On Saturday, the search for a Chinese tourist who was reported missing while swimming at Karon beach in Phuket resumed. The tourists identified as 27-year-old Qin Yuan was reported missing by his wife around 7:30 p.m. on Thursday.

According to the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre, the search for the tourist started right away after Karon city officials told rescuers about it. Teams of boats and jet skis tried to find the lost man but failed.

Phuket Lifeguards told Karon mayor Jadet Wicharasor that a Chinese couple rented a surfboard on Thursday night and returned it around 6:30 p.m. At around 7.30 p.m., the couple went swimming at Karon beach. It was getting dark, and all the lifeguards had left the beach. They found out later that the woman was there looking for her husband.

The lifeguards, local government, the police, and the Third Naval Fleet all worked together to send teams to look for the lost swimmer. The mayor said that the Chinese foreign office in Phuket was also paying close attention to the search.

Rip tides Phuket

The Phuket city government had already put up red flags and warning signs in four languages—Chinese, English, Russian, and Thai—in high-risk places to tell tourists not to swim. But some people ignore them Mayor Jadet said.

He told Thai media that even though there are 115 lifeguards at beaches, nine people ave drowned, five of whom were foreign tourists.

He said from May–October swimmers should be very careful when to swimming because the waters get rough. There are strong rip currents and waves that are at least 4 feet high. Rip currents are caused by the process of shore water re-circulating back into the sea.

This process occurs all the time at every beach that experiences wave action.

This is only dangerous to swimmers when the rip current is strong. Strong winds or distant storms can cause a swell which increases the amount of water brought ashore in the form of waves.