PHUKET: The number of jet-skis on Phuket now tops 300 and continues to grow, says the regional head of Marine Office 5, Wichai Kamwong.
''We cannot control jet-skis on Phuket,'' he said. ''Local authorities continue ro register them.
''Everywhere else in the Anadaman region, the local people oppose jet-skis, but not on Phuket.''
Local police in Patong, Phuket's west-coast holiday capital, and the Tourist Police both rate jet-skis as the source of the most damaging scams inflicted on tourists on Phuket.
Representatives from all six Andaman provinces covered by Marine Office 5 met this week to consider - among other options - forcing jet-skis on Phiuket to operate from pontoons 500 metres out to sea.
''We are still talking about the pontoon idea and other ideas,'' Khun Wichai said.
He said he was not aware, until told by Phuketwan, that jet-skis already operated illegally on Surin beach and Laem Sing beach.
Most of Phuket's honorary consuls also list jet-skis as the No. 1 problem that leads to operators ripping off tourists in fake damage scams as well as inflating values whenever there is a genuine collision.
The latest incident occurred in December when a South African tourist on a jet-ski crashed into two Australian women on a second jet-ski, putting one of the women in hospital for an extended period.
Although the South African man said he would pay for all damage, two jet-ski operators later turned up at a hospital in Phuket City with the intention of extracting more cash from the injured Australian woman.
The incident horrified hospital officials and honorary consuls.
Ambassadors and embassy representatives have made jet-skis their top priority in talking to government and tourism officials in Bangkok about what needs to change to improve Phuket's reputation as a safe and ''green'' holiday destination.
The increasing numbers of tourists visiting Phuket - and Patong especially - means that attempts to divide beaches into swimming and jet-ski plus parasailing activities using buoy barriers are probably doomed to fail.
Some jet-ski operators would like their industry cleaned up and properly controlled. The failure of a plan to phase out jet-skis over seven years leaves Phuket with an undesirable reputation for failing to stamp out jet-ski scams.
In most cases, the operators try to restrict their targets to Patong beach and attempt to prevent them contacting police, Tourist Police or honorary consuls. Intervention and mediation usually results in damages being reduced to realistic sums.
Last year Phuket was reported to have 286 insured and registered jet-skis, which operate with permission from only six points: Patong, Kata, Karon, Kamala, Bang Tao and Naka Island. A total of 167 insured jet-skis operate from Patong.
''We cannot control jet-skis on Phuket,'' he said. ''Local authorities continue ro register them.
''Everywhere else in the Anadaman region, the local people oppose jet-skis, but not on Phuket.''
Local police in Patong, Phuket's west-coast holiday capital, and the Tourist Police both rate jet-skis as the source of the most damaging scams inflicted on tourists on Phuket.
Representatives from all six Andaman provinces covered by Marine Office 5 met this week to consider - among other options - forcing jet-skis on Phiuket to operate from pontoons 500 metres out to sea.
''We are still talking about the pontoon idea and other ideas,'' Khun Wichai said.
He said he was not aware, until told by Phuketwan, that jet-skis already operated illegally on Surin beach and Laem Sing beach.
Most of Phuket's honorary consuls also list jet-skis as the No. 1 problem that leads to operators ripping off tourists in fake damage scams as well as inflating values whenever there is a genuine collision.
The latest incident occurred in December when a South African tourist on a jet-ski crashed into two Australian women on a second jet-ski, putting one of the women in hospital for an extended period.
Although the South African man said he would pay for all damage, two jet-ski operators later turned up at a hospital in Phuket City with the intention of extracting more cash from the injured Australian woman.
The incident horrified hospital officials and honorary consuls.
Ambassadors and embassy representatives have made jet-skis their top priority in talking to government and tourism officials in Bangkok about what needs to change to improve Phuket's reputation as a safe and ''green'' holiday destination.
The increasing numbers of tourists visiting Phuket - and Patong especially - means that attempts to divide beaches into swimming and jet-ski plus parasailing activities using buoy barriers are probably doomed to fail.
Some jet-ski operators would like their industry cleaned up and properly controlled. The failure of a plan to phase out jet-skis over seven years leaves Phuket with an undesirable reputation for failing to stamp out jet-ski scams.
In most cases, the operators try to restrict their targets to Patong beach and attempt to prevent them contacting police, Tourist Police or honorary consuls. Intervention and mediation usually results in damages being reduced to realistic sums.
Last year Phuket was reported to have 286 insured and registered jet-skis, which operate with permission from only six points: Patong, Kata, Karon, Kamala, Bang Tao and Naka Island. A total of 167 insured jet-skis operate from Patong.
YAWN!!
Posted by phuket madness on January 11, 2012 09:43