Two stranded kite surfers were rescued after getting stuck on a cliffside for five hours in Thailand.

The Russian tourists, 28 and 40, were kiteboarding around the Khao Kalok island in Prachuap Khiri Khan province when powerful currents swept them away from the beach on November 29 morning.

Worried relatives called the emergency services who dispatched marine rescue volunteers when the pair failed to return to shore. Authorities deployed a drone and found the missing men staying at the base of a rocky cliff while being battered by large waves.

Due to dangerous sea conditions, volunteers had to rescue the tourists on foot. They rappelled down the steep cliffside and hoisted the kite surfers to safety.

One of the tourists said he lost control of his kite when his steering equipment malfunctioned, sending him toward the cliff. He claimed his friend tried to rescue him, but they were both swept away from Khao Kalok island.

The Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) on November 27 issued an advisory warning of strong winds and waves over the lower Gulf of Thailand, and cool to cold weather in the upper part of the country.

The department reported that a moderate to strong high-pressure system from China would extend over upper Thailand and the South China Sea.

The northeast monsoon prevailing over the Gulf of Thailand and the South was expected to strengthen, while an active low-pressure cell over the lower South China Sea would move through the lower South and Malaysia into the lower Andaman Sea.

The strengthening winds were expected to cause waves in the upper Gulf and the Andaman Sea to reach about 6.6 feet (2 metres) and exceed 6.6 feet (2 metres) in thundershowers.

In the lower Gulf, waves were forecast to rise between 6.6 and 9.8 feet (2 to 3 metres).