'I can only wait and hope': Mother of missing Thai sailor prays for his return after warship sinks

BANG SAPHAN, Thailand: When Pongsri Suksawat received two phone calls from her son’s friend on Sunday night (Dec 18), she knew something must have gone wrong.

“James! How are you?” the man on the line said, she recalled. He sounded worried.

Her son’s friend had tried to call his mobile phone twice but could not reach him. Both calls were automatically transferred to Pongsri’s device.

The 50-year-old mother did not know that her son, Jirawat "James" Toophom, 22, was on board a sinking warship in the Gulf of Thailand.

“I was wondering what had happened to my child. His friend called a few times, so something must have happened to him. I couldn’t sleep that night,” she told CNA on Wednesday (Dec 21).

The round-the-clock search and rescue operation is continuing three days after the HTMS Sukhothai sank on Sunday night.

A total of 76 survivors have been rescued and six casualties have been found. There are 23 people still missing, including James.

“I can only wait and hope that divine spirits will help him return,” said Pongsri.

The HTMS Sukhothai corvette was carrying 105 navy officers from Chumphon to Prachuap Port in Bang Saphan, Prachuap Khiri Khan province, when fierce winds and waves caused seawater to enter the vessel and damage its electric system.

A power failure that ensued stopped the ship’s engine and made it unable to maintain balance in the rough sea. As more water rapidly entered the vessel, it started to tip and eventually sank at about 11.30pm on Sunday.

The 105 marines on board were forced to evacuate the ship. While most of them had life jackets, the navy’s preliminary report showed that 30 people did not, which meant dozens of officers had to rely on life rafts.

Six such rafts were on the HTMS Sukhothai warship and each of them could carry up to 15 people, according to the navy. Extra life rafts were also provided by other vessels and aircraft dispatched to the scene to assist with the evacuation.

But the turbulent weather made the operation highly difficult.

“The ship began to tip further because more water had entered. Eventually, it started to sink from the back,” navy chief Choengchai Chomchoengpaet explained in a press conference on Tuesday.

“There was a commotion then. Some of the crew manually released the life rafts to let those without life jackets get in, hoping they could be rescued by other vessels later.

"Some other officers who had been washed away by the waves as the ship was sinking tried to swim towards the HTMS Kraburi frigate nearby,” he added.

Seventy-four people were rescued in the immediate aftermath of the sinking of the HTMS Sukhothai. Several suffered injuries such as broken limbs and loss of blood.

Eight more marines, including six casualties, were found on Monday and Tuesday. Most of them were located some 60km south of the area where the ship sank.

WAIT AND PRAY

As the search and rescue operation continues in the Gulf of Thailand, relatives of the missing marines hope they will soon receive good news about their loved ones.

Pongsri told CNA she has been praying for James' safety but could not help wondering if her son had been hurt or how cold it would be for him if he is still alive.

“The other night, I thought I should walk along the beach. It was very windy, so perhaps the winds might have brought in my child. I was just thinking. I was afraid he would be cold,” she said.

Pongsri, James’ elder sister and four other family members drove for about six hours from Rayong to Prachuap Khiri Khan when they learnt about the sinking of the warship.

They joined relatives of the other missing marines at the port in Bang Saphan, where bodies and survivors are brought in from the sea.

Looking at James’ messages on her mobile phone, the 55-year-old mother told CNA how her son informed her of his upcoming trip two days before the incident.

“Before the trip, he sent me a message on Facebook Messenger, telling me ‘Mum, I’m going to Chumphon for three days. Take care of Nan for me’,” she said, adding Nan is James’ wife.

“Then, he sent me photos when he was about to embark on the ship.”

The photos – sent to Pongsri on Saturday afternoon – showed the HTMS Sukhothai corvette and James, in his navy uniform and sunglasses, on board the ship. Behind him, the sun was blazing in the sky and the sea was blue and clear.

“Okay, take care of yourself, darling,” Pongsri wrote back to her son.

“Yes, I will,” he replied. “I’m so seasick.”

James later sent a short clip taken on the ship to his mother before he disappeared.

“He had never gone on board a ship. This is the first time in his life,” Pongsri said

Her son joined the navy in February as a seaman stationed at the navy base in Chonburi, eastern Thailand. On Dec 19, he and other navy officers were supposed to join a commemoration of Admiral Prince Abhakara of Chumphon – who is regarded as the father of the Thai navy – in Chumphon province. 

But that never happened.

“The winds have calmed down now. So, I’m praying,” Pongsri said. “It should be easier to find him now.”