Man Drowns After Songkran Celebration in Saraburi

[Georgealbert]

 

Picture courtesy of Siam News.

 

A 60-year-old man lost his life early morning on 14 April, after reportedly falling into a large pond in Kaeng Khoi district, Saraburi Province, following a night of heavy drinking to celebrate Songkran.

 

At around 07:00 officers from Kaeng Khoi Police Station received a report from a concerned citizen about a body found floating face down in a large pond managed by the local subdistrict administrative organisation in Tan Diao subdistrict. Police immediately alerted volunteers from the Ruamkatanyu Foundation to assist in the recovery.

 

Rescue personnel retrieved the body, later identified as Mr. Mana, a local resident of Kaeng Khoi. No signs of injury were visible on the body. Nearby, police discovered a fallen bicycle, an empty liquor bottle, two sets of clothing, and a pair of rubber boots left on the ground.

 

Mr. Sompong, an acquaintance of the deceased, told authorities that he had first spotted the body. He also recounted that the previous evening, around 18:00, a firefighter, also one of his employees, had witnessed Mr. Mana accidentally falling into the pond. The firefighter helped him out and warned him not to approach the water again.

 

According to Mr. Sompong, Mr. Mana was known to frequently sit and drink by the pond. He had a habit of becoming intoxicated and losing his balance near the water. It is believed that he continued drinking to mark the end of the Songkran festivities and fell into the pond once more, this time fatally.

 

Mr. Mana had been working as a casual labourer tending cattle and had recently been employed by the local subdistrict office for the past two months. He was due to finish his temporary post at the end of the month and begin work in construction.

 

Police have documented the scene and sent the body for autopsy at Saraburi Hospital to determine the precise cause of death. The family has been contacted to arrange religious funeral rites.

 

-- 2025-04-15