Russian tourist drowned in Thailand: five victims in four days

Sincerely wanting to help, I throw out a cry among compatriots in Phuket: who, since Monday, has been swimming under red flags, despite a strict ban? If you haven’t drowned yet, then tell the world what guides you? I publish the answers (without pleasure) in the hope that at least someone will be enlightened from the opposite.

TMD (Thai Meteorological Department) warned about the impending “monsoon trough” at the end of last week, urging tourists from Monday not only to stop directly sea swimming, but also to avoid being on the beach. The “chute”, formed by the southwest monsoon that covered Phuket, creates a draft of such force that even a person on the beach can easily be twisted and carried away to the open sea, not to mention bathers. In addition to the storm, several Thai tourist provinces, including Phuket, were hit by heavy downpours with thunderstorms, which led to flooding and flooding in the lowlands and in the vicinity of any bodies of water.

– We have waves with a five-story building! – the Russian describes the situation on the Thai island of Krabi. – A thunderstorm is sparkling, a black shaft is coming out of the ocean – the vidos on the beach are outrageous.

– Aren’t you afraid that it will blow into the ocean along with the phone?

– And we tied a rope to a palm tree and hold on to it.

Thai rescuers, however, consider such “insurance” to be what in Russian is called “dead poultice”.

“If a hurricane can carry a person away, then no rope will save him,” says Narong, a lifeguard from Patong. – In the case of the “gutter”, the only way to protect yourself is not to approach the ocean at all. The wind speed on the beaches reaches 50 km per hour.

Despite all Monday warnings and red flags on the beaches, meaning a complete ban on swimming, on Tuesday morning on Karon Beach (one of the most respectable areas of tourist Phuket — Auth.) nailed the bodies of two tourists. And the next day, two more. The Russian who drowned on Thursday completed the top five victims of the “gutter” – and became the drop that overwhelmed the patience of the Phuket authorities.

– We called, explained, explained in detail what exactly the danger was, and now all we feel is impotence! – shares the police officer in charge of the Kata-Karon section (the largest concentration of expensive hotels — Auth.). Maybe these people just don’t want to live anymore? It can be seen that the waves from 3 meters are knocked down by the wind, is it really pleasant to swim in such conditions?

On Tuesday, Phuket’s governor ordered that lifeguards be strengthened at each beach, as well as expand the powers and arsenal of lifeguards.

– In normal times, when there is no force majeure, we do not have the right to touch tourists at all, unless they are already drowning, – explains what a “rescue arsenal” is, a member of the rescue group (rescue team) from Phangan Lu Taeng. – According to the regulations, we do not have the right, for example, to grab the hand of a person climbing into storm waves. We have the right to stop him only verbally – that is, with words. And if this is a tourist, then there is a language barrier between us. If there is no particular storm, and swimming is prohibited just in case, we whistle or shout. But now the weather is such that it is already a matter of life and death. Therefore, we were allowed to stop violators by force. And they ordered every incident to be reported to the police.

After a series of drownings on Wednesday, the Phuket governor decided that there were not enough lifeguards, and he sent civil defense units to defend the beaches from bathers! They are insured by the police, who have received carte blanche to forcibly prevent the death of vacationers on the water.

But in the case of the Russians, even this did not help, Russian stubbornness turned out to be stronger. Thursday evening on Surin Beach (a popular tourist area north of Patong — Auth.) drowned 41-year-old Alexander, who arrived on vacation from Russia. According to the police at the Thalang station, which includes Surin Beach, the vacationer, ignoring all the prohibitions, went to swim, and even after sunset, which is even more dangerous. The police were called by random eyewitnesses, and by the time they arrived, the victim of the disaster was taken out of the water by other Russians who had come to the beach with him. That is, a far healthy and perfectly swimming 41-year-old man was not carried away, but it was not possible to save him either, he died in a local hospital without regaining consciousness.

– At that moment there were no big waves, – convinces one of the tourists, who also met the sunset on Surin, but did not go into the water. – And there was not much wind, so the beach was full of people. I would like to plunge when there is a respite between showers.

– If we issue a warning, it’s not distrust of the Russians’ ability to swim, but an objective necessity, – retorts Surin beach lifeguard. – It happens on our shores that it seems to be completely calm, and the undercurrent is such that it will carry away even an Olympic champion in swimming. Only professional rescuers with equipment and on motor boats can resist.

Meanwhile, a whole group of tourists persuaded the captains of two Phuket speedboats (pleasure boats) to return them from an excursion to Phi Phi to hotels in Phuket at the height of the storm. The video of this “kamikaze trip” went viral on the Web, deepening the suspicions of the Phuket authorities that “some tourists are simply tired of living.” As for the Thai captains, they have already been detained and will face trial to have their licenses revoked. And here is how the Russian “storm bathers” explain their own prowess.

– I sailed on a speedboat in the very storm, – 28-year-old Yulia from Moscow admits. – But not on purpose. We sailed to the island in complete calm, but in the open sea they began to toss us so that everyone lay in vests at the bottom of the boat to soften the blows. But my back is still covered in bruises. For such a storm, a large boat is like a piece of wood. And how a person can swim out of it, I can’t even imagine. Now I know for sure: if they say “you can’t swim”, then you can’t, even if the sea is calm now. In the Andaman Sea, everything starts suddenly.

– Why don’t you ask what we do in Tae in the summer? After all, this is about the same as swimming in a storm, 37-year-old Evgeny from Izhevsk answers. – I answer: I have no money for holidays in Tai during the normal season. I saved up here for a week on the very monsun (monsoon rainy season — Auth.), and for four days it has been stormy and pouring. Of course, in any “window”, when the rain subsides, I climb into the ocean. Otherwise, for what purpose am I getting wet here ?! Heavy rains and we have in Izhevsk happen.

– I also swam yesterday, – a 52-year-old Muscovite, who is now vacationing in Phuket, admits on condition of anonymity. – But anyway. Me and two others were washed off the bow of the boat, and we persuaded a sea taxi driver to give us a lift to Bangla Road. And so they paid. Fortunately for us, the current went to the shore and we were not carried into the ocean, but literally thrown ashore. But they felt the Silushka and didn’t even touch the water with a foot!

– And we have direct flights from Khabarovsk only to Tai, – says a Russian from the Far East. – As I accumulate, so I will cure. And what kind of monsoon-Tusson is there, I don’t care, I came to swim, so I will swim!