At least 49 people missing after tourist boat capsizes in Phuket

At least 49 people missing after tourist boat capsizes in Phuket

DIVERS who entered the wreck of a tour boat that sank in a storm off the southern Thai resort island of Phuket described heartbreaking scenes of bodies of children found in the arms of their mothers, as the search continued on Saturday for 15 mostly Chinese tourists missing in a disaster that has left dozens dead.

The death toll from Thursday’s tragedy climbed to 41, in Thailand’s biggest tourist-related disaster in years.

It was not clear how many of the dead and missing were Chinese. In announcing a previous death toll of 33, authorities said all of those victims were Chinese.

“It’s very difficult to see ... it’s traumatic, it’s tragic but the best thing to do, our job as divers, is to bring back the bodies to their families,” diver Philip Entremont told reporters before resuming the search Saturday.

The boat, with 105 people, including 93 tourists, capsized and sank after it was hit by 5-metre waves.

“The skies were clear when we went out, we had no idea the weather could change so fast,” said Wu Jun, 28, from the hospital bedside of his wife Long Hai Ning.

The pair, who were on their honeymoon, were on different decks as the boat started to list, but both managed to escape.

“I grabbed onto a railing and pulled myself overboard,” he told AFP, adding he feared women and children were among those who were trapped on the bottom deck as the boat went down.

The boat sank 40 metres below the surface of the Andaman Sea, a few kilometres off the coast of Koh He, an islet known for its coral formations and popular with day-trippers from the tourist magnet of Phuket.

The death toll jumped Friday after the navy sent divers to the wreck.

In images shortly after the sinking, rescued people sat in large rubber life rafts surrounded by churning seas.

Phuket Gov. Norraphat Plodthong announced at a news conference on Saturday evening that the death toll had climbed to 41, with 15 missing.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the leader of Thailand’s military government, expressed his “sympathies and deepest condolences” to the families of the dead.

The government will “exert all efforts to find those still missing and provide support to all survivors of this tragic event,” he said in a statement.

Reports in Thai media said police charged the owner and captain of the stricken ship with carelessness causing death and injury.

A stream of full body bags were brought to shore at Chalong pier in Phuket and taken to a nearby hospital for identification.

Helicopters continued to scan the water Friday afternoon in what appeared to be an increasingly forlorn hunt for survivors.

“I’m not really sure how many will survive,” a grim-faced Noraphat Plodthong, the governor of Phuket, told reporters.

Thai junta number two Prawit Wongsuwon ordered an investigation into why “the boat went to sea” despite a weather warning, while Thai police said they would seek to charge the captain and owner with negligence.

The Phoenix was among several boats that appeared to have ignored a warning in place since Wednesday not to take tourists on day-trips to the islands that dot the seas off Phuket.

Several other vessels hit trouble late Thursday, but all of their passengers were rescued.

Thailand is already in the global spotlight for a dramatic rescue mission in the north of the country, after 12 boys and their football coach were trapped in a cave complex.

A Chinese consular official arrived at the operations centre in Phuket to monitor the rescue effort.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said a taskforce was on its way to Thailand.

“We hope that the Thai side can continue their best efforts and... do their best to treat the injured, comfort relatives and deal with other follow up measures,” he said.

Phuket draws hordes of overseas visitors including Western sun-seekers and huge numbers of Chinese tourists who make up nearly a third of the 35 million people expected to visit Thailand this year.

Last year 9.8 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand, with five million more arriving between January and May this year.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for all-out search and rescue efforts, telling the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Chinese diplomats in Thailand to take greater measures, and also urging Thai authorities to spare no efforts. Chinese Ambassador Lyu Jian had an “emergency conversation” by phone with Thai Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement.