2 foreigners killed and many injured in minibus accident in Chiang Mai

[webfact]

 

A minibus overturned on a road in the northern province of Chiang Mai yesterday. Two foreigners were killed and more than 10 passengers were injured in the accident.

 

The minibus was transporting passengers between Chiang Mai province and Pai district in Mae Hong Son province. When the vehicle reached the Pa Pae district of Chiang Mai at 9.30am yesterday, November 10, the driver reportedly lost control and overturned.

 

Two foreign passengers reportedly fell out of the car window causing them to lose their lives at the scene. The other Thai and foreign passengers were injured and taken to Mae Tang Hospital. The identities of the two deceased were not released. There was no report on the condition of the minibus driver.

 

Photo of Petch Petpailin

Photo via Facebook/ สำนักงานประชาสัมพันธ์ จังหวัดแม่ฮ่องสอน

 

Full story: The Thaiger 2023-11-11

 

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[connda]

Sweep it under the rug quickly and hope potential Chinese tourist don't see.

This isn't the first minibus accident.  And given the insane driving of minibus drivers and the complete lack of driving enforcement in Thailand, it's just a matter of time until the next fatal minibus accident occurs.

[Countryman]

"Some news agencies reported that the vehicle’s tyre exploded, causing the car to lose its balance and crash. Another media outlet suggested that the driver was travelling at a high speed and lost control as he entered the bend."

 

The later is the most likely cause , you have to be a very careful driver on that road , many bends,

going down a hill ,you need to be in a low gear ,let the engine brake for you ,save the brakes for

when you really need them , does not usually happen ,all the vehicles in front of you ,brake lights on all

the way down the hills.

[ChaiyaTH]

47 minutes ago, connda said:

Sweep it under the rug quickly and hope potential Chinese tourist don't see.

This isn't the first minibus accident.  And given the insane driving of minibus drivers and the complete lack of driving enforcement in Thailand, it's just a matter of time until the next fatal minibus accident occurs.

If he would not be speeding, and the tire exploded, the crash would be much less bad too. So I consider him guilty no matter what, they always are, we all know.

[George Bowman]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

When the vehicle reached the Pa Pae district of Chiang Mai at 9.30am yesterday, November 10, the driver reportedly lost control and overturned.

Years ago, we were up in Chiang Mai enjoying the sites. We had an early breakfast at one of the vendors on the side of the road and there happened to be a minibus driver at the same table. He said that he made the trip from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and then back to Chiang Mai almost every day during the high season.

[brianthainess]

I must be psychic.  Even before clicking on this story I knew a bend and a hill were involved. 

Edited November 11, 2023 by brianthainess

[Hakuna Matata]

Maybe, low visibility due to farmers burning the old crops in their fields?

[Tarteso]

🤔

RIP

 

 

[animalmagic]

1 hour ago, Countryman said:

"Some news agencies reported that the vehicle’s tyre exploded, causing the car to lose its balance and crash. Another media outlet suggested that the driver was travelling at a high speed and lost control as he entered the bend."

 

The later is the most likely cause , you have to be a very careful driver on that road , many bends,

going down a hill ,you need to be in a low gear ,let the engine brake for you ,save the brakes for

when you really need them , does not usually happen ,all the vehicles in front of you ,brake lights on all

the way down the hills.

Automatics don't have a clutch per se, and you will be causing additional wear and tear on the internals. Basically, you're reversing the power flow, instead of the engine driving the wheels, you're driving the engine with the wheels.  This occurs normally when you decelerate, but by downshifting you're increasing the amount of force that normally goes through the transmission in that way. There's no way to accurately predict how much additional wear you're putting on your drivetrain, but it makes more sense to put the wear on easily accessible parts (brake pads) that are designed to be replaced rather than on an expensive transmission?

I wrecked the transmission of a BMW using engine braking.

[J Branche]

Our condolences to the families.

 

Most here have taken a Minibus Once.  

Reckless driving, speeding, following to closely, crammed to max capacity.  Rolling coffins looking for their final resting place.

 

 

[TroubleandGrumpy]

We used to live in Chiang Mai and as anyone who has been there knows, these types of accidents are always happenning - Minibuse drivers are nutters - many of them high on Yaba and Red Bull type concoctions.  But if you want to see and experience the worst of it in Thailand - drive the highway between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai - I was genuinely scared - it was unbelievable - get out of their way quickly or you die.  Not just the minivans - it was trucks and utes too.  Did it once and only once - never again. We drove a lot in Thailand - West to East and North to South - nothing compares with that road - I was told it was bad - but I had no idea.  There are more deaths in the Chiang Mai Province than Bangkok - that and the smoke is why we will never return.

Edited November 11, 2023 by TroubleandGrumpy

[Peterphuket]

You''ll be on holiday, and then this happens to you, terrible.

[tandor]

30 minutes ago, Peterphuket said:

You''ll be on holiday, and then this happens to you, terrible.

Thailand sure is a life changer.  RIP

[newnative]

Deathtraps

[Will B Good]

Only ever travelled in one of those once....BKK to Mu Si.......I'd rather never travel again than risk it again.

[Mike Lister]

3 hours ago, Countryman said:

"Some news agencies reported that the vehicle’s tyre exploded, causing the car to lose its balance and crash. Another media outlet suggested that the driver was travelling at a high speed and lost control as he entered the bend."

 

The later is the most likely cause , you have to be a very careful driver on that road , many bends,

going down a hill ,you need to be in a low gear ,let the engine brake for you ,save the brakes for

when you really need them , does not usually happen ,all the vehicles in front of you ,brake lights on all

the way down the hills.

From a local FB report from somebody in the following van, the driver was travelling at 85 mph which on the Pai road is insane.

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

There was no report on the condition of the minibus driver.

Still sleeping?

[topt]

Just now, Mike Lister said:

From a local FB report from somebody in the following van, the driver was travelling at 85 mph which on the Pai road is insane.

Do you mean 85kph? 

[Mike Lister]

3 minutes ago, topt said:

Do you mean 85kph? 

I suspect that is what the FB poster meant but they didn't write that. The Pai road is two lanes and very twisty turny, lots of hairpin bends.

Edited November 11, 2023 by Mike Lister

[hotchilli]

2 hours ago, animalmagic said:

There's no way to accurately predict how much additional wear you're putting on your drivetrain, but it makes more sense to put the wear on easily accessible parts (brake pads) that are designed to be replaced rather than on an expensive transmission?

Yeah, wear out the brakes and replace them just like the tourists, more will keep coming not to worry.

[MrPancake]

It's a festival these days in northern Thailand.

Pai and now this...

Foreigners falling like flies.

 

[Keeps]

2 hours ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

We used to live in Chiang Mai and as anyone who has been there knows, these types of accidents are always happenning - Minibuse drivers are nutters - many of them high on Yaba and Red Bull type concoctions.  But if you want to see and experience the worst of it in Thailand - drive the highway between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai - I was genuinely scared - it was unbelievable - get out of their way quickly or you die.  Not just the minivans - it was trucks and utes too.  Did it once and only once - never again. We drove a lot in Thailand - West to East and North to South - nothing compares with that road - I was told it was bad - but I had no idea.  There are more deaths in the Chiang Mai Province than Bangkok - that and the smoke is why we will never return.

I did this journey last week. Booked a private car transfer from CM to CR, turned out to be a private minivan. Just the 2 of us in a 7 seater. I was genuinely petrified. The guy drove like a maniac to catch-up and overtake any vehicle in front, then pootled along until he spotted another vehicle, then same again. We decided to get the Greenbus back which was a slightly more sedate affair (until I needed a tinkle - not advisable on those bendy roads - think more went on my trousers than down the pan).

[OneZero]

Quote from above: "But if you want to see and experience the worst of it in Thailand - drive the highway between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai - I was genuinely scared - it was unbelievable - get out of their way quickly or you die.  Not just the minivans - it was trucks and utes too."

 

I couldn't agree more:  get out of the way quickly or you die.  They coming right at you in your lane.

[cardinalblue]

On the run but with a severe limp….

[BusyB]

10 hours ago, connda said:

Sweep it under the rug quickly and hope potential Chinese tourist don't see.

This isn't the first minibus accident.  And given the insane driving of minibus drivers and the complete lack of driving enforcement in Thailand, it's just a matter of time until the next fatal minibus accident occurs.

 

Come to think of it, despite this disaster it seems the clampdown on minibuses has yielded some results. This is the first minibus crash fatalities I've seen in a long while. They quite literally used to be almost daily with appalling death rates. Something seems to have worked.

 

N.B. seat belts are primarily there to stop you flying out of the vehicle in the event of a crash.

[BusyB]

7 hours ago, Will B Good said:

Only ever travelled in one of those once....BKK to Mu Si.......I'd rather never travel again than risk it again.

 

Same here - different route, same experience. It used to be all the time, you don't hear much about it these days - maybe they got tachometers in the cabs after all ...

[BusyB]

9 hours ago, animalmagic said:

Automatics don't have a clutch per se, and you will be causing additional wear and tear on the internals. Basically, you're reversing the power flow, instead of the engine driving the wheels, you're driving the engine with the wheels.  This occurs normally when you decelerate, but by downshifting you're increasing the amount of force that normally goes through the transmission in that way. There's no way to accurately predict how much additional wear you're putting on your drivetrain, but it makes more sense to put the wear on easily accessible parts (brake pads) that are designed to be replaced rather than on an expensive transmission?

I wrecked the transmission of a BMW using engine braking.

 

The trick is not to over rev. Accept the speed the car will do for normal revs.

 

Using the brakes instead of engine braking will heat them up and can easily lead to brake failure.

[Pond Life]

18 hours ago, animalmagic said:

Automatics don't have a clutch per se, and you will be causing additional wear and tear on the internals. Basically, you're reversing the power flow, instead of the engine driving the wheels, you're driving the engine with the wheels.  This occurs normally when you decelerate, but by downshifting you're increasing the amount of force that normally goes through the transmission in that way. There's no way to accurately predict how much additional wear you're putting on your drivetrain, but it makes more sense to put the wear on easily accessible parts (brake pads) that are designed to be replaced rather than on an expensive transmission?

I wrecked the transmission of a BMW using engine braking.

Most vehicles here are manual stick shifts with clutch, including the Toyota Commuter involved in this accident. 

On this type of road engine braking is very important so that your brakes don't overheat.

Edited November 12, 2023 by Pond Life
Spelling

[alien365]

On 11/11/2023 at 1:59 PM, TroubleandGrumpy said:

 if you want to see and experience the worst of it in Thailand - drive the highway between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai - I was genuinely scared - it was unbelievable - get out of their way quickly or you die.  Not just the minivans - it was trucks and utes too.  Did it once and only once - never again. 

What speed were you driving? Are there no speed cameras on that stretch? I've never been north of Chiang Dao, but in the south I know the traffic starts to speed up as you get near Chumphon. I'd be going 140 in my eco car as everyone flies past me. 

[NorthernRyland]

Your choices are to drive yourself and let them to kill you or drive with them and they kill you anyways. Choose wisely nappy haired hippy adventurer, that blunt may be your last.