Thai police found the body of a man washed ashore near Patong Beach in Phuket. It turned out to be a 52-year-old Russian tourist who drowned in front of his wife after going swimming under unsuitable weather conditions, Phuketnews reported.
Major Chayakorn Thangsakul of the Patong Police Station said they received a call around 7:45 am on May 27 from a group of eyewitnesses who noticed that the lifeless body of a man had washed ashore. The group that arrived at the scene pronounced the tourist dead and took him to a Patong hospital for further examination.
According to the preliminary version, the man swam in the sea, but due to very difficult weather conditions and waves, he lost his bearings and drowned. His wife was on the shore at the time of the incident and saw her husband drowning. It is not known whether lifeguards were on duty at the beach.
A pair of Russian tourists stayed at an unnamed hotel in Patong and went down to the beach early in the morning to enjoy surfing, although the difficult weather conditions made it dangerous. The day before, the Southern Meteorological Office issued a warning of heavy rain on the west coast of Phuket in the next few days.
The southwest monsoon over the Andaman Sea, which was affected by Typhoon Mawar in the eastern Philippines, is expected to bring heavy rainfall and storm conditions to the island. Strong winds will cause waves between 2 and 3 meters high, so the authorities have warned to limit the entry of small boats into the sea.
In addition to Phuket, residents of nearby provinces such as Ranong, Phang Nga, Krabi, Trang and Satun were called exercise caution and take the necessary precautions in connection with the impending bad weather. Tourists are advised to keep an eye out for further announcements from the Southern Meteorological Center.
Police have confirmed that they need to speak with the deceased tourist's wife to get a full picture of the accident. They will also contact the Russian embassy to arrange the delivery of the body of the deceased to their homeland for funeral rituals in the prescribed manner.
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