Be Careful Driving Near Container Trucks In Thailand

[ColPyat]

Wow, the gold necklace hasn't been snatched yet. Accident must have JUST happened.....

kenk3z

Very droll and amusing.

[macb]

Are we saying these guys that operate what you might call instant response and wear uniform and have pick-ups with red lights etc are volunteers?

If so do they have any first aid training at all or a level of paramedic training. The trucks all have Rescue written on them. They do seem to arrive pretty quick in the Burriram area from what I have seen, and the pick-ups are al stationed not far from the Burriram Rail Station

[terry57]

Are we saying these guys that operate what you might call instant response and wear uniform and have pick-ups with red lights etc are volunteers?

If so do they have any first aid training at all or a level of paramedic training. The trucks all have Rescue written on them. They do seem to arrive pretty quick in the Burriram area from what I have seen, and the pick-ups are al stationed not far from the Burriram Rail Station

there was a very interesting thread on this subject a few months ago. some punters were slagging off the volunteers as theres a few bad ones that steal peoples valuables.

its a fact, but the majority of these guys do this shocking work on a volunteer basis, doing the best they can with limited training and resorces.

no doubt mistakes are made but considering they are self funded and self taught it is to be expected, but to have them help you when your trapped in a wreck you would give them all you had to get you out.

trust me on that one as i do this line of work.

no person trapped in a car has ever asked me for my qualifications.

we must respect the work of the thai volunteers.

[Jai Dee]

What IS unusual is the container appears to be actually attached to the trailer...most don't seem to bother to check.

I do not see the trailer in any picture, took two looks, my guess is it was not secured

I have never seen a secured container on a trailer anywhere in Thailand... from the Bangkok port area to the highway 304 across the mountains to Korat... they are simply sat on the corner locking pins on the transport trailer. More often than not, these pins are either broken or unusable... so the container simply sits on the flat bed.

[macb]

Are we saying these guys that operate what you might call instant response and wear uniform and have pick-ups with red lights etc are volunteers?

If so do they have any first aid training at all or a level of paramedic training. The trucks all have Rescue written on them. They do seem to arrive pretty quick in the Burriram area from what I have seen, and the pick-ups are al stationed not far from the Burriram Rail Station

there was a very interesting thread on this subject a few months ago. some punters were slagging off the volunteers as theres a few bad ones that steal peoples valuables.

its a fact, but the majority of these guys do this shocking work on a volunteer basis, doing the best they can with limited training and resorces.

no doubt mistakes are made but considering they are self funded and self taught it is to be expected, but to have them help you when your trapped in a wreck you would give them all you had to get you out.

trust me on that one as i do this line of work.

no person trapped in a car has ever asked me for my qualifications.

we must respect the work of the thai volunteers.

Thanks for educating me on that one I have always wondered:

Thumbs up to these guys for the great response and dedication they show:

[wilko]

What IS unusual is the container appears to be actually attached to the trailer...most don't seem to bother to check.

I do not see the trailer in any picture, took two looks, my guess is it was not secured

You will notice ththe truck is on its side presumably pulled over by the trailer it was towing, if the container was not attached the truck might well have stayed upright.

[Crossy]

You will notice ththe truck is on its side presumably pulled over by the trailer it was towing, if the container was not attached the truck might well have stayed upright.

I'd concur with that analysis.

Assuming the twistlocks are serviceable and engaged (yes, I know, TiT) I very much doubt a container will fall off a proper container trailer, actually even with only one or two locks engaged excessive cornering speed is going to pull the trailer over.

Did we get any feedback on the status of those trapped??

[lingling]

we must respect the work of the thai volunteers.

Off topic, but a couple of months ago I even saw a farang driving a 'rescue' pickup in BKK.

[lannarebirth]

You will notice ththe truck is on its side presumably pulled over by the trailer it was towing, if the container was not attached the truck might well have stayed upright.

I'd concur with that analysis.

Assuming the twistlocks are serviceable and engaged (yes, I know, TiT) I very much doubt a container will fall off a proper container trailer, actually even with only one or two locks engaged excessive cornering speed is going to pull the trailer over.

Did we get any feedback on the status of those trapped??

I have never seen a container trailer here that used corner locking cones, let alone faulty ones. Usually one sees angle iron where the corner rests(broken mostly), which only prevents sliding on smooth roads. Absolutely nothing to keep the container on the bed, either horizontally or vertically. That said, this accident seems to show a container that pulled the truck tractor over as well, so likely lashed down.

[lingling]

I have never seen a container trailer here that used corner locking cones, let alone faulty ones. Usually one sees angle iron where the corner rests(broken mostly), which only prevents sliding on smooth roads. Absolutely nothing to keep the container on the bed, either horizontally or vertically. That said, this accident seems to show a container that pulled the truck tractor over as well, so likely lashed down.

Nah, safety on the roads is not too important here. Another thing that scares me is everytime I see someone transporting welding gas tubes (esp. oxygen). I have not seen them use the safety caps even once. If a pickup with 10-20 (sometimes even more) tubes is involved in an accident those things will be flying around like rockets.

[kmart]

Holy Shiite .... I sincerely hope everyone got out alive.

Looks like they were minding their own business waiting to turn right.

The photos are around three years old already. Taken on the entrance road and main crossroads at the Maptaphut Industrial Estate, Rayong.

Accidents happened quite regularly here, and as my work involves driving in and out of the place almost daily, I have had the misfortune of seeing some terrible accidents and sights here.

This particular accident was caused by the driver taking a bend too fast. The container was secured, but the momentum of the truck flipped it over onto those poor unfortunates waiting at the lights.

There has since been lots of warning signals to drivers of trucks coming from other provinces to slow down, and police patrols to escort, or slow down the truck drivers. It has worked, and accidents have been greatly reduced during the last couple of years.

Good job, because the potential for disaster around this area is quite staggering due all the pipelines near the roads here, transmitting extremely dangerous chemicals and hydrocarbons.

[Shola]

Think these pics are gruesome? Did anyone see the pics on another Thai "unamed website" that showed pictures of the guy on the motorbike that was in pieces? Now that was truly disgusting.

LL

I didn't, but thanks for sharing!

Just a few days ago the Thai newspaper showed an unfortunate motorcycle driver who's head, incased in his helmet, had been crushed almost flat and wedged under the wheel of a bus.

I know LOS is proudly 'censorship free' but I really feel there should be a bit more respect for the dead, I hate seeing that stuff over my cornflakes in the morning.

[Smilodon]

Speaking to the idea of injury prevention:

If Thailand is known for higher rates of traffic accidents, or cargoes falling on people's heads, get a tubular steel roll cage welded into your vehicle. And make sure the tubes are extremely well padded. Swing-out door bars that can quickly lock in place once you get in are also available.

I know it's kind of extreme for most people, who consider prevention only after they are injured or dead, but a few bucks could go a long way.

Hot rodders do this all the time to add chassis rigidity and per NHRA rules, add safety in the case of a high-speed crash. The NHRA sets out regulations for what kind of roll cage you have to have for any given time bracket in the 1/4 mile. Cars that take a plodding 17 seconds for the 1/4 mile may not need anything, whereas cars that do the 1/4 mile in 12 seconds or less (from a standing start) are required to have far more protection. Many of the roll bars/cages are available as pre-fabbed kits that you put in the car then weld in place. I would trust that sooner than a cage possibly made locally of butter-soft exhaust pipe tubing for instance.

And, to me, they look cool. The idea being that if something hits you, it has to move the whole vehicle as a unit, as opposed to merely squashing whichever part of your vehicle that it is contacting shut on you.

I was getting some tires changed once and saw a totally wrecked little FIAT convertible. The roll bar was still standing tall and proud, however. I talked to the shop owner. He said the girl who had the car had the bar installed, and the accident happened about a week later. She was okay. Same accident WITHOUT a roll bar? Another dead girl in a cute convertible.

I know we have front and side air bags, anti-lock brakes, safety engineering and child seats. However, if someone rams your child's back seat door at high enough speed, that air bag will NOT prevent it from caving the door in, possibly to the other side of the vehicle. To keep the interior of your car a size and shape that you can survive in during a mishap, not much beats the cost-to-benefit ratio of a steel roll cage.

I see the horrific 200 mph accidents in NASCAR racing that the guys walk away from (yes, I know, he has a neck brace and helmet to keep his head from flopping about during the crash) but I have never seen one yet where the interior of the car had caved in to squash the driver.

[lingling]

Speaking to the idea of injury prevention:

If Thailand is known for higher rates of traffic accidents, or cargoes falling on people's heads, get a tubular steel roll cage welded into your vehicle. And make sure the tubes are extremely well padded. Swing-out door bars that can quickly lock in place once you get in are also available.

Interesting idea. How about an external roll cage? Bolted together around the passenger compartment on the outside of the car...? Shouldn't be too difficult to weld together using square pipe... Maybe ugly, but safe. And if bolted around the car instead of welded into then it should be easy to remove if needed.

[ColPyat]

Are we saying these guys that operate what you might call instant response and wear uniform and have pick-ups with red lights etc are volunteers?

If so do they have any first aid training at all or a level of paramedic training. The trucks all have Rescue written on them. They do seem to arrive pretty quick in the Burriram area from what I have seen, and the pick-ups are al stationed not far from the Burriram Rail Station

Yes, they are volonteers. Here's the thread detailing this here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...=80546&st=0

[wilko]

I noticed this on route 7 the other day....you can see that the container and trailer have separated in this instance.

[Dakhar]

yea

I saw that container sitting by itself, no truck around at the time.

I too have noticed a lot of container just SIT on the bed, and are not locked down.

TIT