Empty life raft found in hunt for UK tourist

THAI navy rescue teams searching for a British woman who went missing when the diving boat she was on capsized have discovered an empty life raft.

Millie Young, a 57-year-old woman originally from Brighton, and Samniang Chaichana, 67, the diving boat’s cook, remained unaccounted for after a third day of search operations in the waters around the Surin Islands archipelago, where the boat sank in rough conditions. An inflatable life raft was found 20 nautical miles from where the ship sank, said Rear Admiral Pongmit Narongkul, Chief of Staff of the 3rd Naval Region, but it was empty.

“The flight path search area has been expanded to the western area of the Surin Islands, with a radius of 15 nautical miles from the forecast point. The missing people have not been found but the search is continuing,” he said.

Officials believe the pair may have been swept as far as 60 miles away from the point where the diving boat, called the Reggae Queen, sank.

Ms Young, an artist and teacher, has been living in Thailand since 2007, according to a social media account linked to her.

She had been traveling with friends Jo and Phillip Degregorio, and their two children Oska and Daisy, who are also British. Several passengers, including Young’s four travel companions, were pulled aboard a passing fishing boat and taken to safety while Ms Young and Ms Chaichana were swept away.

The capsizing is one of several similar incidents involving tourist boats in southern Thailand since Friday, leading the authorities to crack down on small vessels going out in poor weather conditions. In another case off Pattaya on Sunday, 27 foreign tourists were rescued when the boat they were on capsized suddenly after suffering damage from heavy waves.

The same day, another boat carrying 73 tourists capsized after encountering rough weather conditions. All passengers were rescued and brought safely to shore, but some suffered injuries.

Thunderstorms and heavy rain are expected to continue on the southwest coast of Thailand until Dec 28 and could hamper the search for Ms Young and Ms Chaichana.