Ms Corrigan, 29, fell from a tuk-tuk while en route from Patong to Surin at about 3:30am. Rescue workers recovered Ms Corrigan from the road near the Muslim cemetery in Kamala and rushed her to Patong Hospital.
From there she was taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital, the main government hospital on the island, in Phuket Town, where she was pronounced dead. (See story here.)
According to a police statement by Ms Corrigan’s male companion in the tuk-tuk at the time of her fall, named by police as Paul Henry Fortuna, 30, Ms Corrgian was very drunk and fell accidentally.
“We took Mr Fortuna’s statement on Monday,” Kamala Police Chief Col ML Pattanajak Jakkapan told The Phuket News today.
“We had to wait as he was very drunk on Sunday morning, and even on Sunday evening he still tested positive for alcohol,” he said.
Mr Fortuna explained to police that he and Ms Corrigan had spent a night on the town, drinking in Patong, before heading back to their hotel in Surin early Sunday morning, said Col ML Pattanajak.
“Mr Fortuna said that during the journey in the tuk-tuk, Ms Corrigan was about to be sick and moved to the entryway at the back of the vehicle,” he explained.
“That’s when she fell. Mr Fortuna said he reached out to grab her, but missed. He shouted for the tuk-tuk driver to stop immediately, which the driver did.
“Ms Corrigan was unconscious on the road and they were unable to rouse her, so the tuk-tuk driver called for local rescue workers to help,” Col ML Pattanajak added.
The first-responders soon arrived and rushed Ms Corrigan to Patong Hospital. From there, she was rushed to Vachira.
The tuk-tuk driver, Yongyut Damkong, 44, tested negative for alcohol immediately after the accident.
“But we have yet to conclude our investigation,” Col ML Pattanajak said. “We are still checking for any CCTV that might aid our investigation, and hopefully determine what happened including what the driver and Mr Sortuna was doing at the time of the incident.
“It is too early for us to deduce any conclusions. We are still waiting for the Land Transport Dpartment to confirm that the tuk-tuk is legal, and roadworthy.”