British Tourist Missing After Rafting Accident

[george]

British tourist missing after rafting accident

PHANG-NGA: -- A 22-year-old Scottish tourist has been missing in Phang Nga for two days and is presumed to have drowned after an accident while white-water rafting.

Shenaz Kapoor was in a rubber raft with three other foreign tourists and two Thai guides in the area of the Song Phraek waterfall when the raft capsized.

The other five people were rescued by local villagers but there has been no sign of Ms Kapoor since the accident on Tuesday.

Rescuers including the police, Border Patrol Police, officers from Phang Nga Provincial Office of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (ODPM), the tour company that arranged the trip, and local villagers have searched in vain for the young woman.

The ODPM has requested the help of a team of divers from Tab Lamu Naval Base in Phang Nga.

Pol Lt Col Patipharn Wisal, Inspector of Song Phraek Police Station told the Gazette that recent heavy rain had caused the river to run very swiftly, hampering rescue efforts.

Representatives from the British Embassy in Bangkok have been co-ordinating with local police to assist in the search.

--Phuket Gazette/KomChadLuek 2006-08-17

[Scott]

My condolences to the people immediately affected by this tragedy. I only hope that for reason, she got ashore and is found in some village suffering from amnesia.

[taxexile]

Gap year student drowned in Thailand

By Auslan Cramb, Scottish Correspondent, daily telegraph .

(Filed: 18/08/2006)

A British law student who was working with orphaned children in Thailand during her gap year is missing feared drowned after a white water rafting accident.

Shenaz Kapoor, 22, a member of one of Scotland's wealthiest families, disappeared after her boat capsized in Tone Pariwat wildlife sanctuary in Pha Ngan on Tuesday.

Four other people were rescued while she was swept downriver. Her lifejacket was seen floating in the rapids shortly afterwards.

Miss Kapoor was working with children affected by the Boxing Day tsunami during a break from her law degree at Dundee University.

Her family run Medea International in the city, which sells computer consumables.

Her grandfather Ibrahim Okhai said the family was devastated and "praying for a miracle".

His granddaughter, a practising Muslim, "always put others first and helped them regardless of their religion".

Last year, she spent her summer holiday in Guatemala, helping under-privileged children.

Mr Okhai said that her brother Amar had flown to Thailand, and her mother Mumtaz was with relatives at home in Dundee.

Miss Kapoor was the vice-president of the university's Islamic Society. Hassan Habib, former president, said Miss Kapoor represented the "true face" of Islam in Britain.

He said: "She was very diligent and very kind and she was devoted to her friends and members of the society.

"She was a true Muslim in the sense of building lives for others not destroying them."

very sad.

there are many organisations that arrange placements in thailand , and other countries for western gap year students.

they charge high fees , and the students have to pay theur own way to get here , once here the students are placed in orphanages , schools , conservation projects etc. in order to fulfil the volunteer part of the deal.

part of the experience involves outdoor adventure type stuff , such as rafting , scuba diving etc. on weekends and days off.

my niece , who was very recently in thailand on one of these gap year projects , nearly drowned whilst scuba diving off ao nang.

her oxygen supply suddenly malfunctioned during her third ever dive. she was at a depth of (according to her depth guage) over 12 metres. she inhaled water but managed to get to the surface , a couple of people dived off the boat and swam over to her and with some difficulty managed to get her back on to the boat. the currents were very strong that day , visibility under the water was poor and her dive buddy had surfaced before the accident leaving her alone down there.

after hospital treatment , which she had to beg for , (the dive school did not want to take her for checks ) , the dutch owner of the dive school subcontracted by the gap year organisation to teach scuba to these kids tried to bully this girl into signing one of those "we take no responsibility for any accidents ....... type release forms". they had forgotten to get her signature before the diving course.

when she wouldnt sign , he became rude and aggresive. it was almost impossible to get any report from the dive company as to what happened , until their lawyers had ok'd the report

the point of posting all this is to warn parents that some of these gap year organisations may use the services of other companies to provide activities for the students.

check the organisations that you are dealing with carefully , gap year travel and volunteering is big big business with vast profits. make sure the services , backup and support you recieve are commensurate with the level of fees that you are paying.

some of these companies may not be run in a professional way and lives may be put in danger.

there are many drownings at this time of the year along that coast.

the death of shenaz kapoor is very sad. condolences to her family.