No foul play is suspected in the death of an elderly Dutchman whose body was found floating in the sea off Pattaya beach on Friday evening.

The body of 74-year-old Johannes Van Schaik was spotted by locals floating in the sea close to Walking Street around 7pm.

A missing persons report had already been filed with police by his worried wife earlier in the evening after he failed to return from an afternoon swim.

Rescue volunteers from the Sawang Boriboon Foundation used a boat to recover the body as a crowd of onlookers gathered to watch including the wife of the deceased.

His wife Sukjai, 41, was inconsolable and was comforted by members of the public.

Police believe the man died of natural causes and sent the body for an autopsy.

There will be a ban on the sale of alcohol this Friday, 2nd October to mark Wan Awk Phansa – the end of Buddhist Lent.

The restriction on the sale of booze will run from 00.00 to 23.59 on Friday leaving some flexibility for venues to open early Thursday then throw open their doors again at midnight as many nightclubs and go-go bars choose to do.

Most pubs will remain open selling only non-alcoholic beverages as they do good business on the food side.

Wan Awk Phansa is one of the big five days on the holy calendar that sees the sale of alcohol banned. It was added to the list of alcohol-free days on religious holidays back in 2015.

The US Ambassador and other dignitaries broke ground today on the new U.S. Consulate General in Chiang Mai.

Big wigs on the end of a shovel included Ambassador Michael George DeSombre, Consul General Sean K. O’Neill, Thai Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Vijavat Isarabhakdi, and Chiang Mai Governor Charoenrit Sanguansat.

The new consulate will be located on the Super Highway replacing the decades building on Witchayanond Road by the Ping river built in 1950.

The new Consulate General will provide a secure, modern, and resilient platform for the conduct of U.S. diplomacy in northern Thailand.

Ennead Architects of New York is the design architect for the project and B.L. Harbert International of Birmingham, Alabama is the construction contractor.

Throughout this project, an estimated $45 million will be invested in the local economy. The project will employ an estimated 600 American, Thai, and third-country nationals.

Approximately 70% of the workforce will be recruited from the local labour pool.

The project is expected to be completed in 2023.