Twenty-six people had to abandon their diving boat in the early hours of Saturday when it caught fire 13 nautical miles off Pakarang beach in Khao Lak in Phangnga province.
The Maritime Enforcement Command Centre was alerted via hotline around 4.15am that the boat, carrying 16 Thai and foreign passengers and 10 crew members, was ablaze in Takua Pa district.
All 26 people on board abandoned ship onto a life raft, where they were eventually rescued and brought safely to shore.
The vessel, the MV Dirace Class B, was transporting tourists for a coral viewing trip in Khao Lak National Park, intended to take passengers to a depth of 20 metres to view the coral reef and the wreckage of the mining ship Boonsong.
Authorities were investigating the cause of the fire.
Saturday’s incident followed a fire on the tourist boat Aor Subpiti, which injured two crewmen off the shores of Koh Kut in Trat on Friday. The engine reportedly erupted into flames during the return trip to Koh Kut, and the crew was injured while helping a Thai family of four to evacuate the boat.
The 16-year-old helmsman of the Aor Subpiti sustained significant burns to his arms and face while attempting to extinguish the fire, authorities said.
