Speedboat propeller severs Russian tourist’s leg near Maya Bay

[webfact]

Speedboat Propeller Severs Tourist’s Leg
By Chayanit Itthipongmaetee
Staff Reporter


An injured man is helped out of the water Wednesday morning off Koh Phi Phi Lee in Krabi province.

KRABI — A speed boat seriously injured two Russian tourists as they were snorkeling near Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Lee this morning.

The leg of one man, identified as a 30-year-old Russian national, was severed by the propeller of the boat, which was traveling from Nopparat Thara Beach to Maya Bay when it hit the two men.

The second man, 48, also received a serious injury to his leg, police Lt. Col. Jetsada Chanpum said.

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1454482056


-- Khaosod English 2016-02-03

[2008bangkok]

Jeez why cant they watch where they going!

[Mango Bob]

This has been becoming to common here in Thailand. The speedboat should have never been in the area, if the speed boat was given the tour. It should never start it motors until all tourist are aboard. No excuse, criminally charges who be taken.

[lovelomsak]

Seems like everyday some gets hurts in the water or drowns in the south of Thailand. Snorkelers die,boats run over people the list goes on but everyday there is some thing. I lived On Vancouver Island for years and it is very water active. Hundreds of boats on the water at any given time. Never hear of things like this happening. Thailand is very very dangerous for vacations if you do water sports.

[2008bangkok]

Seems like everyday some gets hurts in the water or drowns in the south of Thailand. Snorkelers die,boats run over people the list goes on but everyday there is some thing. I lived On Vancouver Island for years and it is very water active. Hundreds of boats on the water at any given time. Never hear of things like this happening. Thailand is very very dangerous for vacations if you do water sports.

Thats because probably none of them have got a license and whether they got a license or not they all Thick as <deleted>

Edited February 3, 2016 by metisdead
Profanity

[jomcondo]

a friend just got back from a snorkelling trip to the Simian islands, he said a speedboat went past the group very close (2m) at quite a rate.

[stoneyboy]

1000 baht fine and off you go.

No problem it's only a Farang.

[stoneyboy]

Seems like everyday some gets hurts in the water or drowns in the south of Thailand. Snorkelers die,boats run over people the list goes on but everyday there is some thing. I lived On Vancouver Island for years and it is very water active. Hundreds of boats on the water at any given time. Never hear of things like this happening. Thailand is very very dangerous for vacations if you do water sports.

It seems like everyday because it is everyday,roads,boats,suicides,elephants,murders,zip wires,poisoned beds,the list goes on and on.

It seems it's becoming increasingly more dangerous being a tourist here than it ever was,these incidents should in time be on the wain they are quite the opposite and are doing the Kingdom no favours in self promotion of their tourism industry,they simply don't give a toss.

Edited February 3, 2016 by stoneyboy

[Deli]

1000 baht fine and off you go.

No problem it's only a Farang.

Policeman good friend, 500 ok.

[Jing Joe]

If that's the boat that got him, there's some pretty serious horse power involved.

2 x 250 HP ??

[hobobo]

1000 baht fine and off you go.

No problem it's only a Farang.

Policeman good friend, 500 ok.

Not even a proper farang. A Russian! 250 Baht...

[Ulic]

Lots of collisions but even more near misses with no changes. I is hard to see swimmers

and snorkelers from boats and hard for swimmers to get out of the way. The boat drivers

need to stay away from any area that has people in the water. Away from shorelines

and places where snorkelers are brought to. When any where near where people are

in the water they should be operating at trolling speed, 3-4 miles per hour and a couple

of spotters scanning the area in front of the boat. This should all be part of the driver

training and licencing and also the licensing of the boat company. Common sense

is rarely common, especially in Thailand. A horror vacation for the poor Russian tourist.

[SOTIRIOS]

...this is too sick......

[KenKadz]

Don't divers (scuba and snorkel) use flags or markers indicating their presence?

[stevenl]

Don't divers (scuba and snorkel) use flags or markers indicating their presence?

Scuba divers tend to indicate their presence when they are within a few minutes of surfacing with a buoy, snorkelers in general don't have any signalling devices.

[NeoDinosaw]

Lots of collisions but even more near misses with no changes. I is hard to see swimmers

and snorkelers from boats and hard for swimmers to get out of the way. The boat drivers

need to stay away from any area that has people in the water. Away from shorelines

and places where snorkelers are brought to. When any where near where people are

in the water they should be operating at trolling speed, 3-4 miles per hour and a couple

of spotters scanning the area in front of the boat. This should all be part of the driver

training and licencing and also the licensing of the boat company. Common sense

is rarely common, especially in Thailand. A horror vacation for the poor Russian tourist.

Training ...... ? Common sense ...... ?

It seems to me that speedboat and jetski drivers think it is great fun to scare farang who are sedately swimming harmlessly in the sea.

It does not occur to the local authorities to have separate beaches for speedboats + jetskis + paragliding + those who want an Adrenalin rush, and other beaches for people who want to relax in safety. But that would require common sense and enforcement - so no hope there. Better for the latter group to go elsewhere for their hols.

I have realised that relaxing quietly on the beach without spending a fortune on all the exciting activities on offer is almost an offence in Thailand !

[Canuk23]

Driver was too young only 22 yo not much experience if you ask me, they should have swim zones, went on one of those

snorkeling excursion and saw as many as 15 speed boats in one location with snorkelers that's an accident waiting to happen !!!

[Encid]

I visited Maya Bay in May last year.

There is a roped off area marked by buoys where you can swim and snorkel. It is supposed to be a boat-free zone..

The speed boats just ignore them, and reverse into shore with their engines raised and revving them wildly to get swimmers out of the way.

A snorkeler would have no chance of hearing them if his ears were underwater.

Totally irresponsible and totally unregulated.

[stevenl]

I visited Maya Bay in May last year.

There is a roped off area marked by buoys where you can swim and snorkel. It is supposed to be a boat-free zone..

The speed boats just ignore them, and reverse into shore with their engines raised and revving them wildly to get swimmers out of the way.

A snorkeler would have no chance of hearing them if his ears were underwater.

Totally irresponsible and totally unregulated.

045.JPG

Very easy to hear them while underwater, but yes, totally indispensable.

A few days ago I watched a speedboat doing donuts just outside Maya bay.

[snoop1130]

Russian diver’s leg slashed off by speedboat propeller on Phi Phi diving trip
Eakkapop Thongtub

PHUKET: -- One Russian diver had his right leg slashed nearly right through by a speedboat propeller while another Russian diver suffered lesser, but serious, deep cuts during a dive tour trip at Phi Phi Lei Island this morning (Feb 3).

Sergei Dmitriev, 30, and Dmitry Kuryanov, 48, were struck by the propeller of the speedboat Sunsan 2 when they resurfaced from their dive at Maya Bay at about 10:30am, said Nitiphat Mongkolpradit of the Krabi Tourist Rescue Centre.

“The captain of the dive boat that the two men were diving with said that he took tourists to Phi Phi Lei on a diving trip and let the the divers into the water in pairs, Mr Nitiphat told The Phuket News.

“The divers floated buoy to warn people that they were surfacing, but when the two men floated their buoy, a speedboat came into the area to check what was going on.

“That was when the two divers came up and were hit by the propeller,” he said.

Full Story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/russian-diver-leg-slashed-off-by-speedboat-propeller-on-phi-phi-diving-trip-56034.php

-- Phuket News 2016-02-03

[slipperylobster]

What a terrible thing to happen !

Thailand....unsafe at any speed.

[clockman]

Another reason not to visit Thailand. They realy do not deserve tourists!

[RoboGeisha]

You know how they drive motorbikes. You know how they drive cars. You know how they drive vans. You know how they drive busses. You know how they drive trucks. Why should there be any improvement when they drive a boat?

[Schwabe]

I visited Maya Bay in May last year.

There is a roped off area marked by buoys where you can swim and snorkel. It is supposed to be a boat-free zone..

The speed boats just ignore them, and reverse into shore with their engines raised and revving them wildly to get swimmers out of the way.

A snorkeler would have no chance of hearing them if his ears were underwater.

Totally irresponsible and totally unregulated.

045.JPG

dear encid

if a snorkelers ears are under water he hears even better because of the higher density of water.....problem is you don`t now where the sound is coming from..sound hits your eardrums at the same time..physics..

trust me..i am a former diving instructor who used to work here..legally...

divers before surfacing send up buoys...sometimes ignored by speed boat captains...or most of the times..sad but true..

i know Maya Bay very well..dived there with students....a dangerous place..

[movsrus]

If you are snorkeling or diving it is imperative that you put up a safety marker (safety sausage) when you are near the surface to provide some kind of warning to the idiots who drive these speedboats. If you are a diver, you can deploy the marker at 5 meters then hang onto the line and do your safety stop and slowly come up to the marker and breech the surface.

Several years ago I was diving at Analio in the Philippines when I almost got run over by a drunk Pinoy in a speedboat. When we got back to shore the dive master said he knew the boat captain so we went over to complain. He copped an attitude so I clubbed him with my weight belt then took a good swing at his leg which had a resounding crack as he yelped in pain. Didn't see him again for the duration of my stay but heard his leg was in a cast.

These boat drivers will kill you given half a chance.

[steelepulse]

Marine Parks newly appointed big boss of the Andaman region Phuripat sure is doing a fine job of ensuring safety for tourists in his region.......NOT. Let's see drownings, injuries, speed boats hitting each other............The list goes on. Perhaps instead of cracking down on foreign flagged boats for this and that, maybe he should make the local boats actually understand safety. Oops lost cause, sorry.

[connda]

TIT, but sad. Prays to the victims. Hopefully compensation for a life that is now fundamentally changed.

[HooHaa]

You know how they drive motorbikes. You know how they drive cars. You know how they drive vans. You know how they drive busses. You know how they drive trucks. Why should there be any improvement when they drive a boat?

My, my, the alienation is strong with you.

[farcanell]

"The divers floated buoy to warn people that they were surfacing, but when the two men floated their buoy, a speedboat came into the area to check what was going on.

That was when the two divers came up and were hit by the propeller, "

This boat skipper should be held accountable big time, as this is negligence at an extreme level, and he should never be allowed to be in charge of a boat again.... But will probably simply get a slap on the wrist

What is unfortunate, is that we rarely see articles relating to the end process... So are largely unaware of the repercussions of this type of thing

That said, to make matters worse, many tourists put themselves in harms way, sometimes deliberately, such as the Russian family walking from krabi to Phuket... Pure Stupidity...

And tourists hiring scooters and riding about like idiots in Thai traffic, with bugger all cloths on to boot! (protective wear) and at times uproariously drunk and drugged on god knows what, and the list goes on

A double pronged campaign needs to be initiated, such as was suggested a few weeks ago, whereby airlines should be made to hand out information pamphlets about the inherent hazards that they may/ will encounter.

The existing lack of law / regulations and lack of enforcement is simply mind numbing

Edited February 3, 2016 by farcanell

[JHolmesJr]

Wonder if the russian was told to "go make another leg".