PHUKET: A Russian man drowned while swimming off Patong beach yesterday.
Pol Maj Chaiyakorn Tangsakul, an investigator at Patong police station, said the incident was reported at 7.55am.
Rescue workers, lifeguards and personnel from Patong Hospital attended. Despite the medics' efforts to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the tourist, their attempts were unsuccessful.
The tourist's wife told the police she and her husband Pavel Rafaylovich, 53, were Russian nationals. They were staying at a hotel near the beach and had decided to go for a swim on Saturday morning. Her husband had swum about 7 kilometres from shore amid strong waves when he started having problems. She called out for help and lifeguards rushed into the sea to bring him back to shore. However, the man could not be resuscitated and died.