On Friday, a bus carrying 36 passengers celebrating the New Year’s holiday lost control and crashed into trees in northeastern Thailand, killing the driver and wounding eight others.
According to highway police, at 6.30 a.m., the double-decker bus carrying 36 people, including a driver, swerved off the road at a curve and collided with some trees in Chumphae district, Khon Kaen province.
The collision killed driver Wanchai Pongkhan and injured eight passengers, two of whom are in critical condition. Local volunteer rescue personnel transported them to Chumphae Hospital.
Highway police reported that the double-decker bus left Bangkok for Chiang Khan district in Loei province on Thursday night, with 35 passengers traveling in the northeastern province during the long break.
According to the police report, the driver may have fallen asleep behind the wheel, as the incident occurred in the early morning hours. Police also found no evidence on the road surface indicating that he attempted to brake
The collision occurred a day after the road safety and accident reduction center launched a road safety campaign to cover this year’s lengthier holiday period, from December 27, 2024, to January 5, 2025.
Law enforcement authorities have been directed to carefully enforce traffic laws to reduce fatalities and monitor bus inspections to prevent recurring incidents.
Dr. Taejing Siripanich, secretary-general of the Don’t Drive Drunk Foundation, said expanding the road safety campaign from seven to ten days was a wonderful idea, but the government should prioritize this issue all year.
He quoted figures indicating that such efforts may dramatically cut road accidents by 50%, compared to an average of 40 fatalities per day outside the so-called “seven or ten dangerous days.”
Last year’s “seven dangerous days” of the New Year vacation resulted in 284 deaths and 2,307 injuries in 2,288 traffic accidents across the country.
