Thailand's first tropical storm in 30 years left one person dead as it uprooted trees and brought down power lines with winds of up to 50mph.
Thousands of tourists were left stranded when airports and ferry services were shut down before Pabuk made landfall in Pak Phanang in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat at 12.45pm local time on Friday (5.45am GMT).
A fisherman drowned when his boat capsized off the coast and officials have warned of torrential downpours, landslides, flash floods and coastal waves up to five metres high.
It was feared the storm, which affected tourist hotspots including Koh Samui, Koh Tao and Koh Phangan, could be the worst since Typhoon Gay left 400 dead in 1989.
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A total of 6,176 people have been evacuated to shelters from Nakhon Si Thammarat as well as the provinces of Pattani, Songkhla and Yala, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation has said.
Two major airports, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Surat Thani, have closed and Bangkok Airways said it had canceled all flights to and from the holiday destination of Koh Samui, where ferry services have also been suspended.
Officials have advised people to stay indoors and leave high-risk areas for higher ground.
Katie Preston, 23, and her partner Liam Bland, 29, from Hartlepool are stranded on the island of Koh Phangan after they were allowed to take the last boat out before services were stopped.
The couple have criticised the lack of information they've received. "We hadn't heard about any storm and none of the staff we spoke to at Samui airport or at the boats mentioned it so we didn't know it was going to happen," Ms Preston said.
"When we were walking to the hotel we thought it seemed quiet but didn't think much of it until we read everyone had left and ours was the last boat over to Phangan before they were suspending [the] service.
"We haven't heard anything from any officials, I've only asked the hotel receptionist what we do if we need to leave, asking if someone will get us all out or if we make our own way - he said to just go ourselves and when I asked where to he said he's not sure."
Ms Castle told Kent Live: "All the locals are pretty chilled about it and just shrug when we ask if they're worried. We were staying in a totally rickety bamboo shack but we quickly hotfooted it to the nearest brick building we could find.
"We've now come to a nearby bar resort and half the tourists are on phones looking worried. The others are totally chilled and don't seem to know what's going on."
Another 500 tourists stuck on Koh Phi Phi were due to be evacuated with the help of the Thai Navy ship Hua Hin, according to reports.
Vice Admiral Sittiporn Maskasem, Commander of the Third Area Command, told The Daily Phuket: “Royal Thai Navy boat Tor 991 returned from Koh Racha with 60 tourists safely on board and arrived at the Navy base at 3:45pm.
Beaches were closed, but even with the bad weather approaching, tourists on the popular island of Koh Samui continued to enjoy the entertainment offered at bars and restaurants.
