Phuket rubber tapper fatally felled by tree branch

PHUKET: A Phuket rubber farmer was struck and killed by a falling tree branch while tapping his trees early yesterday morning in Thalang.

Jaroon Tankongkoy, 67, left for the rubber plantation at 3am, said his wife, Pranom Tankongkoy.

“I was waiting to have lunch with him, but he didn’t come back. At 3pm, I went out to look for him,” Mrs Pranom said.

She found her husband’s body lying among the trees with injuries to his skull, nose and legs. A large tree branch lay nearby.

“We believe he had been dead for about five hours when she found him,” said Lt Suporn Muangkhai of the Thalang Police.

Mr Jaroon’s body was taken to Thalang Hospital to confirm cause of death.

— Thawit Bilabdullar