The Phoenix rises to the surface

PHOTOS: Facebook/สุรเชษฐ์ หักพาล

The yacht sank late afternoon on July 5 in a short, sudden storm. Most boats would have quite capable of withstanding the wind squal and waves on the day. But Phoenix capsized and sank, taking with her 47 Chinese tourists. The full reasons are stilll being investigated. Today, the actual yacht rose from the depths of the Andaman Sea, off Koh Hei, providing prosecutors with a key piece of evidence.

The yacht has been stuck at the bottom for three and a half months. One salvage team tried and gave up after two months of amateur operation, resulting in no boat but diver dying.

This week a crane and barge arrived from Singapore, organised by the Thailand police under the supervision of the acting chief of Immigration, Maj Gen Surachete Hakparn. And there he was today, with a collection of local and Bangkok media to capture the moment, happily speaking to the media about the success of the operation.

The boat eventually broke the surface just after 3pm this afternoon, the local sea-life starting to make their home on the Phoenix after its three and a half months submerged.

The Phoenix will be brought back to Phuket for a full examination of its design and safety equipment on the fateful day. Questions have already been raised about the sea-worthiness of the vessel’s design and how it might have been able to satisfy inspectors before its work as a local tour boat.