THE BROTHER of British backpacker, Amelia Bambridge, who drowned after disappearing from a beach party in Cambodia, has spoken of his heartbreak after discovering pictures of her dead body online.
The 21-year-old went missing on October 24, last year, whilst travelling to the tourist island of Koh Rong, but sadly seven days later her body was found 62 miles off the coast near the Thai border.
Her brother Harry, who lives and works in LA, has spoken of his grief at having found images of her body uploaded onto Instagram before he had been able to identify her.
He is now warning others about the hidden dangers of travelling and says that they may never know what really happened on the night of her disappearance.
The 28-year-old from Worthing, West Sussex, told the Sun Online: “She was the more sensible one of the family, I think that’s why it makes it more shocking.
“Me and my dad went and identified her at the main police station. When I confirmed it was her, I then broke the news to my mum.
“Pictures of her were leaked online, officials that picked her up released them before she had even been taken off the boat.
“They were posted onto social media before me and dad had even seen her.
“She was still on the water and pictures of her body were all over the internet. I was getting messages from back in the UK, saying sorry and RIP.
“We hadn’t even identified her yet.”
He describes how his devastated family may never know what lead to her death that night after friends said they thought she had left to return to Nest Beach Club hostel.
Construction worker Harry said: “There is no evidence to suggest anything else has happened, the post mortem is the only thing to go off.
“It doesn’t fully make sense, I don’t think it ever will because of the circumstances of it.
“The thing that hurts the most is that she is not living the life she should have lived.
“Not knowing what she was going to end up doing, who she would have met, that’s not going to happen for her.”
Harry also spoke about the seedy underworld young backpackers face whilst travelling and warned that although idyllic tourist spots look like ‘paradise’ the real dangers are not always apparent.
He said: “There is a lot of things going on on these islands, I received thousands of messages on social media about the safety of travellers.
“It is being brushed under the carpet, people may think they are safe but the real message is that it is not what you think it is.
“It looks like paradise when you see the beach but things go on behind the scenes which locals are not open about, they don’t want to ruin the tourism industry there.
“They won’t broadcast the fact that there are potential rapists on the island because no one would want to go.”
Her shocking death follows that of several other young British backpackers in New Zealand, Peru and Canada in recent years, as the World Health Organisation, or WHO, says emerging evidence shows that young adults are more at risk of being involved in violence, road traffic accidents and drowning when travelling.
Data showed that road traffic accidents were the most common cause of death among travellers with a higher risk of those occurring in low and middle-income countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam the Philippines.
The WHO also warns travellers about the risks taken when swimming in coastal waters, freshwater lakes and rivers as well as swimming pools. It is estimated that 300,000 deaths are caused by drowning each year.
In June, Elizabeth Orchard, 25, fell into a 650ft high waterfall at the Yanachaga-Chemillen national park in Peru.
She was hiking alone in the remote region when she plunged into the isolated ravine.
Two British sisters, Beth Anderson, 24, Izzy Squire, 19, and their friend, Christian Sloan, 24, were travelling in Vietnam when they drowned in fast-moving water near a waterfall in February 2016.
The group were taking part in a guided tour when they were caught in strong currents.
Data also showed that the risk of being caught up in violence was significantly higher while travelling abroad with around 600,000 murders taking place across the world each year.
Back in July, Chynna Deese and her Australian boyfriend, Lucas Fowler, 23, were found dead on the Alaska Highway, in Canada.
It sparked a widespread manhunt after police hunted two suspects, Kam McLeoad and Bryer Schmegelsky, but the pair took their own lives before they were caught.
Grace Millane, a 22-year-old student from Essex, was also found murdered on the outskirts of Auckland, New Zealand, in December 2018.
Harry spoke about growing up with Amelia at their home in West Sussex and describes how the shy young girl grew up into hardworking woman, completing a three-year banking apprenticeship and earning the cash she needed to go travelling.
He said: “She saved all her money. She wanted to do a bit of travelling, to see some of the world.
“She lasted a few weeks, and then she was gone.
“She showed an interest in travelling over the last few years, when you live in a small town you get bored, She wanted to spread her wings.
“She went to visit our dad in Vietnam, she spent two weeks with him and then started in Phnom Peng and made loads of friends.
“She was having a good time, I spoke with her and she was enjoying herself.
“She was massively sensible. She knew how to look after herself, even when we found her bag she had all the stuff she needed and was well prepared.”
Harry talks about the moment he was told by his sister that Amelia had been missing for 48 hours and how he took part in the desperate search to find her.
He said: “My heart sank. It was just disbelief, feeling helpless, I could hear mum in tears in the background.
“By the time I got there on Sunday night, the police were there looking for her.
“I got the last ferry to the island, it was surreal to be searching for her. There were no emotions, it was about being as sharp and as switched on as I could to find her.
“There was no solid evidence to lead us down one path, which was the toughest thing.
“It literally felt as if she had vanished, one minute she was there and the next she wasn’t.
Days later Amelia’s body was tragically discovered floating in the sea near the Thai border after police confirmed her death was the result of accidental drowning.
Harry said: “Finding the bag, for me was the moment that I thought ‘something is really not right here’ because she would never leave her bag like that.
“It had so much stuff in it, her phone, her wallet. All the things you need to survive.
“It made me expect the worst.
“They told us that they had found a body in the water but and at that stage, they were quite confident it was her.”
Amelia was laid to rest in November last year, surrounded by her family and friends after her body was was bought home to the UK.
Her family are now grieving the loss of their daughter and sister and but say they are proud that she went on to ‘persue her dreams’.
“I’ll remember her for being so happy, kind.
“She wanted to go travelling, she worked hard and earnt the money to go. She did it the right way.
“Its change my outlook on life, that life is precious and brutal, death can be just around the corner for some of us. It can happen in the blink of an eye.
“If you going travelling, have your wits about you and go with friends. You may have done your research but what it may not be true.”
Although many of those travelling abroad return home with no problems, advice to help young Brits stay safe is given out by the World Health Organisation and the Foreign office.
A spokesman Lucie Blackman Trust, a charity that supports British Victims overseas, said: “Many thousands of Brits go backpacking every year, and of course a huge majority of those return safely.
“There are steps people can take to stay as safe as possible when overseas.
“Key points include thorough research into the areas you are travelling to, using the Foreign Office website country guides, and your own research.
“Read the Lucie Blackman Trust website for many tips.
“Make sure that somebody knows where you are, and where you are going. When somebody does go missing, having an accurate idea of where they were heading allows rapid deployment of rescue efforts.
“Travelling with somebody else is often a really fun way to explore, and you can help each other out if anything goes wrong.
“Be aware that everything is different. You can’t rely on the same support available at home when you are travelling.
“Police and medical services may not be anywhere near what you need, being aware of this is vital.
“The Lucie Blackman Trust has huge experience of missing person cases overseas. Travellers and their families can contact the charity via its website, www.lbtrust.org, for specific advice.”
