PATTAYA, Thailand – Pattaya disaster prevention and fire rescue officers came to the aid of an injured monitor lizard discovered hiding outside a restaurant in Central Pattaya on May 14, while amused locals joked about using the restaurant’s address for lottery luck. The rescue operation took place at around 1:00 p.m. after residents reported that a monitor lizard had wandered into UD Restaurant located at the entrance of Soi Central Pattaya 14.
Firefighters and rescue personnel arrived with reptile handling equipment and found the young monitor lizard, estimated to be around one year old and roughly 50 centimeters long, hiding between plant pots near the restaurant entrance. Officials were able to capture the animal easily after noticing it appeared weak and exhausted. Upon closer inspection, rescuers discovered a rope tightly wrapped around the lizard’s lower body near its hind legs, causing a deep wound that reportedly extended to the bone.
Rescue workers carefully removed the rope and administered first aid treatment to the injured reptile before releasing it back into a nearby natural water source. The restaurant manager, 57-year-old Amornrat, said she was startled when she arrived to open the Japanese restaurant and spotted the lizard hiding near the entrance. Meanwhile, neighbors jokingly told staff to try their luck with the restaurant’s address number “25/5,” referencing a long-standing Thai belief that unexpected animal visits can bring good fortune.
