Foreign man allegedly takes over public mooring and threatens boat drivers with knife
Video of confrontation creates commotion among Phuket’s boating community
A local boat operator called on relevant government officials to take action against a foreign man who allegedly took control of a public mooring near Koh Hey in Phuket and threatened other boat drivers with a knife.
The local boat operator, who claimed to be threatened by the foreign man, shared a video of the encounter with the Facebook news page, โหดจัง จังหวัดภูเก็ต. The page posted the footage and brought the matter to public attention yesterday, October 19.
According to the local boat operator, the incident took place at a public mooring in Nam Bor Bay, located behind Koh Hey. The buoy were installed by the Phuket Marine Office to allow boats to anchor safely in the area, which is a popular swimming and snorkelling spot.
The foreign man and his son had reportedly anchored their catamaran to the public mooring. The father allegedly claimed the buoy as his personal property and threatened all boats attempting to tie up in the area.
In the video shared by the local, the foreign man was seen wearing only swimming trunks while holding a knife and shouting threats. He allegedly warned that he would cut the rope if the local boat operator tried to secure his vessel to the mooring. For safety reasons, the local was seen steering the boat away from the scene.
The boat operator urged the authorities to take immediate action before the situation escalates into violence. As of now, the relevant departments have not yet responded to the incident.
According to a DailyNews report, mooring buoys in Thai waters serve several purposes, including providing safe tie-up points for boats to prevent coral reef damage, marking designated conservation zones, and helping organise boat traffic.
Marine buoys in Thailand are generally divided into three main types:
- Mooring buoys: orange buoys are used for tying boats.
- Resource boundary buoys: small buoys marking protected coral zones where boats are not allowed.
- Swimming zone buoys: large red buoys installed near beaches to separate swimmers from passing boats.
Latest Thailand News
Follow The Thaiger on Google News:
