An American tourist who went missing on a jet ski ride was found dead off the coast of Thailand.

Nina Ng, 37, disappeared after renting the machine to go sailing off Phuket island on February 27. Locals later found the jet ski, her belongings, and her life vest half a mile from Patong Beach, but found no sign of the holidaymaker.

Rescue today said they have retrieved a corpse believed to be Nina's drifting face-down between two islands off Phuket.

The body was initially mistaken as a man due to its severely decomposed state, with most of the flesh on the head and limbs already rotted away. However, police identified Nina from the tattoo on her wrist.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Somkiat Sarasithi, an investigator from the Chalong Police Station, said: 'On March 16, 2025, at 8:40 am, the Chalong Radio Center received a report from the tourist assistance centre at Ao Chalong Pier that a body was found floating in the sea between Bon Island and Racha Island.

'The body was wearing a black short-sleeved t-shirt and pink shorts. The tourist assistance centre took the body to Ao Chalong Pier.

'Authorities inspected the body and confirmed it was female. Currently, Patong Police are coordinating with the relatives of the missing American woman who disappeared while riding a jet ski, awaiting confirmation from overseas authorities to verify if it is the same person. The forensic results are still pending.'

Police Lieutenant Colonel Wichit Suwanro, the head of the investigation unit at Patong Police Station, said: 'We are currently waiting for the forensic results to confirm clearly, but the police believe that the body is that of the missing tourist on the jet ski, because a wrist tattoo on the corpse matches hers.'

Authorities said the cadaver was being kept at the Vachira Phuket Hospital. DNA samples were also collected for testing, they added.

Nina worked for the American non-profit Help Me Live USA, an organisation providing medical and humanitarian services to people in Gaza, Jordan, and Lebanon.

She was reported missing on February 27, after renting a jet ski but failing to return the machine. The local rescue team concluded search efforts on March 1.

Beach drownings are a recurring safety concern in Thailand, especially in tourist hotspots like Phuket, Pattaya, and Krabi. The deaths often attributed to strong rip currents, lack of swimming skills, and disregard for warning signages.

The waters are most dangerous during the country's rainy monsoon season, when red flags are placed in beaches to warn of dangerous sea conditions.