The Royal Thai Navy has sent two ships to prevent a 4 kilometre-long oil slick from advancing toward Thailand’s eastern Gulf coast. The vessels are equipped with skimmers, oil booms and oil dispersants contain the spill.

The oil slick came from a sunken tanker, the Golden Bridge 2, that capsized and sank in high seas on December 3. It was about 15 kilometres from Si Chang Island off Chon Buri province moving west, according to the Geo-informatics and Space Technology Development Agency.

The slick is estimated to contain around 20,000 litres. The Golden Bridge 2 contained about 104,000 litres of oil when it capsized.

GISTDA says it’s closely monitoring the slick’s movement using its Sentinel 2A satellite and has been analysing the situation via radar.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment fears the oil could damage marine life and corals around Koh Si Chang, just off the Laem Chabang coast, mangrove forests along the coasts of Phetchaburi province and even Bangkok.

Three sailors were rescued from the Golden Bridge 2 boat, on the same morning that a Burmese fisherman was rescued by the Navy after surviving ten hours alone at sea.

SOURCE: The Pattaya News

U-Tapao International Airport, serving the cities of Pattaya and Rayong in eastern Thailand, has officially opened a second passenger terminal, with ambitious plans for growth and an increase in passenger capacity from over 2 million a year to 5 million over the next five years.

The Nation reports that airport officials are also waiting for the outcome of the bidding process on the U-Tapao Airport and Eastern Airport City Development Project, which would see the successful bidder win a contract to construct a third passenger terminal.

Vice Admiral Kritchaphon Rianglekjamnong, director of U-Tapao International Airport, anticipates that the volume of passengers and flights will continue to grow, increasing from 177,000 people a year in 2015 to 1.99 million this year.

“Fifteen airlines operate 15,767 flights on 33 routes both domestic and international. We expect that the number of passengers will increase to 2.5 million people from the previous 800,000 passengers. The airport is planning to renovate the first passenger terminal and manage the newly opened second terminal, so it is fully utilised.”

Kritchaphon says he expects the increase in numbers to be facilitated by the opening of the second terminal while the airport waits for the third to be completed in around four years.

“It will help maintain continued passenger growth while awaiting the third terminal, the first phase of which will be completed in 2024 and support 12 million people.”

The Nation reports that the airport also plans to work with private investors to facilitate the provision of services such as warehouse management, small aircraft maintenance, and an import-export process for bonded goods.

SOURCE: The Nation

PHOTO: Manager Online

Thai media report that six people were taken to hospital in Rayong, east of Bangkok, after a speedboat carrying 11 Chinese tourists on a snorkelling trip collided with another boat. The incident happened just three or four nautical miles from the eastern holiday island of Koh Samet.

The group were traveling from Pattaya with a Thai guide. Their boat was driven by 26 year old “Yotsaphon”. Rayong tourist police were instrumental in getting the injured tourists to hospital, according to Manager Online.

A 63 year old man, surnamed Yuan, was hospitalised with a broken left shoulder. The other five tourists were treated for minor injuries and sent back to Pattaya.

The Region 6 Harbour Master’s office says it will now investigate and talking to the speedboat pilot before prosecuting the case.

Sea King, the owner of the boat, promised all the tourists’ hospital bills would be paid as well as compensation.

SOURCE: The Pattaya News