Phuket vendor revives Italian man, but tragedy strikes in hospital
A Thai chicken rice vendor successfully revived an Italian man who collapsed while dining at his restaurant in Phuket, but tragically, the foreign man later passed away in hospital.
A viral video of a Thai man administering CPR to a foreigner was widely shared on Thai social media yesterday, December 24. The incident reportedly occurred at a renowned chicken rice restaurant called Ko Ta Khao Man Kai. The Thai man seen in the video is the owner of the restaurant, Somkiat “Ko Khao” Jira-amornrat.
The video caption described the situation, stating that the foreigner, later identified as an Italian national, lost consciousness while eating at the restaurant. Somkiat performed CPR on the man for 15 minutes until he regained consciousness. The restaurant owner was initially praised for saving the Italian man’s life.
Somkiat later gave an interview about the incident to MGR Online. He explained that he was away when the foreigner began to show symptoms. His wife, frightened and unsure of how to assist, called him to the scene.
Somkiat revealed that he initially tried to wake the man but was unsuccessful. He then laid him on the ground and performed CPR, following the steps he had learned in training. While assisting, he instructed his wife and employees to contact the medical team from Vachira Phuket Hospital, who promptly arrived at the scene.
Somkiat shared that a friend of the Italian man later visited the restaurant the same day to express gratitude for his efforts. He said he was proud of being able to help and encouraged other locals in Phuket to learn and perform similar life-saving measures when needed.
Sadly, tragic news was reported this morning by the Facebook page Phuket Hotnews, confirming that the Italian man passed away in hospital. His death is suspected to have been caused by underlying health conditions, though the specifics of his medical history were not disclosed.
In a related story reported last week, two Thai medical workers were praised by netizens for saving the lives of two foreigners on a flight from Phuket to Bangkok. Both unwell passengers were treated by the two nurses on board and later transferred to hospital after the flight landed.
