PHUKET: Two young German tourists talked today for the first time on Phuket about a horrific knife attack in Krabi in which their friend had her thumb severed.
''The guys were laughing,'' said Sina Beckert, 21, still decked in bandages on her forehead, finger and elbow from the attack in Krabi City early on Sunday morning.
''They wanted to hurt us,'' added Ina Heilig, who was unscathed by the chopper-wielding assailant.
Phuketwan talked to the two young travellers at Bangkok Hospital Phuket, where a desperate struggle continues to save the right thumb of Hanna Zerlant, who was only trying to stop the attack when her severed thumb fell to the pavement.
''A Scottish nurse was the hero,'' said Ms Beckert. ''She and three of her friends were also on the street when we were attacked.
''A man in a house brought out some ice and the nurse and her friends packed the thumb in the ice.''
The seven tourists all went together in an ambulance to the Emergency unit at Krabi Hospital.
Then the thee German friends sped on for two hours from Krabi to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, where an emergency operation to reattach the severed thumb was performed at 7am on Sunday morning.
The three young friends continue to share a room at the hospital, with Hanna today having treatment in the oxygen room to give the thumb the best possible chance of taking.
The three friends from school in southern Germany, near the border with Austria and Switzerland, had been travelling around Thailand since March 5.
''We'd had a great trip,'' said Ms Heilig. ''We'd been to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hua Hin, Samui, and a half-moon party on Phangan.
''We really liked Krabi.
''The place reminded me of a small town in Australia, and the people were so nice. I wrote some postcards on Saturday, saying how wonderful the place seemed.
''On Saturday night we went to a reggae bar and danced with Koreans, French people and Thais. We had a wonderful time.''
All that changed as the three friends went for a short walk to a convenience store near Bai Fern Mansion, the guesthouse where they planned to sleep before heading to Phi Phi later that day.
''The guys on the motorcycle came past us and stopped behind a car on their scooter,'' said Ms Beckert. ''One was standing, the other was still on the scooter.
''My bag was grabbed from behind and the man pulled me back.''
Ms Beckert still has the leather bag with its broken strap - but the thieves escaped with the contents, a camera, a telephone, and some cash.
''The weapon he was waving was about 30 centimetres long,'' she said, estimating the length with her hands. ''At first I thought it was plastic. Then everything was covered in blood.''
Ms Heilig said: ''They didn't hold out the knife and say 'Give us your money.' They just attacked. They wanted to hurt us.''
Ms Beckert added: ''They were laughing. They enjoyed it.'' Ms Zerlant lost her thumb in waving her hands as a peacemaker.
The two young women said their injured friend had behaved admirably. ''She's so brave, and so realistic,'' said Ms Heilig. The three had shared a lot since going their separate ways after school to three different universities.
Travelling together was a reunion.
The friends had shared a gap year in Australia and New Zealand, with one spending time in Australia and the other in New Zealand, and Ms Heilig sharing time with her friends in both countries.
They are positive about saving Hanna's thumb because of the Scottish nurse and the man with the ice.
But they are not as hopeful about their laughing attackers ever being caught.
''We just couldn't give police any kind of description,'' Ms Heilig said. ''It was all over so fast.''
Police interviewed the three travellers briefly before they were sped to Phuket for the surgery.
''We were thinking about going to an island off Malaysia then perhaps heading home from there,'' Ms Heilig said.
''Now,'' said Ms Beckert, ''we will be at the hospital for perhaps another five days, then fly straight home.''
Police in Krabi are investigating. But there is no security camera footage, and no early leads in the case.
''The guys were laughing,'' said Sina Beckert, 21, still decked in bandages on her forehead, finger and elbow from the attack in Krabi City early on Sunday morning.
''They wanted to hurt us,'' added Ina Heilig, who was unscathed by the chopper-wielding assailant.
Phuketwan talked to the two young travellers at Bangkok Hospital Phuket, where a desperate struggle continues to save the right thumb of Hanna Zerlant, who was only trying to stop the attack when her severed thumb fell to the pavement.
''A Scottish nurse was the hero,'' said Ms Beckert. ''She and three of her friends were also on the street when we were attacked.
''A man in a house brought out some ice and the nurse and her friends packed the thumb in the ice.''
The seven tourists all went together in an ambulance to the Emergency unit at Krabi Hospital.
Then the thee German friends sped on for two hours from Krabi to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, where an emergency operation to reattach the severed thumb was performed at 7am on Sunday morning.
The three young friends continue to share a room at the hospital, with Hanna today having treatment in the oxygen room to give the thumb the best possible chance of taking.
The three friends from school in southern Germany, near the border with Austria and Switzerland, had been travelling around Thailand since March 5.
''We'd had a great trip,'' said Ms Heilig. ''We'd been to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hua Hin, Samui, and a half-moon party on Phangan.
''We really liked Krabi.
''The place reminded me of a small town in Australia, and the people were so nice. I wrote some postcards on Saturday, saying how wonderful the place seemed.
''On Saturday night we went to a reggae bar and danced with Koreans, French people and Thais. We had a wonderful time.''
All that changed as the three friends went for a short walk to a convenience store near Bai Fern Mansion, the guesthouse where they planned to sleep before heading to Phi Phi later that day.
''The guys on the motorcycle came past us and stopped behind a car on their scooter,'' said Ms Beckert. ''One was standing, the other was still on the scooter.
''My bag was grabbed from behind and the man pulled me back.''
Ms Beckert still has the leather bag with its broken strap - but the thieves escaped with the contents, a camera, a telephone, and some cash.
''The weapon he was waving was about 30 centimetres long,'' she said, estimating the length with her hands. ''At first I thought it was plastic. Then everything was covered in blood.''
Ms Heilig said: ''They didn't hold out the knife and say 'Give us your money.' They just attacked. They wanted to hurt us.''
Ms Beckert added: ''They were laughing. They enjoyed it.'' Ms Zerlant lost her thumb in waving her hands as a peacemaker.
The two young women said their injured friend had behaved admirably. ''She's so brave, and so realistic,'' said Ms Heilig. The three had shared a lot since going their separate ways after school to three different universities.
Travelling together was a reunion.
The friends had shared a gap year in Australia and New Zealand, with one spending time in Australia and the other in New Zealand, and Ms Heilig sharing time with her friends in both countries.
They are positive about saving Hanna's thumb because of the Scottish nurse and the man with the ice.
But they are not as hopeful about their laughing attackers ever being caught.
''We just couldn't give police any kind of description,'' Ms Heilig said. ''It was all over so fast.''
Police interviewed the three travellers briefly before they were sped to Phuket for the surgery.
''We were thinking about going to an island off Malaysia then perhaps heading home from there,'' Ms Heilig said.
''Now,'' said Ms Beckert, ''we will be at the hospital for perhaps another five days, then fly straight home.''
Police in Krabi are investigating. But there is no security camera footage, and no early leads in the case.
