A unit from the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Center (THAI-MECC), based at the Royal Thai Navy Third Area Command based at Cape Panwa, was informed of the incident at 11:40am.
The unit, already performing a support mission nearby, soon arrived at the scene to join the search, which was launched after people reported seeing a man floating in the channel.
On arrival, the Navy personnel were told that the man had already been brought on board a local fishing boat.
The man was transferred to the Navy boat, a high-speed rigid inflatable, and quickly brought back to shore at Tha Noon, on the Phang Nga side of the channel. Form there, he was rushed to Takua Thung Hospital, in Phang Nga.
At last report, according to a post online by the Third Area Command, the man, confirmed to be a student from Phang Nga Province, remains at Takua Thung Hospital receiving treatment.
If you or anyone you know is in need of emotional support and counselling, please contact the Samaritans of Thailand at their 24-hour hotline 02-113-6789 (English & Thai) or the Thai Mental Health Hotline at 1323 (Thai).