Following a string of tragic accidents, residents of Lampang are urging the Department of Highways to close the “100 Corpses U-turn” on the Lampang-Ngao Road.
In the most recent collision, a Mazda pickup truck lost control and collided with the median strip after a sedan left a village and crossed the U-turn lane. A 78-year-old man died as a result, and his 13-year-old autistic granddaughter suffered severe injuries.
The accident occurred on January 31 at around 7:50 a.m. On Lampang-Ngao Road, close to the entrance of Samakkhi Village in Tambon Phichai, emergency personnel from the Lampang Rescue Association, medical personnel from Lampang Hospital, and officers from the Lampang City Police Station raced to the scene.
Authorities discovered a green Mazda pickup truck upside down at the collision scene. Behind the steering wheel was the driver’s body, a local man named Mr. Aun (last name withheld). Rescue workers found his 13-year-old autistic granddaughter crying and hurt near the Mazda pickup truck.
Rescue crews rushed the girl to the hospital after administering first aid to her right away. In the meantime, the driver’s body was pulled from the wreckage using the jaws of life.
Witnesses reported that the pickup truck abruptly veered into the median and overturned while travelling along Lampang-Ngao Road. They believed the elderly driver might have dozed off while operating a vehicle.
However, Security footage from neighbouring cameras provided an alternative viewpoint.
The video captured a black sedan pulling out of Samakkhi Village and stopping at the U-turn. Another car was already waiting to cross the street. The black sedan started to drive forward after the first car went by, but it probably was blind to the fast-moving Mazda pickup truck because it was out of its line of sight.
The oncoming pickup lost control and crashed into the median as the black sedan pulled onto the road, swerving to avoid an accident.
Locals have once again called for the closure of the hazardous U-turn, which has been the scene of numerous avoidable accidents over the years, in response to the tragic events.
Road Safety in Thailand
According to the World Health Organization, road safety is an important public health issue and a priority for Thailand’s Royal Government. Despite implementing a fifth National Road Safety Master Plan, progress has been slow over the last two decades.
According to the fifth Global Status Report on Road Safety (2023), Thailand’s road traffic death rate was 25.4 per 100,000 people in 2021, making it one of the highest in Asia and among upper-middle-income countries.
Thailand has the ninth-highest rate of road traffic deaths among the 175 WHO member countries. World Health Organization estimates that there will be 18,218 road traffic deaths in 2021, or 50 per day on average.
Those aged 15 to 29 were most affected, as were motorcyclists, who accounted for 83.8% of all traffic deaths.
According to the Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation (TDRI), the economic loss from road traffic-related deaths and severe injuries is estimated to be 531,058 million Thai Baht (approximately 15.51 billion US dollars) in 2022, or 3.06% of GDP.
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Geoff Thomas is an award winning journalist known for his sharp insights and no-nonsense reporting style. Over the years he has worked for Reuters and the Canadian Press covering everything from political scandals to human interest stories. He brings a clear and direct approach to his work.
