French tourist dies in Bang Tao Beach drowning

A French tourist was pronounced dead after being pulled from the water at Bang Tao Beach in Phuket, police said.

Pol Lt Urasaya Dangtako, deputy investigator at Cherng Talay Police, said officers were informed at about 5pm that a tourist had drowned near the Muslim cemetery along the Bang Tao beachfront.

Rescue teams from the Cherng Talay Tambon Administrative Organisation and Thalang Hospital brought the man ashore and performed CPR before taking him to Thalang Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 6:21pm.

Police said no injuries were found on his body and that the initial cause of death was drowning. His body was sent to Vachira Phuket Hospital for further examination.

As of 10am on 17 August 2026, police were waiting for the examination results as they investigated the incident. The Phuket News withheld the man’s name until his next of kin had been notified.