WORKER TIES UP UMBRELLAS NEXT TO EMPTY BEACH CHAIRS AT PATONG BEACH PHUKET, 2002-10-31 (photo)

A Thai man bundles up giant umbrellas next to empty beach chairs at dusk along Patong Beach on the Southern Thai resort island of Phuket October 31, 2002. Thailand reassured tourists on Thursday that the country was safe despite warnings from western nations such as Britain which said on Tuesday threats to westerners on Phuket island had increased sharply. Phuket relies heavily on the tourist trade and economists say a major fall in tourist arrivals would slice a large chunk off Thailand's foreign exchange earnings and throw millions of people out of work. REUTERS/Jason Reed JIR/JS