Netizens mourn doctor who drowned in bid to save UK tourist on Phuket
The Facebook page of a doctor who died while trying to save a British tourist from drowning on Phuket was inundated with messages of condolence on Saturday.
Dr Surasit Phonglaohaphan, 55, from Chiang Mai, and British national Ali Mohammed Mian, 33, were pronounced dead at Chalong Hospital after lifeguards had pulled them from the water off Kata Noi Beach on Thursday.
Witnesses said Mian had ignored red flags signifying strong waves and rip currents and was swept away by the waves. Surasit, who was sitting on the beach, rushed into the sea to save the man.
Police reported that Mian, from London, was on his honeymoon and had checked into a hotel at Kata Noi on Tuesday.
Messages left by netizens on Surasit’s Facebook page praised him as a hero who had sacrificed himself in a bid to save a life. Meanwhile, Surasit’s colleagues at the Lampang hospital where he worked said he was kind-hearted, friendly and outgoing with everyone.
His family announced that the funeral will be held at Wat Suandok in Lampang’s Muang district on Saturday, while Surasit’s body will be donated to the Faculty of Medicine at Chiang Mai University.