The sudden flooding of a cave in Thailand’s southern province of Surat Thani killed at least five German tourists and their two Thai guides and left two others missing, park officials said on Sunday.
Heavy rains inundated Nam Talu Cave in Koh Sok National Park of Surat Thani, about 300km south of Bangkok, while the seven German tourists were visiting the popular site with two Thai tour guides on Saturday afternoon, said park deputy chief Thirayudh Munagpaisan.
Rescue workers had located seven bodies in the cave, including five Germans, one male adult, a female and three children, a boy and two girls, Thirayudh said in a telephone interview.
The bodies of their two Thai guides were also found.
”We are still optimistic that the two missing tourists are still alive since we probably would have discovered their bodies by now had they drowned,” said Thirayudh.
He said the group had taken a boat to the cave, about 60km from park headquarters, and were caught inside during a three-hour rainstorm that inundated the cavern.
Thirayudh claimed that park officials had issued warnings to tourists about the dangers of visiting the cave during the rainy season.
The names of the victims were not immediately available. They had been staying on floating bungalows on the Koh Sok reservoir. — Sapa-dpa