A French tourist slipped and fell to his death while taking a selfie with his girlfriend at a popular waterfall in Thailand's Koh Samui.
According to police, 22-year-old Alexis Vergos, a French national and amateur soccer player, plunged to his death while visiting the Na Muang 2 waterfall around 1 p.m. on Monday, as reported by The Bangkok Post. Vergos reportedly climbed onto a rock to take pictures with his girlfriend, took a step back, lost his footing and plunged down the side of the waterfall.
Local officials, rescue volunteers, and police later recovered his body in an operation that took about three hours because of the difficult terrain. Authorities said the body was found on the second tier of the waterfall.
Investigators said the couple had booked into a hotel at Bo Phut and were sightseeing. Vergos' girlfriend told police they had just finished taking photos together when he slipped and fell. Thai news reports said the woman also slipped but survived by grabbing onto a branch.
The popular tourist attraction attracts several visitors but is notorious for having slippery paths. Safety measures such as fences are being considered at the waterfall, which has claimed many other lives in the past.
One Tripadvisor review of the picturesque site had an eerie warning: "Beautiful view at the top but beware – very slippery and unmarked paths."
Koh Samui district chief Amorn Chumchuay said an initial post-mortem examination found that Vergos died from a head injury. "Extra warning signs in Thai and English have been used throughout the area for several months," he added. "Most tourists had complied with the warnings, and no similar incidents had occurred until now.
"We will now look at strengthening safety measures by installing fences or enclosures in dangerous areas and restricting access to high-risk spots."
Previous accidents at the waterfall include a horrific episode in 2017 when former EastEnders star Paul Nicholls fell and spent two nights stranded on the waterfall before being stretchered to hospital. Both Spanish tourist David Conesa and French tourist Bastien Palmier fell to their deaths in two separate accidents at the same waterfall in 2019.
Vergos' football club issued the following tribute on their Instagram page in the wake of his death:
