The 3rd Region Marine Police, together with the 3rd Region Navy, sent a ship, T.111, to help 143 foreign tourists who were stranded on Koh Racha Yai, safely return to shore in Phuket Province.
Officials from the 3rd Region Maritime Interests Protection Center (Phuket maritime center) and military personnel from the 3rd Naval Area Command are helping to transport tourists, including children, women and the elderly, along with their luggage onto the T.111 boat leaving Koh Racha Yai to return to the shore in Phuket. The T.111 boat safely docked at Phisit Panwa Pier at 4:00 p.m. amidst the joy of the tourists.
Rear Admiral Phuchong Rodnikorn, deputy commander of the Third Naval Area Command, said that there were a total of 143 tourists rescued by the navy today, 138 of whom were Chinese tourists, while the rest were Russian and Middle Eastern tourists. All of them had been traveling and staying on Koh Racha Yai since September 15.
However, today the Port Authority has announced a ban on small boats leaving th
e shore due to strong waves in the sea. Hotel operators on Koh Racha Yai have contacted the Phuket Marine Police to request assistance, saying that there are tourists stranded and need urgent assistance because the group of tourists is scheduled to return to their home countries.
The 3rd Naval Area Command therefore ordered the T.111 ship to go out and help. However, when they arrived at Koh Racha Yai, they found that the waves in front of the beach were very strong. Officers therefore adjusted their plan to take the ship around to the back of the island. Throughout the journey back to shore, they encountered waves that were approximately 3-4 meters high.
However, tourists strictly followed the safety measures, all wore life jackets, and the journey from Koh Racha Yai to the shore took about an hour, and all tourists reached the shore safely.
While Chinese tourists said they were happy, relieved and very lucky that the Thai authorities had helped them to return to shore safely, after they were very worried
this morning that they would not be able to return to their country in time because the hotel informed them that the waves in the sea were strong and the boat could not go out to take them.
I would like to thank the Thai government very much for their assistance, care and convenience. If I have the chance, I will definitely come back to visit Thailand again.
Mr. Li Chenglong, Head of the Chinese Consulate Office, Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Songkhla, stated that he would like to thank the Thai authorities for helping Chinese tourists on Racha Yai Island return to shore safely. Although this incident was caused by uncontrollable natural disasters and weather conditions, the Thai authorities were able to help and solve the problem very well, making all Chinese tourists safe. He expressed his gratitude.
Source: Thai News Agency