Police were today searching for an Austrian businessman who went missing on a Thai island.

Klaus Florian Hallermann, 56, was last seen carrying a backpack on the beach as he walked to a remote trail for a morning jog in Phi Phi Island in Krabi province on September 11.

The hotel resort manager was reported missing by his worried friends after losing contact with him for two days.

Officers began their search today, September 13, with volunteers to follow where the ex-pat had been as well as interviewing locals for information.

A police spokesman said: ‘This missing Austrian man likes to go for exercises every day and regularly goes camping alone on the beach. He is well known to the locals.

‘A search is ongoing on different bays on the island. For now, the search will only be on the island as Phi Phi is on lockdown since last Saturday because of the virus.

The police’s search team was hampered by insufficient staffing as there is a Covid-19 outbreak on Phi Phi Island, where police were almost entirely quarantined.

He added that Florian had been working as general manager for Zeavola hotel and resort in Laemtong Bay for more than 10 years so he knew the area well.

He said: ‘We are coordinating with local authorities outside the area. We were informed about a foreigner with matching descriptions but it wasn’t the missing Austrian man. He knew the area well so we are checking outside.’

A village headman who claimed he last saw Florian said that he was heading to Nui bay. The search and rescue operations are still ongoing.

Phi Phi Islands – an island group in Thailand between the large island of Phuket and the Straits of Malacca coast – became more well-known to tourists for the Leonardo DiCaprio movie ‘The Beach.’