At Least 30 Dead In Thailand Double-Decker Bus Crash That Plunged Into A Ravine
A bus crash in northern Thailand has killed at least 30 people and injured 22 others.
By Sadho Ram — 25 Mar 2014, 09:44 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
Late Monday A Bus Careered Off A Hillside Road And Plunged Into A Ravine In Northern Thailand, Killing At Least 30 People And Injuring More Than 20
A double-decker bus carrying municipal workers on a field trip plunged off a steep road into a ravine in western Thailand, killing at least 30 people, officials said.
wsj.com
At least 30 people were killed when a bus carrying municipality workers fell into a ravine in Mae Sot, northern Thailand, Monday night.
Image via aljazeera.comTak provincial governor Suriya Prasatbunditya said Tuesday an additional 22 people were injured by the crash that occurred when the driver tried to pass other cars on a steep, winding mountain road.
The Accident Took Place At About 8.40PM (1340 GMT) Yesterday In Tak
“The bus was totally destroyed. Its engine fell out and we’re waiting for heavy machinery to lift the wreckage,” Suriya Prasartbandid, the governor of the western province of Tak, said. He said there were more than 300 accidents on the same road last year.
According To The Driver The Brakes Had Failed Due To Which The Bus Slid Off The Mountain Road And Then Flipped Several Times Before Crashing Into A Tree
The bus driver, who survived the accident with a broken rib, said his brakes had stopped working, Thai police said.
themalaymailonline.com
The wrecked double-decker bus that plunged into a ravine, killing 30 passengers and injuring 22 more, in Tak on Monday night, March 24 2014.
Image via bangkokpost.com“The brakes failed as the bus came downhill on a hilly road and it crashed through the concrete barrier and fell into a 150-metre (500-feet) deep ravine,” a local police captain, Sittichai Panyasong, said by telephone.
Rescue Workers Trying To Assist Passengers Trapped In The Bus. A Child Was Also Among The Injured.
Caretaker Transport Minister Chatchart Sittipunt said the accident was the result of careless driving, the condition of the bus, and the winding road. Relatives of each dead passenger will receive 350,000 baht death compensation, and the injured will each get 50,000 baht, he said.
bangkokpost.comTraffic Accidents Are Common In Thailand, With Poor Safety Standards And Busy Roads Thought To Be A Factor. In February, 15 People Died After A Bus Travelling To The Seaside Town Of Pattaya Crashed Into A Truck.
In a separate accident, 29 people died after a bus travelling through the northern province of Phetchabun plunged off Khun Pha Muang bridge.
On February 28, 13 school children died when their bus collided with a truck in Prachinburi on a trip to the seaside south of Bangkok
Image via interaksyon.comThailand's roads are among the most dangerous in the world. A recent report by the World Health Organization said Thailand saw 38.1 road deaths per 100,000 people in 2010 -- behind only the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean and the South Pacific island of Niue. That compares with an average of 18.5 per 100,000 in Southeast Asia as a whole.
Officials say roughly 60 per cent of traffic accidents in Thailand are caused by human error, with poor road and vehicle conditions posing additional hazards. Alcohol also plays a significant role, particularly around national holidays including the Thai new year holiday of Songkran in mid-April, when millions of revellers return to their homes across the country. Those who cannot afford to fly have little choice but to use the roads in country where the rail infrastructure remains weak.
themalaymailonline.com