here to be dive instructors to begin with . 

  • Like 1
Posted
23 hours ago, yogavnture said:

i read them . apparently pura vida offered them money to make the problem go away. the boat man dont have that kind of money. it must be a mix of money from scuba junction and pura vida. that is trying to make this go away.  i did see a pura vida dive man at the supermarket tonight buying a big bottle of whiskey. although alot of the dive shops are basically alcoholics here. im realizing how downright dangerous and deadly the dive shops and boats are here.. come at your own risk. im sure the local cops here are getting money out of these dive shops. its beyond me why farang want to come here to be dive instructors to begin with . 

You're stooping lower and lower.

Posted
On 10/02/2018 at 10:09 PM, stevenl said:

You're stooping lower and lower.

I think the reality is that yogavnture is looking for answers just like most people who have stumbled across this story.

 

He can also see that not many people are coming forward with answers.

 

Silje was killed on Koh Tao over THREE years ago now and precious little has happened.

 

Most people who know anything about the diving conditions say the lack of safety is pretty appalling right around the island.

 

There might be a few more answers from Tuesday but it depends on whether anyone independent can report from the court. 

 

 

  • Like 2
Posted
On 08/02/2018 at 1:24 PM, yogavnture said:

so we are finally getting a few dive instructors to speak out about thier industry . u would think for the safety of othes lives they would do so to expose the truth. i can tell you i dont dive in Thailand due to farang .  i dive in phillipines though and my divemaster always deploys a dive marker when we are at 5 meters and he protects our lives. in thailand if an incident occurs the dive master just leaves the country.  but the boat man who killed her still works at shop but thier is a trial of him next week.?  something dont add up. im starting wonder if life is valued here. farang life is worth something more than money isnt it

It looks like your hunches about dive markers might be basically correct.

 

It seems the surviving divers are saying Ricky did not deploy any dive markers.  If anyone will know what happened they will.

 

It makes me wonder why the management at Pura Vida has not come forward very publicly in defence of their captain.  

 

We we are just left to speculate again! 

 

I don’t know how fast the captain was cruising.  Pura Vida might simply be covering for Scuba Junction or for the whole Koh Tao community but it still seems odd.  I agree with yogavnture when he comments on how strange it all seems.

  • Like 1
Posted

DAGBLADET reported on this week’s trial of the boat driver, Nathakorn Meekwan.

 

He pleaded guilty so the trial was over very quickly.

 

The court will read its decision on 29 March.

 

Silje Mathisen’s parents and the driver were given 4 weeks to submit comments to the court for it to consider before making its decision.

 

The parents were disappointed because the diving instructor, Ricky Collins was not there even though he had also been charged with negligence.

 

Silje’s father Bjorn Ole Mathisen said that the court was wrong in its conclusion that there were no witnesses. 

 

I have not given a link because the news story is in Norwegian. Anyone who looks it up can click the “translate” button to read it in English.

 

 

Posted
30 minutes ago, Spectator2020 said:

DAGBLADET reported on this week’s trial of the boat driver, Nathakorn Meekwan.

 

He pleaded guilty so the trial was over very quickly.

 

The court will read its decision on 29 March.

 

Silje Mathisen’s parents and the driver were given 4 weeks to submit comments to the court for it to consider before making its decision.

 

The parents were disappointed because the diving instructor, Ricky Collins was not there even though he had also been charged with negligence.

 

Silje’s father Bjorn Ole Mathisen said that the court was wrong in its conclusion that there were no witnesses. 

 

I have not given a link because the news story is in Norwegian. Anyone who looks it up can click the “translate” button to read it in English.

 

 

sorry ive been offline cause i got banned from posting because i criticized pattaya.  i spoke to a freediver lady here she says ricky vanished because the perception is that in Thailand no one gets a fair trial.  the boat man will continue to be a boat man?  u would think he would change careers

 

  • Like 1
Posted
2 hours ago, Spectator2020 said:

DAGBLADET reported on this week’s trial of the boat driver, Nathakorn Meekwan.

 

He pleaded guilty so the trial was over very quickly.

 

The court will read its decision on 29 March.

 

Silje Mathisen’s parents and the driver were given 4 weeks to submit comments to the court for it to consider before making its decision.

 

The parents were disappointed because the diving instructor, Ricky Collins was not there even though he had also been charged with negligence.

 

Silje’s father Bjorn Ole Mathisen said that the court was wrong in its conclusion that there were no witnesses. 

 

I have not given a link because the news story is in Norwegian. Anyone who looks it up can click the “translate” button to read it in English.

 

 

considering no witnesses showed up and the lawyer quit. we just wait now for the next dive newbie to be chopped up?  is it possible on march 29 they will sentence ricky to some punishment. now he sure as heck aint coming back.  and finally . did they establish ricky was drunk and didnt put out flag in 5 meter of water?  insanity. and nobody cares. money rules. more more more. get more newbies over here. who cares what happens as long as the illegal dive shops get cig money thats the main thing

  • Like 1
Posted
1 hour ago, yogavnture said:

sorry ive been offline cause i got banned from posting because i criticized pattaya.  i spoke to a freediver lady here she says ricky vanished because the perception is that in Thailand no one gets a fair trial.  the boat man will continue to be a boat man?  u would think he would change careers

 

Really interesting comments especially about Ricky Collins.

 

I think many people's perception is that a poor foreigner won't get a fair trial.  The free diver lady might have spoken to Ricky or she might have just guessed Ricky's reasons for vanishing. (probably accurately)

 

If Ricky left Silje Mathisen to her fate that is really bad bad once the tragedy has occurred what should a sensible person do in Ricky's shoes?  Wait around in Thailand for over 3 years until eventually there is a trial where the blame is probably going to be apportioned between himself and a local Thai?

 

Ricky was in a very very tight spot indeed.  Damned if he stays and damned if he leaves!

 

 

  • Like 2
Posted
14 minutes ago, yogavnture said:

considering no witnesses showed up and the lawyer quit. we just wait now for the next dive newbie to be chopped up?  is it possible on march 29 they will sentence ricky to some punishment. now he sure as heck aint coming back.  and finally . did they establish ricky was drunk and didnt put out flag in 5 meter of water?  insanity. and nobody cares. money rules. more more more. get more newbies over here. who cares what happens as long as the illegal dive shops get cig money thats the main thing

Yes.  we wait for the next scuba diver or snorkeller or swimmer or free diver to get hit or chopped up.  The next incident will be covered up as best as the locals can manage.

 

The Dagbladet report does not answer most of your questions.

 

I don't think it was a question of witnesses not showing up.  It was more a case of the police and prosecutor failing to get witnesses lined up.  The prosecutor would not even meet with the parents and yet the parents were in touch with witnesses.

 

Ricky did not put any markers over the dive site.  Ricky might contradict this but witnesses say he did not.  

 

We do not know the exact reasons PADI disqualified him.

 

Welcome to Thailand

  • Like 1
Posted

welcome to thailand. padi is a safe organization and trains its people well until an incident happens then they run and dont help. everybody ran but silje was not fast enuf.. and paid.

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