https://www.dropbox.com/s/8gahf7r3q6lp9an/VRP82446.mp4?dl=0
Dozens of tourists were rescued after getting stuck on an island during a storm in Thailand.
The 85 tourists – both foreign and local – were rescued from Ko Mak island in Trat province on November 29 after strong waves up to three metres high stopped passenger boats from taking them back to the mainland.
Government officials and the coast guard sent the Royal Navy’s HTMS Tak Bai boat, which can withstand inclement weather, to retrieve the stranded holidaymakers.
Video shows the tourists undergoing thermal scans and hand sanitation as part of Covid-19 prevention measures before boarding the vessel.
The Trat Naval Maintenance Base has also arranged for two buses and vans to fetch the tourists after they arrive on land.
Meanwhile, Thai officials have advised travellers planning to visit to account for extra travel time and check the weather conditions.
Thailand and other countries in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are nearing the end of their tropical monsoon rainy season, which last until late November. Soaring temperatures reaching 35 degrees Celsius are often followed by powerful tropical storms with thunder, lightning, rain and flash floods which cause rivers to flow faster and become dangerous.
The region’s seas are also notoriously choppy during the peak of the rainy season.