Alarm as Box Jellyfish Kills Tourist on Langkawi

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/alarm-box-jellyfish-kills-tourist-langkawi-12107/

Phuket jellyfish researcher Dr Somchai Bussarawit, on a recent study tour with a deadly ”boxie” in Australia. Dr Somchai is now based in Bangkok

By Alan Morison

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Today’s Phuketwan Updating Report

THE DEATH of a Swedish tourist on the Malaysian island of Langkawi, apparently from a box jellyfish sting, has heightened concerns about swimmers’ safety throughout the region.

Swedish media reports have focused on the death, which is likely to alarm some visitors to Malaysia and Thailand.

Carina Lofgren, 45, died a horrible death in just five seconds, according to reports from Pantai Cenang, a beach resort on Langkawi.

The Swedish Embassy in Kuaka Lumpur confirmed today to Phuketwan the circumstances of the woman’s death.

Aftonbladet, one of Sweden’s most popular newspapers, reported that Mrs Lofgren was enjoying a farewell swim with her husband, Ronny, when the jellyfish wrapped its tentacles around her.

The couple had been taking a holiday in Thailand and Malaysia, renting an apartment on Langkawi close to the water, with Ronny’s sister and her husband.

The newspaper reported that the four went for a late-night swim, then: Carina’s voice suddenly cut like a knife through the night.

Her husband was quoted as saying: ”She screamed like a stuck pig and started pulling on my legs. Then we realised that it was a jellyfish of some sort. We tried to pull the tentacles away.

”It took four or five seconds, then she sank down, lifeless.”

They carried Carina to the beach, the newspaper reported, where. Ronny’s brother, who had worked as an ambulance medic, performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

”He did CPR on her, maybe for four or five minutes. Then I took over. But I knew at once that she could not be saved. She died in my arms,” Ronny told Aftonbladet.

Paramedics arrived after 15 minutes. ”One of them said, ‘Oh, jellyfish,’ and shook his head. They tried to revive her, then they shook their heads again.”

A week earlier, a German woman had been stung on the beach, the Swedish tourists were told. Yet there were no warning signs, the newspaper reported.

”They are clearly afraid of losing tourists. I would not ever swim in the ocean down there again,” the dead woman’s husband is quoted as saying.

The couple have two adult children and later in February would have marked their 26th anniversary, Aftonbladet reported.

According to Swedish marine biologist Lars Henroth, the woman was probably stung by a box jellyfish, named for their cube-shaped body. Box jellyfish have the reputation for being the most toxic creatures on earth.

The Phuket Marine Biology Centre has led the way in researching all jellyfish in the region, noting that instances of contacts with box jellyfish appear to be increasing.

A young Swedish tourist died from box jellyfish stings off Koh Lanta in Krabi in April, 2008.

Resorts and lifeguards around the Andaman region now keep vinegar handy. Vinegar is the only known treatment for jellyfish stings.

While smaller varieties of box jellyfish have been discovered at a bay on Phuket’s east coast, there have been no confirmed sightings at Phuket’s popular west coast beaches.

Experts in Australia, where the deadly ”boxie” has rapidly enlarged its territory, believe it is probably only a matter of time before sightings are made on the Andaman coast.

Jellyfish everywhere are increasing in number, possibly in response to overfishing and the retreat of natural predators, including turtles.

Several seminars on jellyfish were held on Phuket last year and another is scheduled for later this month.

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http://phuketwan.com/tourism/phuket-elephant-rampage-swedish-pair-injured-12077/

Elephant Rampage: Swedish Pair Injured

By Chutima Sidasathian and Alan Morison
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Phuketwan Updating Report

A RAMPAGING elephant tossed two Swedish tourists from its back and demolished a tree that fell onto a car in Kalim this week.

One of the Swedes broke both heels is his leap from the elephant’s back and remains in Phuket International Hospital. The other Swede was treated for minor injuries and allowed to leave.

Dr Jirayu Niranwiroj, a veterinarian from the Department of Livestock Development, said the incident happened on Monday evening at Kalim elephant camp.

He said the male elephant, named Captain, was aged 20, had tusks and was fully grown. The elephant knocked down a large tree that crushed the bonnet of a parked car.

The injured Swedes had been part of a group of tourists who came to Phuket on holiday, and on Sunday found themselves guests at the surprise beach wedding of friends, a Swedish newspaper reported online.

‘Aftonbladet’ named the broken-heels Swede as Gustav Karlsson, 31, who was on holiday on Phuket with his wife, Hanna Agnarsson, 31.

A group from the wedding had gone for an elephant ride the next day.

”Suddenly something happened,” Dr Agnarsson told the newspaper. ”The elephant that Gustav and his brother John rode on went crazy.

”It ran completely amok, overturned cars, sheds and trees. My husband and John were just trying to protect themselves as best they could.”

One of the leaping Swedes landed on the windshield of a car, the newspaper report said.

Seconds later, the elephant threw the car down a steep slope.

”Ambulance and police came and they put my husband on a stretcher. Then the elephant suddenly back, “Dr Agnarsson said.

”Everyone fled and Gustav had to crawl to safety. He was lying on the ground and screamed in pain, but no one dared to come forward and help him as long as the elephant was there.”

The rampage lasted about 20 minutes before Captain calmed down.

Dr Jirayu said today: ”This kind of incident is rare, but mature male elephants can be a problem from time to time.”

He oversees the health of the island’s 177 elephants and said he hopes to train mahoots in how to use anaesthetic dart guns in case of future problems.

”There’s usually one month every year, depending on the elephant, where male elephants will start to misbehave. It can start about the age of 12 and continue until they are 20 or so.

”Most of the elephants on the island, though, are never a problem.”

The doctor checked Captain yesterday and said he should be kept in isolation for a month, or until he is calmer. There are five elephants at the Kalim camp.

An elephant ride is one of the trips that most tourists take when they visit Thailand.

Dr Jirayu said it was important that the elephant camp managers on the island were aware of the elephants’ needs and moods.

Re post from Teakdoor.com
Orig link at http://www.chiangmai-mail.com/current/news.shtml is expired

Deadly intersection sees two shootings in one week

The motorbike belonging to the German shooting victim,
Josef Schuller at the intersection on the Chiang Mai – Phrao road.
Supoj Thiamyoj & Nopniwat Krailerg
The Likit Cheewan intersection on the Chiang Mai – Phrao Road in San Sai has been the scene of two deadly shootings in the past week. The first was that of German national Thomas Schuller. Pricha Rattanahongthong, 39, was arrested on January 13 and charged with the shooting death of Thomas Josef Schuller, 43. The incident took place at the Likit Cheewan intersection on the Chiang Mai – Phrao Road on January 11 at 7 pm.
According to witnesses at the scene, the German man had been weaving through traffic on his motorcycle which resulted in the suspect honking at the victim and chasing him. Witnesses reported that the German had raised his middle finger to the suspect. When Mr. Schuller stopped for the traffic light, witnesses report that the suspect got out of his car, knocked the German man off his motorcycle and shot him twice in the back. He then got back in his car and drove away. Witnesses took down his license plate number and reported it to the police when they arrived.
Mr. Pricha denied all involvement in the murder when arrested by police but the police state that the case is solid and there are many witnesses to the crime.
Three days later, Asaba Saesao, 37, a hill tribe resident of Chaiprakarn, was shot 5 times by the pillion rider on a motorcycle while stopped at the very same intersection on January 14. According to his girlfriend, Kanchana Saechu, 26, they were returning to Chiang Mai city from Mae Jo in his pickup truck when they stopped at the red light at the intersection. Two men, one wearing a green shirt and one wearing a black jacket pulled alongside the truck. The pillion rider pulled out a gun and shot Mr. Asaba in the chest 5 times, killing him instantly. Police are searching for the suspects but so far have not apprehended them. Police will investigate the deceased’s background as there is a suspicion from the style of the murder that could indicate an involvement in drugs.

Phuket Expat Stabbed to Death: Hunt for Killers

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/phuket-expat-stabbed-death-outside-eleven-12078/

____________________________

By Chutima Sidasathian
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Phuketwan Updating Report

AN EXPAT man has been stabbed to death outside a 7-Eleven store near Chalong Circle in southern Phuket and police are hunting his killers tonight.

Phuketwan has been told the man was knifed about 7pm by three youths who sped off on a pink Yamaha Fino motorcycle with no registration plates in the direction of Rawai.

Investigators have examined security camera footage and are working on the theory that the man, proceeding from Chao Fa Road West towards Rawai, cut off the motorcycle, which had right of way as it turned at Chalong Circle towards the road to Chalong pier.

Officers believe the motorcycle caught up with the expat driver and the young men attacked the man with their fists before one of them knifed him twice in the ribs.

Police Lieutenant Anukul Nuket, of Chalong Police Station, named the man as Eugen Wolf-Dieter, aged 66.

Mr Wolf-Dieter died on the way to Phuket International Hospital in Phuket City. His body was later transferred to Vachira Hospital, also in Phuket City, Lieutenant Anukul said.

It is believed the man parked his black four-door Toyota Vigo outside the 7-Eleven, in Wiset Road, the main road heading for Rawai from Chalong Circle, before the stabbing.

Phuketwan placed a telephone call tonight to the Thai wife of Mr Wolf-Dieter. The call was answered by a Thai man who said: ”She is not here. She is sleeping in another house.”

The man said the couple were no longer together.

Phuket Taxis Blockade Forces ‘Shuttle Retreat’

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/phuket-resort-blockade-forces-shuttle-retreat-12072/
_________________________

By Alan Morison
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
LOCAL TAXIS blockaded a west-coast resort last night for about an hour in a dispute over a new shuttle bus service.

The manager of the resort agreed to talk to Phuketwan on condition of anonymity. Readers contacted the site last night to alert us to the blockade.

”We gave them what they wanted,” the manager said today. ”We really had no choice. It was over a new shuttle service to Patong, and we had already tried to negotiate.”

Local taxi drivers called in other drivers from a neighboring beach to assist in making their blockade a bigger success.

It took place in one of Phuket’s better-known beach destinations, where hillside property remains expensive and where the only real difficulty experienced by tourists is the lack of efficient, reasonably priced public transport.

Neighboring resorts and apartment blocks have also been pressured on occasions by the drivers.

The fare in a tuk-tuk or taxi from the resort where last night’s blockade took place to Patong is 500 baht.

Blockades of the kind that disrupted traffic in and around the resort last night happen ”pretty well all over the place,” the manager said.

He preferred to remain anonymous because of concerns about his staff, who have to pass by the local drivers on a daily basis going to and from work. He is also concerned about the future business of the resort.

”If a tourist does not have a car on Phuket, then you either have to stay in your resort or pay for tuk-tuks,” he said.

”For the price of a fare from here to Patong, 500 baht, I could ride around practically all day in a taxi in Bangkok.”

He agreed that unless some solution to the existing extortionate fares problem was found, large numbers of tourists would eventually desert Phuket for other destinations.

”I had to go to tell the drivers last night that we were giving in,” the manager said. ”We had to back down. We had no choice.

”Just about every resort has these kinds of problems,” he added.

He said that he understood that shuttle buses from the FantaSea show in Kamala were tolerated because they had been in action for some years.

But the drivers have made it known they will not allow other shuttle services to pick up passengers ”in their territory.”

Phuket Governor Wichai Praisa-ngob has been involved in looking at potential solutions to transport crises involving tuk-tuks and airport taxis.

Provincial Hall was last week the destination for about 100 airport taxi drivers, protesting about the issuing of 30 new licences and airport rents that they say are excessive.

It is believed that problems with transport on Phuket are now also being raised at senior levels within the government in Bangkok.

Two incidents involving violence against tourists since Christmas have also intensified calls for changes.

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/phuket-transport-chaos-limos-plan-blockades-12047/

Phuket Transport Chaos: Taxis Plot Airport Blockade ( And UDD too , Bangkok Airport threatened.

By Alan Morison and Chutima Sidasathian
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Phuketwan UPDATE

THAI stocks fell 1.39 percent yesterday amid reports that red-shirted supporters of disgraced premier Thaksin Shinawatra could rally at Bangkok’s international airport next week. Business leaders and analysts say even a peaceful protest at Suvarnabhumi could be ”national suicide.”

Phuketwan News and Analysis

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PHUKET’S Provincial Hall faces an invasion of 150 limousine and taxi drivers and their families on Wednesday as the island’s transport system descends into chaos.

If Governor Wichai Praisa-ngob or other authorities fail to agree to drivers’ demands, the drivers’ next step will be to blockade Phuket’s airport, a local mayor who is the brother of one senior limousine group leader told Phuketwan tonight.

Talk of a blockade to prevent tourists arriving and departing the island poses the most direct and potentially damaging threat to the tourism industry on Phuket and in Thailand since the 2008 airport blockades.

For years, officials have ignored or been complicit in the scams, the extortion and and the corruption that are the hallmarks of Phuket’s tourist transport.

To blockade Provincial Hall and then the airport would be the last straw, making the need for a low-cost and efficient public transport system on Phuket obvious, even to reluctant government officials.

Phuketwan has repeatedly called for national government intervention to sort out Phuket’s long-standing public transport woes. If the blockade goes ahead tomorrow, we suspect we will get our wish.

Already Phuket’s tuk-tuk monopoly and excessive, extortionate fares are provoking anger among tourists and the island’s expat community.

If the airport drivers protest as planned on Wednesday, they will alienate the entire tourist industry – and Thailand’s government.

Any kind of blockade of the airport is clearly overstepping the mark. A successful invasion and blockade of Provincial Hall would be a clear indication that the tuk-tuk, taxi and limousine drivers run Phuket, not the island’s legitimate administrators.

Wednesday’s mass protest at 9am is expected to be mounted by drivers who are disappointed at a decision to add permits for 30 more vehicles at the airport.

The permits will all go to one company, although three companies have concessions at the airport. Protesting drivers say it would have been fairer to add 10 permits for each, rather that 30 for a single company.

The mayor of Mai Khao, Sarawoot Srisakoolkram, is the brother of the president of Limousine Phuket, the company with the largest number of permits.

He said he thought there were already enough permits at the airport. More were unnecessary, he said.

Airport limousines and taxis, legal and illegal, clog the airport carpark and are just one aspect of Phuket’s rapidly failing transport system.

At present at the airport there are 68 metered taxis, 80 Mai Khao Sakool saloon cars and 150 Limousine Phuket vehicles.

The new arrangement, approved by Airports and Thailand and the Transport office, would add 30 vehicles to the Mai Khao Sakool fleet.

The invasion and blockade of the Phuket airport for three days in August 2008 was a precursor to the longer and more damaging eight-day sit-in at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok the following November.

Despite the huge losses it imposed on Phuket’s tourist industry and Thailand’s reputation, no charges were ever laid against the organisers of the Phuket protest.

However, a full-scale practice involving police with riot shields and fire trucks squirting streams of water at mock protesters last year was an indication that authorities will not countenance a second ill-conceived blockade of Phuket airport.

To even suggest the idea should bring the sternest of reactions. The tourism industry will be expecting strong action on the part of the authorities to put to an end any prospect of an airport upheaval.

Tourists will not tolerate it. Nor should Thailand.

Phuketwan hopes that this threat of causing a catastrophe will bring the realisation that a strategy for an efficient, low-cost public transport system on Phuket has to be introduced as fast as possible.

Phuket’s Public Transport Chaos

Planet Phuket: Government Action is Needed Now
Planet Phuket In the first of a new weekly column, Phuketwan suggests Government intervention is needed on Phuket to provide a sensible transport strategy so tourists keep on coming.
Planet Phuket: Government Action is Needed Now

Phuket Has Too Many Tuk-Tuks, says Police Chief
Exclusive A tourist who says he was bashed by a tuktuk driver tells his version of events, and Patong’s police chief speaks out, saying there are too many tuktuks on Phuket.
Phuket Has Too Many Tuk-Tuks, says Police Chief

Update: Tourist Fined, Then Flies off Phuket
UPDATE A countercharge against a Canadian tourist was heard quickly today to enable him to catch a flight off Phuket. He was fined 1000 baht and his passport was returned.
Update: Tourist Fined, Then Flies off Phuket

Will This Photo Give Phuket Real Public Transport?
Defining Moment The fare was 150 baht for a one minute trip. The tourist objected. The tuk tuk driver would not take 100 baht. He lashed out. But the outcome may be positive: the start of Phuket reform.
Will This Photo Give Phuket Real Public Transport?

Phuket Tuk-Tuks, Jet-Skis, Need Limits: Governor
Latest Jetskis and tuktuks were among the service groups that needed to improve to meet the needs of tourists on Phuket as a popular holiday island, the Phuket Governor said.
Phuket Tuk-Tuks, Jet-Skis, Need Limits: Governor
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Comments

Well, I am looking forward to this standoff. Let’s see who wins. My money isn’t on the government doing something to prevent this.

Posted by Tbs on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 21:54

If they really wish to test the balance of power then suggest that if they blockade, then use a JCB or earth mover and shock them with a little physical power.. Is it the thugs or the governor who really holds power ??

This is gamesmanship, pure and simple, and until the local power base stands up and says enough, their games will continue.. Will the law be applied equally or not ??

Its time for the choice to be made, entrenched systems or new arrivals, what does this island want ??

Posted by Witness2 change on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 22:07

If i was the governor i’d put troops at the airport now, just in case.

Posted by billydale on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 22:13

Here we go again to kill the island once and for all and be done with it. Yeee Haaa Captain Stupid rides again Yeee Haaa !

Posted by Graham on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 22:19

Who designed the banner on top of this page? Horrible anti advertising. BTW… taxi story is scary but one day the bomb will certainly explode!

Editor: The ad must be effective. Those hotels are running close to 100 percent occupancy. Our other advertisers are also delighted with results.

Posted by Hajo on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 22:26

I do not care, if they demonstrate at Province Hall. That is ok. If they feel wronged, what else they can do?

But stay away from the airport.

Not only a security issue, it should be the pride of all in Thailand to help the airports running smoothly as they are the lungs of tourism and the face of your nation.

If now every local wannabe thinks airport highjacking is his tool of choice and the Thai authorities LET THAT HAPPEN, then it will be a first slow but then fast accelerating pace of downturn.

Also a fear: In the turmoil of a blockade, security will be low… terrorists on a plane thanks to the insane transport system here?

Anyone who wants to blockade the airport, even if they only threaten to do that, has to be arrested. Because it is a threat to a vital lifeline and the national security of Thailand.

I mean what do they think? Enough other places to demonstrate!

Posted by Lena on Tuesday January 19, 2010 at 23:04

And so it goes on and on. Tell me, what does it take to wake you up, Thailand?

Posted by walker on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 05:31

Just another day in Paradise. Thug rule as usual.

Posted by Peter J Notley on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 07:03

Dear Governor of Phuket,

For the sake of Phuket and all its multicultural residents, now is the time to fix this problem. Negotiation is unlikely to work as the ‘others’ appear to only act with threats and demands.

Cancelling the extra 30 permits would be the first move in the right direction. It’s clear there is no need for more taxis/limousines at the airport.

Once you have done that, maybe then try to sit down with the three parties and the AOT. No need for negotiation here, simply lay down the law.

And I would also suggest trying to embarrass the AOT boss in the meeting as surely AOT hold responsibility for issuing extra taxi/limousine permits. And they are therefore complicit in this racket.

Hoping you can achieve these two points and no blockade takes place, could you and your team then please sit down and make a plan regarding ALL of Phuket’s transport problems.

I think this could be your legacy upon leaving office… leave Phuket with a better and professional transport system. That would be a fantastic legacy…

I hope you are reading PhuketWan. If not … you should be!

Posted by Duncan on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 09:08

Why not allow only 10 (or 20) of each company into the airport, the rest must wait outside it until a car leaves.. Allow market forces to choose which service wins.

Seems they only allow a very small amount of meter taxis in and a clamouring horde of limo drivers taking every available parking space.

Posted by LivinLOS on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 10:03

I am a tour leader in Montreal. I had a group scheduled to visit Thailand starting January 29. Two days ago one couple from this group informed me they will not go on the trip since they heard from a friend in Thailand that there might be trouble at the main airport.

Their concern was conveyed to others in our group of 18. That led to several of them calling me and asking questions, including how to get their refunds. Today we decided to reschedule the trip to Vietnam instead. It was either that or lose half the group.

Everyone but two like the Vietnam option and tomorrow we are getting a group visa. Departure will be delayed by a week but everyone that is going among the 16 is able to reschedule.

Thailand is now officially off my list for group tours. Perhaps I will reconsider if things get straightened out in the future. The loss of tourists going to Thailand begins now – all it takes is the threat of disruptions for people to get skittish and want to change their plans.

The mere threat is sufficient to send people scurrying to make other plans, even if in the end nothing happens. Nobody wants to get caught being stuck in Phuket or Bangkok, so it’s “Adios Thailand – Hello Vietnam”.

Posted by Robert Burch on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 11:40

Airport “limo”- 550 baht. ( 150 baht more than in December.) Metered Taxi caught at airport curb – add 100 baht, “airport tax”
Metered taxi caught on the road- 160 Baht.

Asta La Veugo, Phuket

Posted by Phuketarium on Wednesday January 20, 2010 at 13:56

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/laleena-death-riddle-surviving-woman-speaks-12036/

Phi Phi-Laleena Photo Album Above

THE MYSTERY woman in Phi Phi’s Laleena Guesthouse double-death riddle has spoken publicly for the first time. And she agrees that the killer was . . . gas.

This has always been the view of American Ryan Kells, whose fiancee Jill St Onge, 27, was one of two young women tourists who fell ill at Laleena and later died.
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The other woman killed without any clear reason was Norwegian Julie Bergheim, 22.

Her travelling companion, Karina Refseth, also fell sick from the same cause, as did Ryan Kells. But Refseth and Kells survived, Refseth narrowly after emergency care.

Kells has always maintained that he sniffled a chemical substance when booking in to a Laleena room with St Onge on that Saturday in May, 2009.

St Onge, Bergheim and their companions occupied Rooms 4 and 5 on the ground floor at the guesthouse, but the couples probably never met before the two women died in a similar, horrible fashion.

Now, after seven months of silence, Refseth, the mystery witness, has finally spoken out. She too believes the killer was gas.

The problem is that two autopsies in Thailand and a third extremely unusual autopsy in Norway have failed to produce an official cause of death.

How could two young tourists, simply through fate staying in adjoining rooms in a guesthouse on one of the world’s best-known tropical holiday islands, suddenly fall ill and die?

There is no indication that they ever met or shared any similar experiences on Phi Phi, except for being guests at Laleena.

Surely the days have passed when people can perish without a cause being determined? This is, after all, 2010, the 21st century.

In recent days, Phuketwan has talked to virtually all the key people connected to the deaths of the two young female tourists on Phi Phi.

The Norwegian pair had been travelling home after spending a year studying in Australia and had been on Phi Phi for a few days, staying at Laleena Guesthouse, when Ryan Kells and Jill St Onge checked in next door in Room 4 on May 2.

Before the weekend was over, two young women were dead, and the third was dangerously ill.

Soon afterwards, a barely recovered Ryan Kells was being carried off the island with the body of his fiancee in a bag in the bottom of the speedboat.

It is probably an understatement to say that he remains ill at ease with virtually every aspect of the investigation by Thai police into the double fatality.

Kells had been on a once-in-a-lifetime trip with St Onge and proposed to her as they journeyed through Asia. They moved to Laleena that day to have some air-conditioning for a change.

This is what he told us via email last week:

”The only thing I can say is that there is no way it was a bacteria or food or drink poison. Jill had NO ALCOHOL that night. and food poisoning can not affect a person so rapidly.

”Nor can a bacteria. And a bacteria would be easily seen in an autopsy. So I would really like you not to say that those had any part of it.”

St Onge’s body was examined by Thai forensic pathologists in Bangkok, tissue and blood samples were taken, then she was cremated. Her ashes went back to the US with Kells.

By contrast, Bergheim’s body went back to Norway where family and officials in her home county, aghast at such an appalling catastrophe, contrived to have a second autopsy carried out by some of Norway’s top forensic pathologists.

The Thai autopsy report was condemned by St Onge’s relatives for its brevity. And it must be said that the whole Thai investigation into the case proved to be singularly inadequate.

When a tourist dies in a popular holiday destination in Thailand, there is still a tendency to cover up, even to conceal the event entirely if possible, for the sake of the country’s tourism industry.

While this attitude inevitably has consequences in an age of total transparency, Thailand has yet to prove it is unequivocally committed to the safety and security of the visitors who provide the country with a large slice of annual revenue.

Time and again, corruption or the fear of negative consequences become factors that obscure justice or prevent an honest recognition of the causes of man-made disasters.

Just as Kells has always insisted that he thought the demise of his bride-to-be was triggered by some kind of chemical, Laleena Guesthouse owner Rat Chuped has consistently maintained that her premises had nothing to do with the deaths.

Laleena’s 10 rooms have been occupied since Christmas, says Khun Rat, who adds that guests occasionally ask about the deaths.

She says that she always keeps the guesthouse scrupulously clean and long ago reported that she slept in one of the rooms in question soon after the deaths.

When asked this week what caused the deaths, she said: ”No idea.”

This was also the conclusion of a belated Thai university laboratory check on various cleaners and chemicals found and sampled from the guesthouse.

The Thai police involved in the initial inquiry have moved on. Their successors expressed little interest in its outcome.

But in Norway and the US, people still want to know.

For months in Norway, senior forensic pathologists pursued tests resulting from their unusual second autopsy. While no offence was intended to Thai authorities, the message was plain.

Just before Christmas, a media release came from the office of public prosecutor Sjak R. Haaheim. He reported:

”Miss Bergheim died at a Thai hospital May 4 2009, after having been acutely ill during her stay there. Thai police are investigating the case, and have submitted case documents as a valuable input into the Norwegian inquiry.

”This hasn’t been a criminal investigation. We have performed certain inquiries in Norway, to seek answers as to why Miss Bergheim unexpectedly died. The results of our inquiries will be made available to Thai authorities through ordinary diplomatic channels.

”Thai forensic experts performed an autopsy on Miss Bergheim, related to the criminal investigation.

”When her body arrived to Norway in June, the Norwegian Prosecution Service decided to perform another autopsy, hoping that this could bring forward more answers to the cause of death.

”The autopsy was performed at RMI, the National Forensic Institute, in Oslo on June 16, 2009. Several samples were obtained and later analysed. Unfortunately, the cause of death cannot be determined with certainty.

”However, RMI concludes there are several possible causes of death, including poisoning from bacterias, poisonous food or drinks, or through chemical agents that may have been distributed through the local environment.”

To their credit, the Norwegians were not prepared to accept that one of their much-loved daughters could die in this fashion, without diagnosis. Sadly, their efforts appear to have failed.

Then there are the survivors. Finally, after not commenting publicly for months, Refseth spoke out: ”We reacted to the smell in the room when we arrived. The chemical smell, but thought no more about it,” she is quoted as saying.

It was three days later when Kells and St Onge checked in, and Kells also noted the chemical smell.

”It was a terrible experience, and this is very difficult, ” Refseth says. ”I think they should find out what made us sick, what led to Julie’s death.

”It is very difficult not knowing, not having been given proper answers to what really happened.”

Kells, the other survivor, is equally dissatisfied. ”My best friend died right in front of me on a vacation of a lifetime. I will not be told ‘no one knows’ and be ok with that.

”The thing that can be achieved is, FIND OUT WHAT KILLED JULIE AND JILL.That is all I care about, and I promise to find answers if no-one else will.”

From Norway, public prosecutor Sjak R. Haaheim was more sanguine: ”Sometimes in life, and in death, there is no possibility of answers,” he concluded.

Laleena Riddle: The Room Maid’s Account

Phi Phi Mystery Deaths: The Room Maid’s Account
Phi Phi Photo Album Thai guesthouse maids have a way of knowing what goes on and the maid at the Laleena on Phi Phi was close to two mysterious deaths. This is her account.
Phi Phi Mystery Deaths: The Room Maid’s Account

Why Pursuing the Truth Matters for Tourism
Opinion/Analysis Does it matter if the truth is never known about mishaps that kill tourists on and around Phuket? It matters because of trust. Only once the whole truth is told can trust be restored.
Why Pursuing the Truth Matters for Tourism

Phuket’s Top 10 News Items of the Decade
Photo Album Tsunami Plus . . . here is Phuketwan’s list of the most important stories of the decade on Phuket and in the Andaman region, including some that we may yet see repeated.
Phuket’s Top 10 News Items of the Decade

Norway’s Professors Pursue Phi Phi Killer Riddle
Latest The enduring mystery of why two young tourists died on the holiday island of Phi Phi may yet be answered. Two forensic professors have been working on the case since June.
Norway’s Professors Pursue Phi Phi Killer Riddle

Phi Phi Deaths Riddle: ‘It’s Finished,’ say Police
Latest Three months on, families in the US and Norway still await a reason why their daughters died in mysterious circumstances on the Thai holiday island of Phi Phi
Phi Phi Deaths Riddle: ‘It’s Finished,’ say Police

Phi Phi Riddle: Pursuing the Deaths of Two Tourists
Latest Phuket police have been called in to probe the deaths of two tourists on Phi Phi, a mystery that continues to puzzle everyone. Norwegian police may be able to uncover a cause.
Phi Phi Riddle: Pursuing the Deaths of Two Tourists

Phuket Police Lead Laleena Forensics Probe
Photo Album A police general from Phuket has led a team of forensics experts who combed the Laleena Guesthouse and its environment for new clues to the deaths of two young tourists.
Phuket Police Lead Laleena Forensics Probe

Phi Phi Deaths: Paradise By Day, Party By Night
Take the Tour The deaths of two tourists on Phi Phi remain a mystery as speculation continues about the cause. The island, visited by day trippers in sunshine, also parties long and hard.
Phi Phi Deaths: Paradise By Day, Party By Night

Dead Tourist ‘Pushed off Phi Phi’: Boyfriend
Latest The boyfriend of an American who died in strange circumstances along with a Norwegian woman on Phi Phi has rejected suggestions that they argued.
Dead Tourist ‘Pushed off Phi Phi’: Boyfriend

Comments

You should look into why the canal behind the guest house is now cemented.

Thanks for looking into it more.

Posted by jills brother Rob on Sunday January 17, 2010 at 05:59

Thwe March – October monsoon winds cause horrific rip tides, unfortunately life guards are lax, if present at all and warning signs are left up year round…
A local realttor decided to ‘ Rebrand this slow season as summer, many tourists were completely unaware it is too dangerous for swimming on the west side beaches.

Sign found at Phuket’s dump . . .
Sign found at Phuket’s dump . . .
Photo by phuketwan.com
Let Phuket Rip: No Action As Drownings Mount

By Alan Morison and Chutima Sidasathian
Friday, January 8, 2010
THE Phuket Provincial Administative Organisation is calling for tenders for professional lifeguards on the island’s most popular tourist beaches.

Because the organisation has to follow Thai regulations in seeking someone to operate the service, the island’s beaches have been without lifeguards since mid-November.

At least one young Thai boy has died on a beach without lifeguards in that period.
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Online applications for tender for the lifeguards close on January 13. On January 29, the tenders will be reviewed.

If there are no applicants, as is the situation at present, the tender process will be extended by 10 days each time until there is an applicant.

Ayut Banglung, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the organisation, said: ”We have had no applications so far and we are required by law to follow a set process.”

He said the local tessaban councils should be providing safety protection on the beaches in the period until a new professional service is in place.

Equipment for beach rescues, including surfboards and inflatable boats, has also been taken from the beaches because its removal is consistent with Thai law. Even the red warning flags have been repossessed.

Local beach people on Phuket are mostly horrified at the lack of protection for tourists and residents alike. While some people are capable of advising when and where to swim, they have no rescue equipment.

A 10-year-old boy became Phuket’s first beach fatality of 2010 when he drowned at Nai Harn beach on the New Year’s Day holiday while on a family picnic. An eight-year-old boy narrowly avoided the same fate.

Drownings for the island for 2009 reflect the high toll in the water, which is now dramatically out of proportion to the road toll.

To the end of November, Phuket had 137 road fatalities and 53 drownings, figures totally out of kilter when the numbers who use the roads are compared with those who swim or work on the water.

Several of the victims were tourists caught in strong ”rips.” In some cases, family members have called for tourists to boycott Phuket or for government travel warnings until beach safety becomes a priority, especially during the dangerous monsoon season.

Australia’s much-admired lifesaver system evolved after a tragic day at a beach when four children from the same family drowned. The family, on a picnic outing, wrongly believed that the beach was protected by lifeguards.

Phuket Drowning: ‘Where’s Max? Where’s Max?’
New Year Tragedy A young boy who survived the tragedy that killed a friend at a Phuket beach asks: ‘Where’s Max? Where’s Max?’ The island should be asking, ‘Where are the lifesavers?’
Phuket Drowning: ‘Where’s Max? Where’s Max?’

Phuket Beach Holiday Tragedy: Young Boy Drowns
Photo Album Phuketwan knows these photos will shock. But a young boy’s death by drowning on a New Year’s Day holiday is a shocking thing, especially on a beach holiday island.
Phuket Beach Holiday Tragedy: Young Boy Drowns

Saturday , November 21 , 2009
Whaaaa! You Tube Won’t Censor Big Trouble In Tourist Thailand. Now Everyone Will Know !
Posted by ChristySweet , Reader : 457 , 09:07:00
Print

Whaaaaaa!

Tourism Officials are trying to get You Tube to stop telling the truth about Thai-Lie, Jet Ski Rip Off, Child Sex, Airport Traveler Extortion, Scam – Land.

Whaaaaa! Only pedophiles will want to come to Thailand Whaaaaaaa,

” Ok, mai pen rai…We just charge pedophiles more to have sex with children..”

You-Tube says, ” F*ck off, fascist royalist pigs. Get a grip- your country is a 3rd world banana republic and Bali is better ! “

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/bangkok-horror-youtube-threat-tourism-11814/

Bangkok Horror at YouTube ‘Threat to Tourism’

By Chutima Sidasathian and Paweena Petyoi

Friday, November 20, 2009
THE SENATE Committee on Tourism met with Phuket’s leading officials and tourism industry representatives today and projected an illuminating view of the island’s future.

Phuket Member of Parliament Rewat Areerob told the gathering that diplomats from China, Australia, Korea and Japan had complained lately about jet-ski rip-offs, the high price of tuk-tuks, ladyboy cheats, and lack of public transport.

[Don’t forget paid killings by hit men , corrupt police , child sex and Patong under water… ]

………….

Because of the lack of proper funding, disposing of garbage at a rate of 600 tonnes a day was just one of Phuket’s difficulties.
[ and most of it thrown on the ground by lazy, disgusting Thais.]

The chairman of the committee, Torpong Chaisan, said the screening of the television series ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand’ was one of the reasons the committee had come to visit Phuket.

They would like to close down YouTube screenings of the series on the internet, which has a worldwide audience, but YouTube management had told them there ”had to be a victim who suffered” for the footage to be removed.

The committee spent some time discussing Winai ”JJ” Naiman, whose case of alleged extortion, arising from the series has yet to come to court.

The vice president of Patong Jet-Ski Association, Singtong Jalernsub, told the meeting that Khun Winai’s father was from the Netherlands, and his mother was a Thai from Udonthani.

Khun Winai was born on Phuket. ”JJ takes care of jet-skis for many other people as well because he has good English skills,” Khun Sintong said.

Committee vice chairman Thitima Chaisang asked whether ”JJ” was the best person to represent Phuket jet-ski owners in dealing with tourists.

”Why don’t other people know how to speak English so they can all talk to the tourists?

”Why aren’t people taught how to behave properly with people from other countries who come here?

”Why hasn’t the local tessaban taught people the skills they need to be good tourism ambassadors?

”Please don’t tell me that JJ is still fulfilling this role as the main contact for tourists on Patong beach.”

Khun Sintong said that JJ was only called in when other jet-ski renters discovered they couldn’t properly communicate with tourists.

The committee laughed at this response.

When asked whether he thought the scene depicted in the reality television show ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand’ was genuine or playacting, Khun Sintong said he thought it was genuine.

”JJ would like to be famous,” he said.

Permission for making the controversial series came from Bangkok, not Phuket, Deputy Patong Mayor Chairat Sukhban told the committee.

”Why try to find a victim now?” he said ”The damage has been done. Thousands of people around the world have seen the series.”

Committee chairman Khun Torpong said much of their time was taken up with reading reports in Bangkok when clearly, they needed to see the real situation, as depicted on ‘Big Trouble’ and YouTube on Phuket and other destinations in Thailand.

”We have to skip the paperwork,” he said.

Phuket was the first stop for the committee because of its importance to Thailand. The income from Phuket tourism amounted to 94 billion baht a year.

”With good management and a decent image, the income could be 150 billion baht a year,” he said.

Khun Torpong said that having seen the show, he could not say who was right and who was wrong in the case involving JJ, but the image of Thailand was clearly going to suffer.

It came at the worst possible time, when political uncertainty also complicated Thailand’s future. Phuket, the pulse of tourism, had to be kept beating in a healthy fashion, he said.

It was at least good to see that the Governor of Phuket had reacted to end the jet-ski problem, he said.

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Sorry , Due to user Nd being a fascist royalist, incapable of respecting free speech and spamming comment section, comment is closed