Firm responds to Thailand security scares
Thursday, 21 May, 2010
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A Bangkok-based VIP aviation security specialist claims that its phones are ‘ringing off the hook’ with requests for assistance from travellers and security companies concerned about the situation in Thailand.
The ASA Group has moved people including families and exchange students away from troubled areas during violent political unrest which has led to buildings being burnt down in the capital (see earlier TravelMole stories).
Managing director Simon Wagstaff said: “Many people are frightened about what is happening here. The situation is fluid and changes daily.
“It is important to stress that people want to move as much for convenience as for safety. Their daily lives are affected by the lack of facilities available.
”It is difficult to enter and exit the hotspots, where shops are closed and utilities such as running water, electricity and internet are intermittent if present at all.”
Wagstaff added: “We are warning our clients to stay away from the troubled areas.
“Some tourists have unwisely been going to the protest sites to gawk and take photographs.
That is a bit like those people who get out of the car at a safari park to pet the ‘cuddly’ lions.”
The company is urging visitors to keep a close eye on the news, and make plans for an alternative means of getting out of the country if necessary.
They should also ensure that they carry a phone number for a security specialist firm should trouble flare up suddenly.
Wagstaff said: “We are escorting people to and from the airport, since the troubled areas are constantly changing and we know where to avoid.
“If people are coming I would strongly recommend hiring a security firm that knows what it is doing.”
ASA has been called on several times to assist VIP passengers to leave the country in recent month, and helped corporate aircrews and passengers exit Thailand after demonstrators seized control of Bangkok’s International Suvarnabhumi airport.
by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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