Thai government official’s GPS gamble ends in tragic spillway plunge in East Thailand

[webfact]

 

A government official tragically lost his life when the car he was driving plunged into a water spillway following directions from his GPS. The incident occurred around 7am this morning, in the vicinity of Ban Ko Rang, Nong Waeng district, Sa Kaeo province.

 

The vehicle, a bronze Toyota with registration number TH-824, was found overturned in the water spillway.

 

Residents and the Sa Kaeo Rescue Unit tried to pull the car out of the water but found nobody initially. It was only after an extensive search that the body of 47 year old Khomsan Suranattakul was discovered in the water spillway. Khomsan held the position of district registrar at Sanam Chai Khet district, Chachoengsao province.

 

Another passenger, Krikchai Phothithong, also a district registrar from Sanam Chai Khet, Chachoengsao province, managed to escape from the sinking vehicle. Krikchai recounted that he and Khomsan had travelled to the area to inspect a property for official registration.

 

by Nattapong Westwood 

Photo courtesy of KhaoSod

 

Full story: The Thaiger 2023-11-08

 

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[JoePai]

Darwin's been at it again 

[huangnon]

Strange. There has been a lot of flooding in Rayong recently, but how do manage to flip the truck like that?

Also, water looks very shallow in the photo. His friend couldn't have helped Khomsan out after exiting the vehicle himself.?

[hotchilli]

GPS again... Thais need to be informed that the transparent fixture in front of the dashboard is for looking out of.

[Enoon]

3 hours ago, huangnon said:

Strange. There has been a lot of flooding in Rayong recently, but how do manage to flip the truck like that?

Also, water looks very shallow in the photo. His friend couldn't have helped Khomsan out after exiting the vehicle himself.?

 

This is how the 3035 (main road through Ban Ko Rang) gets across a waterfeature just East of the settlement:

 

Maybe you can work something out about the "flipping" from it.

 

There are a couple of other possible crossings, but they are not covered by Streetview.

 

My guess is that the GPS is innocent.......but the crossing is effectively a ford during flood periods and was obscured. 

 

He ran to one side and/or was washed/rolled off?

 

 

[huangnon]

13 minutes ago, Enoon said:

 

This is how the 3035 (main road through Ban Ko Rang) gets across a waterfeature just East of the village:

 

Maybe you can work something out about the "flipping" from it.

 

There are a couple of other possible crossings, but they are not covered by Streetview.

 

My guess is that the GPS is innocent.......but the crossing is effectively a ford during heavy rain and was obscured. 

 

He ran to one side and/or was washed/rolled off?

 

 

 

Thanks. Your photo makes sense of the Thaiger's story in the OP.