The three people were injured when the concrete beneath them collapsed yesterday morning.
The three were taken to hospital by ambulance, Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos confirmed, without giving any details of the ages or nationalities of the people injured.
“The three people were not seriously injured,” he said.
One witness at the scene told The Phuket News that he ran to help after he saw one man had fallen into the hole with a restaurant table on landing on top of him.
“We have officers inspecting what to do with the hole now,” Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos told The Phuket News today.
Officials from Rawai Municipality’s Public Works division have yet to determine how to fix the hole to ensure that people are not in danger from further similar incidents.
“The constant movement of the sea washed away the soil underneath the seafront wall,” Mayor Aroon explained.
“This left the seawall intact, but the soil behind the wall was washed away, leading to the concrete behind the wall collapsing,” he added.
Officers will inspect all along the seafront wall to ensure the footpath is safe, he said.
However, the tables and chairs along the beachfront footpath will remain, Mayor Aroon confirmed.
“The section along the sidewalk where the tables and chairs are placed are actually on private land. Only the strip beside the beachfront wall is a public area,” he explained.
“When you walk along the footpath, you can see that the concrete where the restaurants’ tables and chairs have been placed is different from the public walkway section,” he added.