PHUKET: Three young Australian tourists told today of their nightmare ride on a speedboat off Phuket with a fun-seeking captain at the helm.
The speedboat - bound for Phi Phi from Phuket - crashed into the oncoming swells, eventually hurling tourists in all directions, leaving six needing hospital treatment.
None of the 46 tourists on the speedboat were wearing lifejackets, battered survivors said today.
Bleeding from the nose and screaming in pain, Tegan Larin, 24, and her sister, Rahni, 27, were unable to move after being hurled into the air on top of other passengers.
''An American woman underneath me had a bad gash in a leg,'' Tegan said today from her bed at Phuket International Hospital in Phuket City.
''An Asian woman also cut her face badly. People were screaming. It was chaos.''
Tegan, an acting student from the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick, was the sole passenger among the 46 on board who was admitted.
The others were stitched up in the hospital's emergency section and discharged, a Phuket International Hospital spokesperson said today.
Twenty-four hours later, what still horrified the sisters and their cousin, Samara, who escaped uninjured, was the danger involved with no-one wearing a lifejacket.
''Tegan and Rahni both had back injuries and couldn't move,'' Samara said. ''What would have happened to them if they had been thrown overboard, without lifejackets?''
A spokesperson for the tour company said today that the boat captain had received no warning about the weather.
But it's up to tour boat captains to do their own weather checks - and to make sure that all passengers wear lifejackets at all times.
The speedboat took much longer to return to Chalong and waiting ambulances than it did to crash through the waves on the way to Phi Phi - until its passengers crashed.
Repeated warnings about safety lapses on speedboats travelling between Phuket and Phi Phi have gone unheeded despite two near-tragic sinkings in recent holiday seasons.
There is no Chalong harbormaster to control the vessels. Individual ''captains'' make the decision about whether or not to put to sea, no matter how bad conditions might seem.
Tegan Larin will have to wear a back brace for two compressed discs for at least six weeks, while her sister has also been fitted with a brace for a single compressed disc.
Grateful for thorough insurance, they are now trying to organise tickets on flights back to Australia that will allow them to recline.
They remain highly critical of the speedboat captain and believe he was having ''a bit of fun'' regardless of the safety of the passengers on board.
Riding on speedboat trips off Phuket is not something they plan to do again, nor will they recommend it to their friends.
The speedboat - bound for Phi Phi from Phuket - crashed into the oncoming swells, eventually hurling tourists in all directions, leaving six needing hospital treatment.
None of the 46 tourists on the speedboat were wearing lifejackets, battered survivors said today.
Bleeding from the nose and screaming in pain, Tegan Larin, 24, and her sister, Rahni, 27, were unable to move after being hurled into the air on top of other passengers.
''An American woman underneath me had a bad gash in a leg,'' Tegan said today from her bed at Phuket International Hospital in Phuket City.
''An Asian woman also cut her face badly. People were screaming. It was chaos.''
Tegan, an acting student from the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick, was the sole passenger among the 46 on board who was admitted.
The others were stitched up in the hospital's emergency section and discharged, a Phuket International Hospital spokesperson said today.
Twenty-four hours later, what still horrified the sisters and their cousin, Samara, who escaped uninjured, was the danger involved with no-one wearing a lifejacket.
''Tegan and Rahni both had back injuries and couldn't move,'' Samara said. ''What would have happened to them if they had been thrown overboard, without lifejackets?''
A spokesperson for the tour company said today that the boat captain had received no warning about the weather.
But it's up to tour boat captains to do their own weather checks - and to make sure that all passengers wear lifejackets at all times.
The speedboat took much longer to return to Chalong and waiting ambulances than it did to crash through the waves on the way to Phi Phi - until its passengers crashed.
Repeated warnings about safety lapses on speedboats travelling between Phuket and Phi Phi have gone unheeded despite two near-tragic sinkings in recent holiday seasons.
There is no Chalong harbormaster to control the vessels. Individual ''captains'' make the decision about whether or not to put to sea, no matter how bad conditions might seem.
Tegan Larin will have to wear a back brace for two compressed discs for at least six weeks, while her sister has also been fitted with a brace for a single compressed disc.
Grateful for thorough insurance, they are now trying to organise tickets on flights back to Australia that will allow them to recline.
They remain highly critical of the speedboat captain and believe he was having ''a bit of fun'' regardless of the safety of the passengers on board.
Riding on speedboat trips off Phuket is not something they plan to do again, nor will they recommend it to their friends.
when will it ever end
probably as always swept under the carpet
Posted by tom on January 31, 2013 14:40