Tono donations soar to 36 million baht as daredevil swim begins
Donations for actor-cum-singer Phakin “Tono” Khamwilaisak’s “One Man and the River” charity swim soared past the 10-million-baht target, recording 36 million baht as of press time.
His mission was to put his life on the line and swim both ways across the Mekong River on Saturday to raise funds for two hospitals – one in Nakhon Phanom in Thailand and another in Laos’s Khammounane province.
The event kicked off at 8am on Saturday with a prayer ceremony at Wat Phrathat Phanom Woramahawihan in Nakhon Phanom’s That Phanom district. Also present were many of Phakin’s celebrity friends. By 8.50am the donations had hit 26 million baht and rose by another 3 million in about 20 minutes after he jumped into the river at 10.09am.
Phakin began his mission at Nakhon Phanom’s Naga Monument and swam along the coast to the Wat Klang pier 800 metres away, where he made a 15-minute stop to greet people.
He then swam 400 metres to the Saeng Singkaew pier for another 15-minute stop before heading to the other side of the Mekong. As of press time, Phakin and his team were swimming toward Laos, where they are expected to arrive by 1pm. Upon arrival, the star and his team are scheduled to walk to Wat Phathat Si Khottabong to pray and greet supporters before meeting the management at the hospital receiving the donation.
He will then rest at a hotel for a couple of hours before being driven to the Ban Na Muang pier, from where he will swim the 6 kilometres to the Naga Monument. He is expected to start this swim at 3pm.
