Double-decker bus driver hit with three serious charges including drug use

[snoop1130]

Double-decker bus driver hit with three serious charges including drug use

By Prasit Tangprasert 
The Nation

 

 

The driver of a double-decker coach that crashed in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Wang Nam Khieo district on Wednesday night resulting in 18 deaths and 32 injuries, has been hit with three serious charges.

 

Police have charged chartered-bus driver Krissana Juthacheun, 44, with reckless driving causing death and injuries, failing to stop to provide aid to injured passengers and having narcotic substances in his body while driving.

 

Krissana reportedly fled the scene right after the crash. He tested positive for drug use and confessed to having taken yaba pills during the 50-strong tour group’s trip on Monday and Tuesday to Chanthaburi, said Provincial Police Region 3 chief Pol Lt-General Damrongsak Kittiprapat. The group was returning to Kalasin at the time of the Wednesday crash.

 

Damrongsak joined the case's investigators' meeting on Friday morning at the Udomsap precinct to conclude Krissana’s interview.

 

Krissana sustained slight wounds on his right arm. He was spotted on Thursday wandering in the area seven kilometres from the scene and was brought into custody.

 

Police said he then confessed to having fled the scene for fear of being punished over so many deaths.

 

He said he drove the coach downhill at a “moderately high speed” – contrary to a GPS reading that the bus was moving at 80kms/hr in an area limited to 60kms/hour – and had a brake malfunction while reaching a curve and veering to the right to pass a truck.

 

The driver lost control of the coach and went over the one-metre-tall concrete barrier of a road island and into the oncoming lane before ploughing into roadside stalls and trees.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/breakingnews/30341586

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-3-23

[MJKT2014]

If the authorities don't shut down the bus company and put the owners in the slammer as well nothing will change.

[trainman34014]

That will be at least 1,500 Baht fine then !!

[HLover]

Not charged with having an expired license as originally reported?

[YetAnother]

43 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

The driver of a double-decker coach that crashed in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Wang Nam Khieo district on Wednesday night resulting in 18 deaths and 32 injuries, has been hit with three serious charges.

many deaths, am sorry about that; idiot driver, hopefully not heard from and in correctional facilities for a Long time, am not sorry about that; owners and operators, Again, small fine....; 'you are free to go';, am sorry about that

[darksidedog]

47 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

Police said he then confessed to having fled the scene for fear of being punished over so many deaths.

I would be interested to know what punishment he is actually likely to receive. In Europe reckless driving causing that many deaths whilst under the influence would be very heavy. Anything less than a long prison sentence will obviously be sending the wrong signal to the rest of the speeding, drug taking drivers out there.

[NCC1701A]

" ...and had a brake malfunction while reaching a curve and veering to the right to pass a truck."

 

MORON!

 

 

[Darcula]

1 hour ago, snoop1130 said:

He was spotted on Thursday wandering in the area seven kilometres from the scene

Looking for bananas to eat, or a female to mate with, no doubt.

 

[sawadeeken]

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

I would be interested to know what punishment he is actually likely to receive. In Europe reckless driving causing that many deaths whilst under the influence would be very heavy. Anything less than a long prison sentence will obviously be sending the wrong signal to the rest of the speeding, drug taking drivers out there.

I'm just wondering WHY........ The Thai 'authorities' don't have scattered testing sites on Many Long-Haul routes........ (Or maybe big city bus stations) where they can collect Urn samples routinely........ Or even make it a requirement that all bus companies routinely check their drivers before they 'hit the road'........

How could you make this suggestion to the 'governing Parties' and would the even bother if you did suggest it.......... Probably not......... They would just 'shrug it off'......

[Artisi]

Now charged, so the investigation and follow up is virtually closed, move on and await the next one.

[InfinityandBeyond]

Rhetorical question: where is the owner of the company in this tragedy? Busy filling envelopes. So the next underpaid, undertrained and overworked "operator" can put others' lives at risk.

[BigBadGeordie]

But not 18 counts of homicide (and counting).

 

What is wrong with this country?

 

The last line is rhetorical.

[YTP]

43 minutes ago, BigBadGeordie said:

But not 18 counts of homicide (and counting).

 

What is wrong with this country?

 

The last line is rhetorical.

Appalling and extremely upsetting, but not homicide.

[djayz]

I really, really want to say "Shoot the <deleted>, but I know forum rules prohibit such outbursts of disgust and such foul language. 

Such a tragic loss of life due to this drug taking, speeding, incopetent idot. 

[BigBadGeordie]

23 minutes ago, YTP said:

Appalling and extremely upsetting, but not homicide.

High on ya bah!

 

So what is it?

 

Diminished responsibilty due the mental impairment!

 

He knowingly got in the drvers seat of a bus under the influence of drugs, 

 

[scorecard]

11 hours ago, sawadeeken said:

I'm just wondering WHY........ The Thai 'authorities' don't have scattered testing sites on Many Long-Haul routes........ (Or maybe big city bus stations) where they can collect Urn samples routinely........ Or even make it a requirement that all bus companies routinely check their drivers before they 'hit the road'........

How could you make this suggestion to the 'governing Parties' and would the even bother if you did suggest it.......... Probably not......... They would just 'shrug it off'......

 

'Scattered testing sites', drivers never know where they will pop up, mandatory testing for all bus and van drivers, sounds like an idea to be explored.

 

But could you trust the cops who man these testing sites to be totally ethical and honest?

 

Perhaps station has to be set up with continuous video recording so everything is on video.

 

Naah, the cops would claim 'video not working'.

 

 

 

 

 

[Artisi]

2 minutes ago, scorecard said:

 

'Scattered testing sites', drivers never know where they will pop up, mandatory testing for all bus and van drivers, sounds like an idea to be explored.

 

But could you trust the cops who man these testing sites to be totally ethical and honest?

 

Perhaps station has to be set up with continuous video recording so everything is on video.

 

Naah, the cops would claim 'video not working'.

 

 

 

 

 

Or dummy CCTV cameras

[tompelli]

Aren't the charges similar to the hiso red bull guy's? One law for all...yeah right.

[Artisi]

8 minutes ago, tompelli said:

Aren't the charges similar to the hiso red bull guy's? One law for all...yeah right.

The difference being the RB guy is "special".

[Thian]

14 hours ago, HLover said:

Not charged with having an expired license as originally reported?

Yesterday my wife read the insurancepolicy from the motocy, if the driver makes an accident while have NO DRIVERSLICENSE he/she will get a fine of 500 baht it wrote...and the insurance will still cover....

 

Do you want the busdriver to get fined for 500 baht?? He should rot in jail the rest of his life.

[HLover]

Just now, Thian said:

Do you want the busdriver to get fined for 500 baht?? He should rot in jail the rest of his life.

Obviously not, just wondering why is was not listed as a charge.

Your rot in jail is as unimaginative as most of the posts.

More fitting, he should be used as a human crash test dummy.

Your welcome.

[twizzian]

The brake malfunction was his right foot & brain.

[metisdead]

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[sawadeeken]

1 hour ago, Russell17au said:

Both these statements are a load of crap because a vehicle like this has a complete air braking system which means that there is NO oil in the system to start with and also you need the air to be able to release the brakes so if the driver kept tapping the pedal until the system was out of air then the brakes would come on and he would not be able to release them until he built the air back up.

My guess would be that he did continually use the brakes and thus overheat and polish the linings so there would be no grip on the brakes and therefore you have a brake failure due to untrained driver

I am in total agreement with your contribution and want to back you up with a little of my own experience............

I am a 'Retired' Greyhound Bus driver from the US and have had 'much training' in this and other safety issues......... It was always impressed on us drivers to "USE BRAKES SPARINGLY ON LONG DOWNGRADES"..... "USE LOWER GEARS INSTEAD"...... The fact is that 'brake pads are made of a fibrous material and rubs the inside of the steel brake drums to develop the stopping effect AND causing much 'Heat' to build up from the 'friction'.........The result of that is that the contact surface of the fibrous pad will 'crystallize' to something similar to 'glass'....... Now the 'glass' brake pads will have very little drag on the brake drum and result in very little stopping ability........

I believe that when the wheels are removed from that wrecked bus they will find that the brake pads are totally 'crystallized'.......... (This 'crystallizing' can build up thru the life of the 'Pads' and more rapidly as the pads get thinner)..... If they check the records they could find that the bus company hasn't replaced them for 'Too long'......

I am totally for a program of routine roadblock test sites with urn tests for commercial drivers.......... However I will add that this same thing 'could' happen to a driver who 'was not' on drugs (and likely has happened in the past)........ Because the drivers have not been trained sufficiently to "SAVE their BRAKES"

Certainly the drugs are dangerous for drivers..... but .... ALSO...so is 'Lack' of experience and training.....

The story mentions a 6 KM downhill stretch before the curve......... Lets hope this bad example (the accident) helps some other drivers to learn about this.......... 

Edited...... for 1 spelling error

Edited March 24, 2018 by sawadeeken
spelling

[Bangkok Barry]

16 hours ago, darksidedog said:

I would be interested to know what punishment he is actually likely to receive. In Europe reckless driving causing that many deaths whilst under the influence would be very heavy. Anything less than a long prison sentence will obviously be sending the wrong signal to the rest of the speeding, drug taking drivers out there.

 

Sadly, this isn't Europe.

[toofarnorth]

9 hours ago, djayz said:

I really, really want to say "Shoot the <deleted>, but I know forum rules prohibit such outbursts of disgust and such foul language.

Such a tragic loss of life due to this drug taking, speeding, incopetent idot.

I will say it for you djayz , shoot the fellow.  I don't know if his leaving the scene or the incident had anything to do with it , but that photo of him . " Please get on my bus , I drive you long time "   Not 'kin likely !  I want to see the driver not his pet.

[robblok]

2 hours ago, Thian said:

Yesterday my wife read the insurancepolicy from the motocy, if the driver makes an accident while have NO DRIVERSLICENSE he/she will get a fine of 500 baht it wrote...and the insurance will still cover....

 

Do you want the busdriver to get fined for 500 baht?? He should rot in jail the rest of his life.

Depends if they are talking about damage to the motorcycle of the person driving or to the other  party that it hit. (big difference). In the Netherlands other damage is covered (though the insurance company will try to reclaim the money from the person who is insured)

 

A Thai friend his brother took his car had no license and crashed the car, the insurance did not pay out a single baht. 

 

So you have to really check if this is about damage to own vehicle or other vehicle. 

[sawadee1947]

It's good to hear that the driver will be charged. However this will not solve the problem.

It's a drug problem which is not acknowledged

It's a driver's lack of being responsible for his passengers. No education

It's a lack of driving abilities which obviously are not trained. It's a mistake in the system. There are no check ups

It's about greediness also. Greediness of the operators/owners who let run the buses no matter in what conditions they are

It's a inability of authorities to tackle these problems. Every time after a severe accident we hear coming improvements out of big mouths.

At the end is's business as usual and Thailand will all do to be number one in the world concerning death tolls 

[Deli]

Give the families of the victims 1 hour with him alone

[TGIR]

11 hours ago, YTP said:

Appalling and extremely upsetting, but not homicide.

Second degree murder in my book..........how do you kill 18+ people without facing  life or the death penalty?  He's an adult with a brain and no apparent mitigating circumstances.    The Company's owners and/or managers should also face some kind of negligence charges.