PHUKET: In an unprecedented move, Phuket's Marine 5 Chief, Phuripat Theerakulpisut, has banned the holiday island's speedboats and traditional longtail vessels from venturing to sea in tomorrow's predicted bad weather.
It's the first time in modern memory that the Marine 5 chief has restricted the movement of boats for safety reasons.
''We will cancel the licence of any captain who leaves Phuket on Monday,'' Khun Phuripat told Phuketwan today.
Heavy rain began blanketing Phuket on Sunday and is forecast to extend through Monday, before lifting on Tuesday.
Meteorologists say that the rain could be accompanied by winds of up to 40-50kph.
Khun Phuripat has warned of strong penalties for captains who breach safety rules in the past but has never imposed stern measures.
As the weather improves, the main topic of discussion is likely to be Phuket's jet-skis and whether they should be banned. One of Phuket's tabloid newspapers has now followed last Monday's call by Phuketwan for the dangerous vehicles to be banned.
The call followed the death that day of Russian tourist Iliya Muryndin, 29, in a crash that highlighted the risks of the machines that operate at Patong beach and other prime Phuket swimming beaches.
A plan to segment Patong beach between 500-metre stretches for swimmers and 300-metre stretches for jet-skis is likely to be approved by Patong Council but tourists and swimmers have had no say in what should happen.
It's believed that if a poll was taken of tourists, the vast majority would urge that jet-skis be banned.
The machines are already prohibited in Phuket's neighboring provinces, Krabi and Phang Nga, and not in keeping with the Thai government's efforts to make Phuket safer and more natural.
Phuketwan continues to hear of scams and rip-offs being perpetrated by criminal gangs among the jet-ski operators, sometimes with the connivance of law officers.
It's the first time in modern memory that the Marine 5 chief has restricted the movement of boats for safety reasons.
''We will cancel the licence of any captain who leaves Phuket on Monday,'' Khun Phuripat told Phuketwan today.
Heavy rain began blanketing Phuket on Sunday and is forecast to extend through Monday, before lifting on Tuesday.
Meteorologists say that the rain could be accompanied by winds of up to 40-50kph.
Khun Phuripat has warned of strong penalties for captains who breach safety rules in the past but has never imposed stern measures.
As the weather improves, the main topic of discussion is likely to be Phuket's jet-skis and whether they should be banned. One of Phuket's tabloid newspapers has now followed last Monday's call by Phuketwan for the dangerous vehicles to be banned.
The call followed the death that day of Russian tourist Iliya Muryndin, 29, in a crash that highlighted the risks of the machines that operate at Patong beach and other prime Phuket swimming beaches.
A plan to segment Patong beach between 500-metre stretches for swimmers and 300-metre stretches for jet-skis is likely to be approved by Patong Council but tourists and swimmers have had no say in what should happen.
It's believed that if a poll was taken of tourists, the vast majority would urge that jet-skis be banned.
The machines are already prohibited in Phuket's neighboring provinces, Krabi and Phang Nga, and not in keeping with the Thai government's efforts to make Phuket safer and more natural.
Phuketwan continues to hear of scams and rip-offs being perpetrated by criminal gangs among the jet-ski operators, sometimes with the connivance of law officers.
Finally, but was a weather forecast for today any better?
However , true, the actual weather today is much better than forecasted.
Posted by Sue on November 9, 2014 18:44