Thai man missing in national park in northern Thailand
A Thai man went missing four days ago while trekking in Phu Soi Dao National Park in the northern province of Uttaradit.
A search mission continues for 27 year old Thanwarit Mateema, who disappeared while walking up to the camping area on Phu Soi Dao Mountain. Thanwarit was the last person to register to stay at the national park office’s camping ground at 12.30pm on July 4. However, by 5.30pm, Thanwarit had not arrived at the camping area. Rangers conducted a search for him along the 6.5-kilometre trekking route until 11 pm but found no trace of him.
The ranger team contacted Thanwarit’s older brother on July 5 and discovered that Thanwarit had a mental health condition requiring regular medication.
Rangers resumed their search for Thanwarit at 8.30am on July 5 and located his backpack near the stream of Phu Soi Dao Waterfall. The backpack contained a laptop and other belongings that appeared to belong to Thanwarit. About 20 metres from the backpack, officers found black trainers believed to be Thanwarit’s.
The rangers separated into five groups to search for the man. Unfortunately, no further traces were discovered. A local whom Thanwarit hired to carry his belongings to the camping ground told officers that he last saw Thanwarit at 3pm on the day he disappeared.
A helicopter search operation began on July 7. The ranger team increased safety measures that day due to the steep terrain and rain. The search continued into the morning of July 8, but there has been no further development.
The search for Thanwarit remains hopeful after the recent successful rescue of another missing Thai woman who disappeared for nearly a month in May.
The 32 year old Nantiwa “Noon” Saejiw lost contact with her family after travelling to Switzerland with her American boyfriend on a Swedish passport. Fortunately, the Thai Embassy in Bern later confirmed in May that Noon and her boyfriend were safe.
They reportedly left Switzerland during the search but Swiss police later successfully located them. There has been no report on the details of where officers found them and the reason for the lack of communication with their family.
