Tens of thousands of tourists have fled the Thai resort islands of Koh Phangan and Koh Tao ahead of tropical storm Pabuk which is set to bring heavy rains, wind, and large waves of up to 7 metres.
Hanoi (VNA) – Tens ofthousands of tourists have fled the Thai resort islands of Koh Phangan and KohTao ahead of tropical storm Pabuk which is set to bring heavy rains, wind, and largewaves of up to 7 metres.
Pabuk, the first tropical stormin the region outside of the monsoon season for around 30 years, is poised tobatter Koh Tao, Koh Phangan, as well as Koh Samui on the evening of January 4,before cutting into the mainland.
Althoughthere has been no official evacuation order, tourists have been fleeing indroves, leaving the famous tourist destination almost empty from January 2.According to local authorities of Koh Phangnan, about 30,000 to 50,000 haveleft the island since the New Year's Eve countdown party.
Pabuk waspacking winds of 104 km per hour but was unlikely to intensify into a fullblown typhoon, said forecasters who warned of waves as high as 5-7 metres nearthe eye of the storm.
Thetyphoon is also forecasted to dump heavy rain across the south, includingtourist hotspots in the Andaman Sea such as Krabi and the southernmostprovinces of Pattani, Narathiwat, and Yala which border Malaysia.–VNA
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Illustrative image (Source: AP) 
