ONE tourist has drowned and another tourist is missing in a day of tragedy at two of Phuket's most popular but treacherous beaches. The tourist from China, pulled from the water at Kata, died at Patong Hospital this afternoon with his wife at his bedside. Hope is fading that the other tourist, from Bahrain, lost off Karon beach, will be found alive.


A DESPERATE search was being conducted this afternoon for a tourist who went missing while swimming in the surf at Phuket's notoriously dangerous Karon beach.

At Patong Hospital, doctors failed in an attempt to save the life of a tourist from China, who was pulled from the surf in a second incident at the neighboring Phuket beach of Kata.

Off Karon beach, lifeguards using a jet-ski and a dinghy were looking for the man, one of three tourists from Bahrain in the Middle East who found themselves in difficulties in the water.

Two of the men were pulled to safety on the shore and recovered after resuscitation was performed. The third man, however, is missing. He was named as Ali Alsaeed, 25.

His two friends were sitting on the beach this afternoon, shedding tears. After two hours, there seemed little hope he would be found alive.

The incident took place off the beach from the Karon golden dragon statue.

A man from Romania drowned at this spot late last month. Survivors from the group of friends from Romania said they were not warned about the danger at their beachfront resort, the Karon Princess.

The three Bahrain tourists were guests at the Patong Express Resort. Patong, Karon and Kata are Phuket's three most popular west coast tourist destinations.

A second incident occurred this afternoon at Kata beach, the next beach to Karon, where sources say Chinese tourist Chao Dakun,
age about 40, was pulled from the water and later died at Patong Hospital. He and his wife were staying at Kata Sea Beach Resort.

Drownings this monsoon season are following the pattern of previous monsoon seasons and can only accentuate calls for Karon beach - and possibly other beaches - to be closed on days when conditions are dangerous.

Lifeguards have said they are unable to patrol the whole length of the four-kilometre beach, so they need resorts to warn guests about the dangers of Karon.

The Romanian man was pulled from the water at Karon alive but doctors were unable to save him. He was one of five deaths by drowning reported to Phuket's Public Health Department in July. Another five people were admitted to hospital, but recovered.

Phuketwan recently highlighted in an opinion article that a number of countries have issued travel alerts for Bangkok, where no tourists have been killed in this year's violence, yet tourists drown needlessly and too often at Karon beach and other Phuket beaches during the monsoon season.

It can only be a matter of time before countries begin to warn tourists about the dangers of Phuket's beaches during the monsoon season.

Yesterday, six Thai high school children were pulled to safety in a mass rescue at Phuket's southern Nai Harn beach. The first Phuket drowning of the year came on January 1 when a 10-year-old boy drowned at Nai Harn.

In 2009, there were 57 drownings in the waters of Phuket. This compares with the 153 deaths on Phuket's roads, highlighting the disproportionate danger in the water.

So far this year, there have been 25 drownings to the end of July. The 2009 figure included seven victims from a dive boat capsize.