24-Year-Old Actress Dies After Wave Sweeps Her Away: What to Know About Kamilla Belyatskaya’s Death

Russian actress Kamilla Belyatskaya has died after being swept away by a giant wave in Thailand. The 24-year-old’s body was recovered in late November at a beach less than a mile away from where she was last seen sitting on a rock at a popular cliffside viewpoint overlooking the Gulfside of Thailand.

The Koh Samui Tourist Police said they responded to a call reporting a tourist who was swept into the sea at around 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 29. CCTV footage reviewed by police showed Belyatskaya, a Russian-born tourist vacationing in Thailand with her boyfriend, arrived at the Laad Koh viewpoint in the Surat Thani Province about 30 minutes earlier, the Khaosad English reported. The actress reportedly brought a pink yoga mat to a rocky area below the viewpoint. Moments later, she was swept into the sea by a large wave.

Belyatskaya was last seen struggling in the water struggling in the water for about 15 minutes before she disappeared, witnesses said. A bystander, only identified by police as a “foreign man,” jumped into the water in an effort to save Belyatskaya, but he was unsuccessful. According to police, the man is also missing.

Efforts to rescue the two tourists were hampered by rough waters. Waves reportedly reached heights of 10 feet the day Belyatskaya went missing, and Chaiyaporn Subprasert, head of the Samui Rescue Center, said warning systems were in place across the beaches due to wave surges during monsoon season. The dangerous wave conditions resulted in rescue efforts being temporarily suspended for 30 minutes.

The following day, Belyatskaya’s body was discovered less than a mile away from where she went missing near Impiana Resort. In response to the incident, Samui City Municipality closed access to the rocky area below the viewpoint where Belyatskaya was swept into the water.

Belyatskaya had been vacationing in Thialand with her fiancé, Grigorii Anokhim, who said he only learned of her death through social media posts. He told local outlets, per the New York Post, “on the day of the accident, my girlfriend said she was going to play tennis, but I did not know that she had stopped by to relax at the Lad Koh viewpoint.” He added that he “only found out what had happened from social media. I was devastated and immediately went to the area to help look for her.”

The couple had been together for five years and were set to marry in Russia in mid-December.