Passenger boat burned, 103 rescued, one missing

[Thaivisa News]

Krabi:- A shuttle boat between Krabi and Phuket caught fire Wednesday afternoon and sank. Officials and fishing boats managed to rescue 103 tourists but one Thai girl was believed to go missing.

[Photo credit: @Nalinee_PLE ]

The accident happened to Ao Nang Princess 5 Boat of Ao Nang Travel and Tour Co Ltd at about 3:30 pm near Koh Med, which is about 8 kilometers away from the Nopparat Thara Beach.

The boat was taking the tourists form the Nopparat Thara beach to Phuket. The fire broke out not long after it left the beach.

After alerted of the fire, Krabi marine police, the Krabi Harbor Office, and the Hat Nopparat Thara Park dispatched speed boats to rescue the tourists. About 10 small fishing boats of local people, which were nearby, also rushed to help pluck the tourists out of water.

The fire engulfed the entire boat that sank. Black smoke from the boat could be seen very far as it was a sunny day in Krabi.

The blaze prompted the captain to announce to tourists to put on lifejacket and jump overboard to wait for rescue.

A total of 94 adults and 9 children were rescued and sent back to Nopparat Thara beach.

Officials said no one was injured. But they found that a 12-year-old Thai girl might be missing.

Officials were still checking information about the girl and were trying to establish the cause of the fire.

Boonchao Tangsiriphaisal, director of the Krabi Harbor Office, said it was believed that the fire started from the engine room and quickly engulfed the two-deck boat.

Harbor officials checked the spot and did find any trace of oil after the boat sunk.

[PJ33]

We caught the same ferry across from Krabbi to Phuket on Monday afternoon.

Apparently it's a 12-year-old European girl who is missing. She went to the toilet just before the fire started and her parents did not see her again.

I pray for the parents and the girl that someone rescued her too and she is sat waiting somewhere to be reunited with her parents.

[RichCor]

HAARETZ.COM

Israeli 12-year-old killed in boat fire on vacation in Thailand

The girl's parents and brother were among more than 100 people rescued from the boat.

By Barak Ravid and The Associated Press | Apr. 8, 2015 | 5:15 PM

a 12-year-old Western child was missing, but the Israeli Foreign Ministry later confirmed she died,
adding that it was, along with the Israeli Embassy in Bangkok, trying to arrange for the body to be
transferred to Israel. Her parents and brother were rescued.

The girl was on vacation in Thailand where they were visiting during Passover in celebration of her bat mitzvah.