Phuket expat restaurateur dies in motorbike crash

PHUKET: Long-term Phuket expat Pascal Gradolato, 54, owner of La Chaumiere restaurant on Saiyuan Road in Rawai, has died following a fatal head injury sustained in a motorcycle accident.

An officer at the Phuket Tourist Rescue Center who responded to the emergency call told the Phuket Gazette he was notified of the accident at 5:30am yesterday.

Mr Gradolato suffered a serious head injury when his motorbike collided with the large road sign at the Y-junction of Saiyuan Road and Patak Road near his restaurant.

Mr Gradolato was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident and alcohol may have been involved, the rescue officer said.

The rescue team rushed Mr Gradolato to Vachira Hospital Phuket in Phuket Town, where doctors operated to stem a brain hemorrhage.

However, Mr Gradolato succumbed to his injuries at about 6:50pm last night, hospital staff confirmed.

His relatives have been notified and were making arrangements to claim his body from the hospital today, the hospital officer said.

— Atchaa Khamlo