Tourists flee as Thailand braces for major storm

Locals in Songkhla built barriers that they hope will hold back the sea surges. Photo / AP

Thai authorities suspended ferry services and evacuated locals and tourists ahead of a tropical storm expected to pound the Southeast Asian nation's famed southern beach resorts during a peak tourism season.

Thousands of tourists and residents have reportedly fled islands off Thailand's southeast coast to escape the Tropical Storm Pabuk.

Rain was already falling around the Gulf of Thailand yesterday afternoon and officials warned that torrential downpours, strong winds and rough seas were expected when Tropical Storm Pabuk makes landfall overnight.

There were fears the storm will be the worst to hit Thailand since 1989, when Typhoon Gay left more than 400 people dead. A tropical storm in 1962 killed more than 900 people in the south.

In a death possibly related to the storm, a Russian tourist in Koh Samui died on Wednesday as he tried to rescue his daughter, who was struggling in strong surf. Thai PBS television reported that the daughter survived but her father lost consciousness after being tossed against some rocks and couldn't be revived by rescuers.

Thailand's Meteorological Department said the storm will lash southern Thailand's east coast through today, with the two provinces of Surat Thani and Nakhon Si Thammarat expected to be hardest hit. Surat Thani is home to the popular tourist islands of Koh Samui, Koh Tao and Koh Phangan.

"We have prepared three shelters and currently have about 1000 people in them," said local official Kriangsak Raksrithong.

Along with tourism, fishing is another major industry in the south, and small boat owners were heeding the warning. Many dragged their vessels ashore, attaching ropes to the boats and having friends help tug them on to beaches.

Hundreds of people have been housed in shelters as the storm approaches. Photo / AP

The Meteorological Department warned of strong winds and storm surges on the gulf side and said all ships should stay berthed on land.

"There will be heavy rainfall and we have to prepared for flooding or an impact on transportation," Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said. "We are ready ourselves, but if the rainfall is high we will need some time to resolve problems."

He later held a video conference with governors of provinces in the storm's path to discuss preparations for the emergency, including draining floodwaters, mobilising rescue vehicles, and readying medical facilities.

Southern Thailand's tourist industry is a huge moneymaker, and authorities have become particularly sensitive to visitors' safety since last July, when 47 Chinese tourists drowned when the boat they were on sank in rough seas near the popular resort of Phuket in the Andaman Sea.

On Samui island, beach guards hoisted red flags to warn people to stay out of the sea. Police patrolled beaches, although many were almost deserted.

Southern Vietnam also was expecting heavy rain and strong winds in the Mekong Delta, the country's major area for rice and aquaculture production.

According to Vietnamese state television VTV, authorities ordered people to take precautions and sent radio alerts to thousands of fishing boats to take shelter or return to shore. They had forbidden new boat departures in five provinces.

- AP