Phuket beach toll rises as kitesurfing American dies

PHUKET: An American kitesurfer died en route to hospital after being pulled from the surf at Phuket’s Nai Harn Beach around noon today.

The man, whose name has not been released to the press, had been kitesurfing earlier that morning. He was seen by beach vendors struggling in shallow water after heading back to shore.

“We saw him floating in the shallow water, maybe 20 centimeters deep, close to shore. He had yelled something, but we thought he was making a joke,” said Somchai Ketsiri, a beach vendor who witnessed the event.

“Then we saw him caught up in a couple of waves and we could tell that he was weak.

“Then he was floating face down in the water,” Mr Somchai explained.

Mr Somchai rushed into the water to help and was assisted in pulling the kitesurfer ashore by a foreigner who happened to be close by.

Lifeguards called to the scene reportedly took first aid measures for the twenty minutes it took the Vachira Phuket Hospital ambulance to arrive.

During the transfer the man stopped breathing.

He was pronounced dead on arrival at Bangkok Phuket Hospital, a staff member there confirmed.

Hospital staff have not yet released the specific cause of death to the press.

— Atchaa Khamlo