Eight injured in van accident in Chiang Mai

 

A chartered van taking tourists to Doi Ang Khang ran off the road and flipped, injuring the driver and seven tourists on Monday morning, officials said.
 

The Pha Muang Taskforce in Chiang Mai's Fang district was alerted to the accident at 9.30am. Troops were sent to help the accident victims at kilometre marker No 22 of the road to the Doi Ang Khang agricultural experiment station in Tamb Mae Ngon in Fang.

 

One of the tourists was severely injured and was rushed to the Fang Hospital. The driver and the rest of tourists were taken to the Ang Khang Hospital.

 

The driver said his van developed a brake malfunction when it was coming down the hillside road, causing him to lose control. The van ran off the road and flipped. He was driving the tourists from Fang downtown to the Ang Khang agricultural station.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30338003

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-02-05

I am assuming that the reporter got his quote from the police who spoke to the van driver.

 

It would be better if the reporter could get a direct quote from one of the tourists. 6 of them are uninjured. However that may throw a spanner in the works for the cops who need to use the accident to squeeze money out of the van driver and van owner.

 

Sometimes, I think the police actually put words into the driver's mouth and tell him to say the brakes failed. This creates a breathing space for the police to negotiate a pay-off and concoct a version of events.

 

The press are also reluctant to get quotes from people involved as reporters are lazy and just rely on police statements but more importantly they don't want to annoy the police by printing facts which later cause an obstacle to the police's preferred version of events. If they annoy the police, there could be all sorts of negative consequences.

How could anyone in this country ever be “rushed” to hospital, when the locals completely ignore ambulances and never yield for them?

Sorry, excuse of brake failure has expired. This months quota of that failing is already used up, try another excuse.

"The driver said his van developed a brake malfunction when it was coming down the hillside "

The real explanation,I was going down the hill too fast in 4 th gear,or was it in neutral,cannot 

remember now,foot on the brakes all the way down,causing brake fade,came to bend too fast

and the van jumped off the road !  not my fault. dont believe what the tourists say.

 

regards Worgeordie