Bombs go off across Thailand, at least 4 dead

Tourists huddled in their hotel rooms and ducked inside buildings after bombs, one after another, exploded in at least four areas of Thailand, including popular beach cities, killing at least four people and wounding dozens more.

The blasts come just days after the country voted to accept a military-backed constitution in a referendum.

“The security in the bar told me to get back into the bar and they just shut down the shutters and made sure everyone was at the back of the bar and after about … a 10-minute or so wait, there was a second bang,” tourist Shane Brett told Australian Broadcasting Corp. from his hotel room in Hua Hin on Friday, the morning after the Thursday night blasts.

Those attacks killed a street vendor and wounded about 20 other people in the beach city about 200 kilometre southwest of Bangkok.

Another pair of bombs exploded Friday morning in Hua Hin, killing one person and wounding four. Friday was a public holiday in Thailand to mark the queen’s birthday, which is celebrated as Mother’s Day.

Official with hospitals that treated victims of both blasts said they are from countries including Germany, Italy, Austria and the Netherlands.

Bombs also went off on Phuket’s Patong Beach in southern Thailand and the southern provinces of Trang, Surat Thani and Phang Nga. One person was killed in the Trang blast, which occurred Thursday, and another was killed in the Surat Thani attack on Friday morning.

Police believe the blasts were acts of “local sabotage” and not linked to international militants, Police Colonel Krisana Pattanacharoen told reporters.

“It’s too soon to jump to any conclusion,” he said “But what we know for sure is that the incidents are not linked directly to any kinds of terrorism, in fact it’s local sabotage and we are trying to identify those responsible behind the scenes.

Tourism spots hit 

The attacks are bad news for Thailand’s tourist sector, which has been one of the few bright spots in a sluggish economy.

Tourism accounts for about 10 per cent of gross domestic product and Thailand is expecting a record 32 million visitors this year.

Blasts went off Thursday and Friday in Thailand in (1) Surat Thani, (2) Phuket, (3) Hua Hin and (4) Trang. On Feb. 27, a car bomb injured at least seven people in (5) Patini.

Phuket in particular is frequented by millions of European, Chinese and Thai tourists each year who come to swim in the warm, azure sea, party at the open air night clubs and explore tropical rainforests. The other towns hit are less prominent international destinations but still popular among Thais and many foreigners.

Governments including the U.S., Germany, Australia and Britain advised their citizens travelling in Thailand to take precautions.

Tourism suffered a temporary hit after a bomb blast ripped through a Bangkok shrine nearly a year ago, killing 20 people, mostly visitors from other Asian countries.

“This ruins business. Hotels, restaurants, tours, we were already suffering, but this, it’s going to ruin our lives,” said Hua Hin Adventure Tours guide Natsupa Dechapanya.

‘We feel like we’re not safe’

Natsupa raced Thursday from hotel to hotel visiting clients and warning them not to go outside, especially where people gather. She was also fielding cancellation calls, although she was staying away from her office, opposite a clock tower where Friday’s bombs went off.

“I’m scared, it’s bad,” she said. “This is the first time this has happened in Hua Hin. We think of this as a safe town, but now everyone is fearful. We feel like we’re not safe.”

Rescuers and medical officers carry an injured person onto an ambulance truck after a bomb blast in Hua Hin. (Reuters)

She said because the explosions happened hours apart, many — including herself — are worried about whether the attacks are over. And she said without any arrests, tension on city streets is palpable.

“Usually this is a friendly town, but today no one wants to look up. People don’t want to look each other in the eyes,” she said.

Thailand’s economy has struggled since a 2014 military coup; investors grew wary and have stayed away, but tourists came back, even after last year’s shrine bombing. More than 14 million people visited between January and May 2016 — up from 12.5 million the year before, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Almost four million of this year’s tourists came from China, just about 400,000 from the U.S.

Earlier attacks have been tied to political turmoil. 

Sirasit Teimtontanin, a manager at City Beach Resort in Hua Hin, said one of Friday’s explosions went off about 300 metres from the front door. The resort’s 50 guests were asked to stay inside, but Sirasit said by late morning, some were venturing out to the beach on a balmy day. Stores, shopping malls and movie theatres were closed. But aside from heavy police presence, he said, his town seemed normal.

Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal official inspects the site of a bomb blast in Hua Hin. (Reuters)

Nonetheless, he said he’s very concerned about the impact of the bombings on tourism at Thailand’s beach resorts. More than 15 rooms had been cancelled within hours Thursday.

“We’ve never had anything like this in our city,” he said. “Thai tourists will understand the police have the situation under control, but I think European tourists might not be coming.”