Chinese tourist on tour from Phuket drowns off Koh Phi Phi

[webfact]

Chinese tourist on tour from Phuket drowns off Koh Phi Phi

The Chinese tourist had taken a tour from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi.

PHUKET: -- A Chinese tourist who had taken a tour from Phuket drowned while diving off Koh Phi Phi yesterday afternoon (April 1).

Krabi officials were called to investigate a report of a Chinese tourist who had drowned while diving in Ao Loh Moo and learned that the victim, named as Xu Weixiang, 44, had come with a Phuket tour company for diving at Koh Phi Phi.

Rescue workers took the body to Phi Phi Hospital for autopsy, after which it will be returned to Phuket said a Krabi official.

The Phuket Tourism and Sport Department have been notified of the death.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/chinese-tourist-on-tour-from-phuket-drowns-off-koh-phi-phi-51680.php


-- Phuket News 2015-04-02

[LivinginKata]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

[matman]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

I don't understand the term 'casual diving business' perhaps you could elaborate on this

Was the victim a Qualified Diver - the report does not specify this.

Was he diving with a dive company - as almost all Scuba Diving companies are affiliated to an organisation with strict safety rules

Even a complete beginner if taking a 'Discover Scuba Course' has an instructor with him at all times.

Or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking' with the weighted see through helmets and surface air supply.

The report has little information regarding the circumstances of this persons demise

[LivinginKata]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

I don't understand the term 'casual diving business' perhaps you could elaborate on this

Was the victim a Qualified Diver - the report does not specify this.

Was he diving with a dive company - as almost all Scuba Diving companies are affiliated to an organisation with strict safety rules

Even a complete beginner if taking a 'Discover Scuba Course' has an instructor with him at all times.

Or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking' with the weighted see through helmets and surface air supply.

The report has little information regarding the circumstances of this persons demise

Casual diving business - I expect it was an island boat tour with some snorking equipment onboard for casual diving. The report talks about tourist fatality. Likely with no formal diving training even at snorkeling level.

[ikbenhet]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

I don't understand the term 'casual diving business' perhaps you could elaborate on this

Was the victim a Qualified Diver - the report does not specify this.

Was he diving with a dive company - as almost all Scuba Diving companies are affiliated to an organisation with strict safety rules

Even a complete beginner if taking a 'Discover Scuba Course' has an instructor with him at all times.

Or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking' with the weighted see through helmets and surface air supply.

The report has little information regarding the circumstances of this persons demise

Indeed, but that doesn't stop the LivinginKata to have his conclusion already.

Must be psychic

[bangon04]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

I don't understand the term 'casual diving business' perhaps you could elaborate on this

Was the victim a Qualified Diver - the report does not specify this.

Was he diving with a dive company - as almost all Scuba Diving companies are affiliated to an organisation with strict safety rules

Even a complete beginner if taking a 'Discover Scuba Course' has an instructor with him at all times.

Or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking' with the weighted see through helmets and surface air supply.

The report has little information regarding the circumstances of this persons demise

Can't you just imagine a large group of Chinese tourists in diving helmets all walking along the sea floor following a tour guide holding up a bright red and yellow (waterproof) flag...? only stopping to carve their initials on the coral or taking a quick dump...

At least wearing the diving helmet teaches them not to spit quite so often......

Edited April 2, 2015 by bangon04

[LivinginKata]

Indeed, but that doesn't stop the LivinginKata to have his conclusion already.

Must be psychic

Not psychic. I read a fuller report in the Phuket Gazette http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Chinese-tourist-drowns-Phi-Phi-snorkelling-tour/56754 which explicitly states " The tour guide said Mr Xu was snorkeling with others, but at about 4pm he was found floating face down in the water, Col Danai told the Phuket Gazette."

To repeat - this was not a supervised diving tour, more of a boat tour.

And other posts about tourists in diving helemets walking along the bottom are just a fantasy.

[matman]

How many drowning deaths will it take before the 'authorities' step in a regulate this casual diving business.

I don't understand the term 'casual diving business' perhaps you could elaborate on this

Was the victim a Qualified Diver - the report does not specify this.

Was he diving with a dive company - as almost all Scuba Diving companies are affiliated to an organisation with strict safety rules

Even a complete beginner if taking a 'Discover Scuba Course' has an instructor with him at all times.

Or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking' with the weighted see through helmets and surface air supply.

The report has little information regarding the circumstances of this persons demise

Casual diving business - I expect it was an island boat tour with some snorking equipment onboard for casual diving. The report talks about tourist fatality. Likely with no formal diving training even at snorkeling level.

Snorkling is not diving and shows a lack of understanding of the differences between snorkling and diving to be unable to differentiate between the two. Diving is an activity that takes place wholley under the water whilst snorkling in the main takes place at the surface. Diving requires training whereas with snorkling in the main an ability to swim is all that is required, even those wth limited swimming skills can still snorkle wearing a bouancy aid. Skilled snorklers who can breath hold, are able decsend below the surface, and some wear a limited amount of weight to counter the bodies natural bouancy to do so.

Apart from wrongly stating that snorkling is 'casual diving' it is not reported in the TV posting as to whether the victim was wearing a bouyancy aid or not and as such it would be wrong of me to speculate on this or suggest it as a cause. But this tragic incident might be just an unfortunate case of drowning as happens in any activity in water, including trained divers. The actual cause of this death might not be attributable to the activity itself, but possibly a physical problem (cramp), or even a medical problem (heart attack), but in the light of no reference to these possibilities it would be wrong to suggest these may have been a cause. But without wishing to speculate, it is not amiss to mention possible reasons for this tragedy. RIP and my condolences to his family

[matman]

And other posts about tourists in diving helemets walking along the bottom are just a fantasy.

Then I assume those in the attached picture are living in a fantasy world

[LivinginKata]

And other posts about tourists in diving helemets walking along the bottom are just a fantasy.

Then I assume those in the attached picture are living in a fantasy worldSea walking.jpg

That's in Mauritius, nothing to do with the drowning incident here in Krabi, Thailand.

[nzexpat]

Snorkeling is a skill which needs to be taught/learnt.

Continuing to encourage tourists to "snorkel" by handing out cheap,nasty masks/snorkels and "buoyancy" aids will ensure further deaths.

http://www.snorkeling.info/snorkeling-safety/index.html

http://www.snorkeling.info/snorkeling-basics/index.html

Edited April 4, 2015 by nzexpat

[matman]

And other posts about tourists in diving helemets walking along the bottom are just a fantasy.

Your comment suggesting tourists in diving helmets walking along the bottom was a fantasy or in other words not true, the picture I posted in my response was to show that your response was inacurrate and lacking in knowledge.

The picture I posted was not as you say from Krabi, it was not intended to be, its intention was to illustrate your comment was wrong, sea walking is not a fantasy, and is available at many locations around Thailand. I regularly see such an operation off one of the beaches on Koh Larn, one of the near Islands off Pattaya.

[LivinginKata]

Your comment suggesting tourists in diving helmets walking along the bottom was a fantasy or in other words not true, the picture I posted in my response was to show that your response was inacurrate and lacking in knowledge.

The picture I posted was not as you say from Krabi, it was not intended to be, its intention was to illustrate your comment was wrong, sea walking is not a fantasy, and is available at many locations around Thailand. I regularly see such an operation off one of the beaches on Koh Larn, one of the near Islands off Pattaya.

Sigh Sigh - my 'fantasy' comment related to those posters suggesting that there was sea walking here in Krabi. There is no sea walking AT ALL with these speed boat tours. These speed boat tours don't have any tour licence to conduct any sort of diving operaton.

[matman]

Your comment suggesting tourists in diving helmets walking along the bottom was a fantasy or in other words not true, the picture I posted in my response was to show that your response was inacurrate and lacking in knowledge.

The picture I posted was not as you say from Krabi, it was not intended to be, its intention was to illustrate your comment was wrong, sea walking is not a fantasy, and is available at many locations around Thailand. I regularly see such an operation off one of the beaches on Koh Larn, one of the near Islands off Pattaya.

Sigh Sigh - my 'fantasy' comment related to those posters suggesting that there was sea walking here in Krabi. There is no sea walking AT ALL with these speed boat tours. These speed boat tours don't have any tour licence to conduct any sort of diving operaton.

If you care to look back through the postings on this thread, and there aren't many of them, you will see that I was one of two members who mentioned 'sea walking'. My reference to 'sea walking' did not suggest that there was 'sea walking' in Krabi. As the report was lacking in detail I only posed the question " or was this 'diving' just 'sea walking'.

The other post mentioning 'sea walking' was just a comical aside. Nowhere was it suggested by anyone that this incident involved 'sea walking' or inferred that 'sea walking' is an activity that takes place in Krabi.

Whilst I do not wish to criticise, you obviously did not read the posts correctly, and the subsequent posting showed a deficiency in your understanding of the water sports activities quoted.