A total of 47 Chinese citizens are still missing after two tour boats sank in waters off the island of Phuket in Thailand, China's foreign ministry confirmed Friday.

Among the passengers in the two boats, 127 were Chinese tourists, two of whom died in the accident, while another 78 were rescued and 47 remain missing, foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said during a press conference. </s> PHUKET, Thailand (AP) — Thai authorities on Friday evening suspended the search for missing tourists who were on a boat that sank during a storm off the southern resort island of Phuket, as the death toll rose to 33, all of them Chinese nationals.

The search for another 23 people still missing will resume at 5 a.m. Saturday, said Prapan Khanprasang, chief of the Phuket Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office.

The accident appeared to be Thai tourism's biggest disaster in years, and drew sharp attention from the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok. Visitors to Thailand from China totaled more than 9.8 million people in 2017, constituting the largest share by country of a record 35.38 million foreign tourists in all.

The death toll jumped after the navy sent divers to enter the wreck of the tour boat, which capsized and sank Thursday evening when it was hit by 5-meter (16-foot) -high waves. It was carrying 105 people, including 93 tourists, 11 crew and one tour guide. At least 12 of the injured were hospitalized.

In images Thursday after the sinking, rescued people sat in large rubber life rafts surrounded by churning seas. Wearing life jackets, the survivors were then moved to the deck of what appeared to be a fishing trawler.

As the seas calmed Friday, divers were transporting the bodies of the dead, including at least one child, from smaller boats to a larger ship taking part in the search effort.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the leader of Thailand's military government, expressed his "sympathies and deepest condolences" to the families of the dead.

The government will "exert all efforts to find those still missing and provide support to all survivors of this tragic event," he said in a statement.

Reports in Thai media said police charged the owner and captain of the stricken ship with carelessness causing death and injury.

Chinese Ambassador Lyu Jian had an "emergency conversation" by phone with Thai Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement quoting the envoy calling on Thailand to quickly mobilize an intensive search for the missing and "to tend and make appropriate arrangements for the rescued Chinese tourists, treat and cure the injured and receive family members of the Chinese tourists involved."

Ambassador Lyu said it hoped the cause of the capsizing would be quickly ascertained and asked Somkid to have the relevant Thai agencies closely cooperate with China on the matter.

Fatal accidents among foreign tourists at Thai beaches are not unusual, but normally involve drownings in unsafe swimming areas or accidents involving smaller boats.

Thai officials were rushing to cope with some of the logistics of the aftermath of the sinking.

At the request of Phuket's governor, the Phuket Tourist Association was seeking 80 volunteer Chinese language translators to assist the outgoing Chinese passengers at the provincial airport.

Many of the victims had been on group tours, booked in Phuket and China.

The government of the eastern Chinese city of Haining in Zhejiang province said on its official microblog account that it received a distress alert sent by phone text message from the head of the Haining Haipai Furniture Co. Ltd., from Thailand Friday morning.

It said that 37 of the furniture company's employees and family members had traveled together to Phuket and that on July 5 at around 5 p.m. they encountered the "biggest storm in five years" and they sought the government's help. The group had booked their tours to the islands online on their own, said the posting.

A Chinese tour operator based in the central province of Hunan said on its official Sina Weibo account that three travelers it had booked were missing.

Lazy Cat Travel said it had sent personnel to Phuket to help out its clients, who also included 35 passengers who had to be rescued from another boat that it had chartered that ran into trouble on Thursday. It said that second boat had lost power after being swamped by waves. All on board were returned safely to shore.

The accidents came as rescuers, also led by Thai navy divers, support 12 boys and their soccer coach stranded nearly two weeks inside a flooded cave in the country's far north, and try to determine how and when to extract them.

Associated Press researcher Shanshan Wang in Beijing contributed to this report. </s> The Latest on a boat capsizing in Thailand (all times local):

The Chinese foreign ministry has urged Thailand's government to step up its efforts to rescue any survivors from the sinking of a tour boat off a southern island in the Southeast Asian nation.

Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters at a regular briefing that Beijing has asked Thailand to "expand the scope for rescue and to mobilize various forces to join in the efforts."

Hua said Thailand has assured Beijing it will not stop the search until all the Chinese tourists are found.

The double-decker Phoenix capsized and sank late Thursday afternoon after it was hit by 5-meter (16-foot) waves in one of Thailand's worst tourism-related disasters since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed thousands.

China is warning its people to be careful during water-based activities when traveling abroad after a fatal boat capsizing in Thailand.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism said Monday that travelers should closely monitor weather and sea conditions and obey all warnings.

The notice carried in local newspapers and websites did not specifically mention Thailand but said some cruise companies exercised lax management and maintained inadequate safety measures.

The boat that capsized during a storm off Phuket last Thursday killed at least 42 people with 10 still missing. Most passengers were Chinese.

Chinese accounted for slightly under one-third of the 35.38 million tourists who visited Thailand last year.

Thai authorities say five people reported to have been missing from a boat that sank off the southern resort island of Phuket last week are alive.

It's not clear if the five survived the sinking or never got on the boat.

Phuket Gov. Norrapat Plodthong says authorities are trying to verify details and some of the five may have left Thailand.

Norrapat also said Monday the boat that sank in a storm Thursday afternoon carried 89 tourists, mostly Chinese, instead of 93.

He said 10 people are now missing, instead of the previous figure of 14, including the five people believed to have survived. The death toll remains at 42.

He said the revised numbers of tourists and the missing followed new information from Thai immigration and the Chinese Embassy. </s> – A total of 13 bodies were discovered as of July 6 noon after a tourist boat had overturned near the Thai island of Phuket a day earlier, reported the Thai News Agency (TNA).The first body was recovered in early morning of July 6 and 12 more were found just before noon. Forty-three people are still missing.All boat passengers were Chinese tourists, Thai authority confirmed.The boat called Phoenix was carrying at least 105 people, including 93 tourists and 12 tour guides, when it was pummelled by huge waves on the way back to Phuket from the popular snorkeling spot of Koh Racha.The boat was flooded and began to keel over after it was hit by five-metre high waves in the afternoon. Life jackets were later handed out to passengers and inflatable life rafts deployed, said the captain, Somjing Boontham.Rescuers have saved 51 people. Eleven are injured, two of whom are in serious condition, said Phuket governor Noraphat Plodthing.Helicopters were dispatched to find those who may have drifted away from the boat while divers were also sent to search inside the sunken boat, he added.According to the Chinese Consulate General in Songkhla, most of the Chinese tourists are employees of a company who were on a holiday trip with their families to Phuket.A Chinese consular official has arrived in Phuket to monitor the rescue efforts.The Phoenix was among several boats that appeared to have ignored a severe weather warning to take tourists on day-trips to islands off Phuket.Another boat called Senerita also capsized in the same area on July 5 with 39 European and Chinese tourists abroad. All of the passengers were rescued. –VNA </s> Chinese

A rescued woman wearing a life jacket hugs a man after a boat capsized off the tourist island of Phuket. Reuters

BANGKOK – Thai rescue workers pulled three more bodies from the Andaman Sea, officials said on Tuesday (July 10), as the grim task of identifying more than 40 dead gets underway following a boat accident off the coast of Phuket last week.

“Three more bodies were found. One found near Phi Phi island,” Somnuek Prempramote, commander of Naval Area 3, told a news conference in the popular holiday island off Thailand’s west coast.

The boat, the Phoenix, went down off Phuket in high seas on Thursday with 101 people on board, including 89 tourists, all but two of them from China, during an outing to a small island. Twelve Thai crew were also on board.

The death toll makes it the worst tourist-related disaster in Thailand in years and underscores long-standing concerns about the industry’s safety.

Forty-four people have been confirmed dead and 54 were rescued, officials said on Tuesday.

Rescuers are still searching for three missing people.

Somnuek said rescue workers would continue to search for bodies if weather conditions allow.

“The wind is quite strong,” said Somnuek, adding that plans to lift the sunken vessel were on hold.

“On moving the boat to see whether there are bodies underneath … this task will need to be assessed to see if it affects evidence in this case. We will continue to consider this option,” he said.

A Thai government minister blamed Chinese tour operators on Monday for the deaths for not respecting Thai safety legislation. </s> BANGKOK (Reuters) - Rescue workers pulled three more bodies from the Andaman Sea on Tuesday as authorities and relatives began identifying more than 40 dead from a boat accident near Thailand’s holiday island of Phuket last week.

The Phoenix tourist boat went down in rough seas on Thursday with 101 people on board, including 89 tourists, all but two of them from China, during an outing to a small island. Twelve Thai crew were also on board.

“Three more bodies were found. One found near Phi Phi island,” Somnuek Prempramote, commander of Naval Area 3, told reporters on Phuket, a popular holiday destination off Thailand’s west coast.

Forty-four people have been confirmed dead, officials said on Tuesday, making it Thailand’s worst tourist-related disaster in years and underscoring safety concerns about the industry.

There were 54 survivors and the search for three missing people would continue if the weather allowed, Somnuek said.

“The wind is quite strong,” said Somnuek, adding that plans to lift the sunken vessel were on hold.

“On moving the boat to see whether there are bodies underneath ... this task will need to be assessed to see if it affects evidence in this case. We will continue to consider this option,” he said.

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan apologized for comments he made on Monday blaming Chinese tour operators for the deaths because they did not respect Thai safety rules.

Prawit “sends his condolences and apologizes to the Chinese people,” defense ministry spokesman Kongcheep Tantravanich told reporters.

Two other boats capsized in the same area on Thursday but their passengers were brought safely to shore.

The captain of the Phoenix has been charged with negligence causing death, police said. He has denied the charges.

More than 50 Chinese families have arrived in Phuket to identify the bodies of relatives and take care of survivors, Thai media reported on Monday.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha visited Phuket on Thursday and comforted some of the relatives. </s> At least one man died and scores of Chinese tourists went missing after a boat capsized off the popular southern island resort in Thailand. The boat, the Phoenix, was carrying nearly 105 passengers in the Andaman Sea. It was hit by massive waves which prompted it to keel over. The search operation resumed on Friday after helicopters dispatched to the search area. Nearly 49 people are still missing. </s> July 5 (UPI) -- At least one man is dead and 49 people are missing after a tourist boat capsized amid rough seas off the coast of the island of Phuket.

The boat named "The Phoenix" was carrying about 90 passengers, who were mostly Chinese tourists, according to Police Lt. Colonel Somsak Sophakarn, the deputy chief of Phuket's Chalong Provincial Police Station, CNN reported.

Approximately 50 people had been rescued and taken to shore as of Friday afternoon in Thailand.

Rescue workers are continuing to search for the missing passengers. Officials said the Thai Royal Navy is assisting in rescue efforts with divers and helicopters.

Seas were rough on Friday and a weather warning was put out, but several tourists boats and other sea recreational vehicles went out, anyways.

As a result, Phuket Governor Noraphat Plothong said there were three emergency incidents on Friday and a total of 138 people were in need of rescue, the Phuket News reported.

Another tourist boat carrying 39 people sunk off the southeast coast of Phuket. All 39 people were safely recovered.

In the third incident, a Russian couple on jet skis got lost, but were eventually found, the Bangkok Post reported. </s> PHUKET, Thailand – Divers scoured the wreckage Friday of a boat with Chinese tourists that sank in a storm off Thailand’s southern resort island of Phuket, as the death toll rose to 21 with about 35 others missing, officials said.

Nine bodies of Chinese tourists were being brought to Phuket, where authorities had already confirmed the death of another Chinese man. The nationalities of the others killed were not immediately known.

Some of the bodies were found by divers who entered the wreck Friday and others were floating in the water, said navy official Narong Aurabhakdi.

The boat was carrying 105 people, including 93 tourists, 11 crew and one tour guide when it toppled in 5-meter (16-foot) -high waves on Thursday evening. At least 12 of the injured were hospitalized.

Another boat also overturned off Phuket on Thursday afternoon, but all 42 on board were rescued.

The accidents came as rescuers, also led by Thai navy divers, struggle to extract 12 boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave in the country’s far north, where they’ve been trapped since June 23.

Jin Yilin, consul-general of the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, said a delegation from the Chinese Foreign Ministry is on the way to Thailand.

Images on Thursday showed rescued people in large rubber life rafts, with fishing boats and churning seas in the background. The survivors were shown being lifted from the rafts and sitting in life jackets amid ropes on the deck of what appears to be a fishing trawler.

As the seas calmed Friday, divers were transporting the bodies of the dead, including at least one child, from smaller boats to a larger ship taking part in the search effort.

Severe weather including heavy rain and winds were forecast until Tuesday. Phuket Gov. Norraphat Plodthong said officials would consider whether to ban boats from going to sea during strong winds.

Thai PBS television reported late Thursday that weather had forced 12 boats with 263 passengers in all to stay docked at Racha island, a popular diving spot about an hour’s boat ride from Phuket.

They said they were providing food, shelter and water to the people, and if the weather did not clear, larger boats belonging to the navy would be sent to retrieve them.

The Thai incidents came after an overloaded boat carrying illegal Indonesian immigrants capsized in bad weather off Malaysia’s southern Johor state late Sunday, killing 10 and leaving nine missing.
At least 33 are dead and 23 missing after two passenger boats capsize off Phuket, Thailand. All are Chinese tourists.