Bangkok’s treasure divers

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They're described as Thailand's answer to "Indiana Jones."

A community of divers in Bangkok makes a living by retrieving old coins, china, jewelry and scrap metal from the city's Chao Phraya River. Sometimes they even find skeletons and corpses.

The divers wear homemade metal helmets connected by rubber tubes to air tanks aboard their small, wooden dive boats.

A treasure diver with his homemade metal helmet on is set to dive into the water./CGTN Photo

For the divers it can be dangerous, it's cold at the bottom of the river and there's zero visibility.

Udom Khamking is one such diver.

Speaking to "Assignment Asia," he noted that the riverbed is a mix of mud and solid ground.

“Close to the shore it will be muddy but in the middle of the river it's very rocky, like small underwater mountains. There are dangers; glass and corrugated iron or tree stumps, large stingray fish. Sometimes we get hit by logs floating underwater. There are many things under the water that we cannot see.”

Even though diving for these sunken treasures brings them just a few dollars a day, they are always hopeful for a rare find which they will either sell for a good price to collectors and second-hand shops or keep it for themselves.

Things the divers found in the river./CGTN Photo

Assignment Asia is CGTN's award-winning current affairs program featuring long-form stories and documentaries on some of the most pressing issues in the region. The show airs Saturdays at 1330 and 2130 GMT, with replays every Sunday at 0630, Monday at 0130, and Tuesday at 0530.