Ms Ng, 37, from New York, was last seen taking her life jacket off and entering the water from her rented jet-ski about one kilometre from Patong Beach last Thursday (Feb 27).
She has not been seen since, despite search efforts being launched after it was realised she had not returned to shore with the jet-ski that afternoon.
Pol Lt Col Suchart Chumphusang, Investigation Superintendent of Patong Police Station said that the search will continue.
“The search is still ongoing. It has not been canceled; it will not be until the body is found,” Pol Lt Col Suchart said today (Mar 4).
“The search will continue until we see it and we can tell if she is still alive,” he added.
Pol Lt Col Suchart acknowledged the expertise of rescue workers, who believe that at this stage Ms Ng’s chances of survival are low.
However, he emphasised that the police cannot conclude anything until Ms Ng is found.
“Maybe a boat picked her up. She may be alive somewhere,” he said.
Patong Police have coordinated with vendors and lifeguards along Patong Beach to report any new information, Pol Lt Col Suchart added,
“If anyone sees her, please report it to Patong Police Station at any time,” he urged.
Police have now collected Ms Ng’s belongings from the hotel where she was staying.
“Today was Ms Ng’s scheduled check-out day, and officers have collected her belongings and brought them to the station. Her relatives have been notified, and authorities remain committed to finding her,” Pol Lt Col Suchart said.
Phuket MP Chalermpong Saengdee confirmed that the official search operation has been scaled down due to budget limitations.
“We [local authorities] tried our best to search for her, but due to insufficient budget, the mission had to decrease in scale,” he explained.
“The search area has been expanded to outside Patong Bay, in the open sea, making the search difficult,” he added.
“Right now, some local units have been withdrawn from the search, including the dive team and the Kusoldharm rescue team,” he said.
Kusoldharm rescue workers conducted searches for three days, but ended their efforts on Saturday (Mar 1), acknowledging Ms Ng’s low chances of survival in the open water.
One member of the Kusoldharm rescue team told The Phuket News, “We can only hope and wait to see if a body surfaces.”