BREAKING NEWS Seven Dead as Runaway Bus Slams into Trucks and Bursts into Flames

[Will B Good]

Not sure if I missed it in the above article, but a news outlet based in BKK pointed out that this particular bus company has a very poor safety record..........I assume that little or no action would have be taken previously or in the future.....who cares?

[harryviking]

6 hours ago, worgeordie said:

The bus driver obviously did not have the bus in low gear ,descending the hill,

while the truck drivers did and that's what stopped the bus driver , it seems

that nearly every accident that happens on descending hills ,is down to brake

failure , if only they would put it in low gear , RIP the deceased

 

regards worgeordie 

Seems like Thai drivers have no clue about using gears as breaks! Might be a good idea to teach people this when they get their licenses!!! 

[thongplay]

1 hour ago, digger70 said:

Seven Dead as Runaway Bus Slams into Trucks and Bursts into Flames 

 

One more reason for brake failure is that when the driver goes to fast downhill and stands on the brakes they will get cooked and will not slow down the vehicle (bus or truck)  like they suppose to.

That's brake failure caused by brain failure.

Hey all of you. Who said it was brake failure? I thought it said police are investigating.

[Jonathan Swift]

1 hour ago, newbee2022 said:

So, actually no evidence of brake failure. 

Pretty straightforward. There are not that many parts that can fail. Brake fluid leak, failed wheel cylinders, ruptured brake line, possibly failed power steering. I've done a lot of brake jobs on all kinds of cars, drum brakes, disk brakes, cylinder replacement, new brake lines. It would be obvious. 

[KannikaP]

14 minutes ago, harryviking said:

Might be a good idea to teach people this when they get their licenses!!! 

BEFORE they get their licences.

[Sierra Tango]

8 minutes ago, thongplay said:

Hey all of you. Who said it was brake failure? I thought it said police are investigating.

This eyewitness account "Eyewitness Lamson Puangphu, who was driving behind the ill-fated bus, said he noticed the vehicle descending at high speed. “I knew right away the brakes had failed,” he recounted. “I followed cautiously and then saw the crash unfold. I pulled over immediately and tried to help.”

 

Although excessive speed and unable to stop in time to avoid running into the truck convoy would be my guess.

I'm assuming that many of these buses are running CNG because I think it's inlikely diesel burns that intensly. 

[Captain Flack]

A troll post has been removed @KannikaP

[natway09]

 Many silly comments on here obviously made by folks who have never driven heavy vehicles.

 Gearing is the ONLY way to get  a heavy vehicle down a long steep incline.

 Brakes on their own will sooner or later just get too hot & fail.

 Even heavy planes use reverse thrust to aid their brakes in slowing down, well some  ( eg: Qantas 747   landing at Don Muang did not hence going off the end of the runway)

 

[Chongalulu]

2 hours ago, billd766 said:

However, even nowadays in my 5 speed manual gearbox Ford Ranger pickup, I still double declutch and change gear. to slow down.

A pointless and wasteful exercise in a modern small  vehicle. Use the function designed for slowing down a small passenger vehicle. Brakes are cheaper to replace than transmissions, clutches and engines. Do you still look for the starting handle too ? 
 

[Georgealbert]

14 minutes ago, Sierra Tango said:

This eyewitness account "Eyewitness Lamson Puangphu, who was driving behind the ill-fated bus, said he noticed the vehicle descending at high speed. “I knew right away the brakes had failed,” he recounted. “I followed cautiously and then saw the crash unfold. I pulled over immediately and tried to help.”

 

Although excessive speed and unable to stop in time to avoid running into the truck convoy would be my guess.

I'm assuming that many of these buses are running CNG because I think it's inlikely diesel burns that intensly. 

No mention in reports, have been made of the fuel system in use, but from the scene pictures the fire started and was most concentrated at front of the bus.

 

The casualties that burnt in the fire, were also located at the front of the bus, at both levels.

 

The investigation will be able to determine if the fuel system played any role in the ignition or fire development.

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

2 hours ago, Briggsy said:

I would love some of these accidents to be fully investigated.

Why do you suggest that they are not fully investigated?   Got any examples?

[newbee2022]

26 minutes ago, Jonathan Swift said:

Pretty straightforward. There are not that many parts that can fail. Brake fluid leak, failed wheel cylinders, ruptured brake line, possibly failed power steering. I've done a lot of brake jobs on all kinds of cars, drum brakes, disk brakes, cylinder replacement, new brake lines. It would be obvious. 

There are many: fall asleep, being busy on your phone, try to get your water bottle which fell down, dreaming, aso

[Surasak]

1 hour ago, digger70 said:

Seven Dead as Runaway Bus Slams into Trucks and Bursts into Flames 

 

One more reason for brake failure is that when the driver goes to fast downhill and stands on the brakes they will get cooked and will not slow down the vehicle (bus or truck)  like they suppose to.

That's brake failure caused by brain failure.

Perhaps the brain was never active, rather than failed!?

[Will B Good]

2 hours ago, billd766 said:

One of the things that I was taught many years ago, when I used to drive a truck was changing down through the gear box when going down hills. This of course was back in the old days, when there was no power brakes or power steering.

 

However, even nowadays in my 5 speed manual gearbox Ford Ranger pickup, I still double declutch and change gear. to slow down.

 

No synchromesh??? 

[Liverpool Lou]

2 hours ago, jcmj said:

I thought they banned those types of buses?

 

What made you think that interprovincial buses were banned?

[ChipButty]

The police asked the driver what gear was you in? I was in my shorts and flip flops sir, 

[Moonlover]

34 minutes ago, Jonathan Swift said:

Pretty straightforward. There are not that many parts that can fail. Brake fluid leak, failed wheel cylinders, ruptured brake line, possibly failed power steering. I've done a lot of brake jobs on all kinds of cars, drum brakes, disk brakes, cylinder replacement, new brake lines. It would be obvious. 

There doesn't need to be anything amiss with the braking system for it to fail. They simply need to overheat which Leads to:

 

'When brake discs overheat, the high temperature reduces the effectiveness of the friction material. This heat build-up can be transferred into the brake fluid, causing it to boil which then leads to spongy and ineffective brakes'. 

 

Go downhill in too high a gear and rely on the brakes, this will be the result. And I'm sure happens it often happens here.

[bunnydrops]

2 hours ago, billd766 said:

One of the things that I was taught many years ago, when I used to drive a truck was changing down through the gear box when going down hills. This of course was back in the old days, when there was no power brakes or power steering.

 

However, even nowadays in my 5 speed manual gearbox Ford Ranger pickup, I still double declutch and change gear. to slow down.

I bought a 1947 Dodge flatbed truck sometime in the 90s. It still had the owner's manual. One of the first safety rules was "Never go down a hill faster than you can go up". Never forgot it.

[richard_smith237]

58 minutes ago, thongplay said:

Hey all of you. Who said it was brake failure? I thought it said police are investigating.

 

It's in the main 'sub-headline'... 

 

7 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

At least seven people have died and 39 others were injured after a passenger bus suffered brake failure and ploughed into three trucks before catching fire in a horrific early morning crash.

 

 

[Frankie baby]

On large vehicles there's virtually no such thing as brake failure. (brakes not coming on).

 

The brakes are on all the time until the brake system is charged up and everything working, the brakes can then be taken off & the vehicle can move. 

Hence in these cases the brakes (linings etc.) are either worn-out or have broken components rendering the brakes useless anyway even though they are functioning when the peddle is actuated. 

[hotchilli]

7 hours ago, worgeordie said:

The bus driver obviously did not have the bus in low gear ,descending the hill,

while the truck drivers did and that's what stopped the bus driver , it seems

that nearly every accident that happens on descending hills ,is down to brake

failure , if only they would put it in low gear , RIP the deceased

 

regards worgeordie 

What they should say is that "after descending the entire hill riding the brakes they had little effect at slowing the vehicle".

[richard_smith237]

5 minutes ago, Frankie baby said:

On large vehicles there's virtually no such thing as brake failure. (brakes not coming on).

 

The brakes are on all the time until the brake system is charged up and everything working, the brakes can then be taken off & the vehicle can move. 

Hence in these cases the brakes (linings etc.) are either worn-out or have broken components rendering the brakes useless anyway even though they are functioning when the peddle is actuated. 

 

So, if the brake linings are worn out or there are broken components rendering the system ineffective - surely, that constitutes brake failure, does it not?

 

And, if a driver relies too heavily on the brakes during a long downhill descent instead of shifting into a lower gear, resulting in brake overheating or complete loss of function - again, that’s brake failure, isn’t it?

 

Whether caused by poor maintenance or driver error, the outcome remains the same: the brakes fail.

 

What’s particularly telling in Thailand, of course, is the cultural tendency to assign blame to inanimate objects - a convenient way to preserve face, often on behalf of others as well.

[harleyclarkey]

Again? Far too many avoidable accidents like this in Thailand. Avoid proper maintenance  keep you foot on the brake pedal for brake fade....and people die.

Terrible for those poor souls. RIP. 

[billd766]

54 minutes ago, Chongalulu said:

A pointless and wasteful exercise in a modern small  vehicle. Use the function designed for slowing down a small passenger vehicle. Brakes are cheaper to replace than transmissions, clutches and engines. Do you still look for the starting handle too ? 
 

BS.

 

My Ford Ranger is 23 years old with 48x,xxx km on the clock.

 

It still; has the original engine, gearbox and transmission which has never been replaced though as any normal rational person would expect, the brakes have been replaced several times.

 

Not too bad for a Fix On Road Daily (Ford).

[flyingfox1]

3 hours ago, billd766 said:

One of the things that I was taught many years ago, when I used to drive a truck was changing down through the gear box when going down hills. This of course was back in the old days, when there was no power brakes or power steering.

 

However, even nowadays in my 5 speed manual gearbox Ford Ranger pickup, I still double declutch and change gear. to slow down.

absolutely correct , i was long haulage HGV1 over 30yrs and always drop before steep gradients .. there was also a “dead man” brake in case all else failed .. not sure how PSV works as many are either auto or semi ? 

 

still RIP to lost souls so tragically taken 

[sikishrory]

This just happened a 6 months ago and sweeping reforms were vowed.

This is a government operated bus so should be first in line for checks.

What is the gas setup here.

Why are the brakes not maintened.

[digger70]

1 hour ago, thongplay said:

Hey all of you. Who said it was brake failure? I thought it said police are investigating.

At least seven people have died and 39 others were injured after a passenger bus suffered brake failure and ploughed into three trucks before catching fire in a horrific early morning crash.

[billd766]

50 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

 

No synchromesh??? 

Of course, but old tried and true habits die hard.

 

One truck I used to drive had no synchromesh, a 5 speed gearbox and a 2 speed rear axle. That WAS a bitch to drive and change gear, especially when it was fully loaded.

 

I still find enjoyment in changing gear smoothly and quietly matching engine revs to road speed instead of just ramming the truck into gear and letting the clutch up, synchromesh or not.

[treetops]

3 minutes ago, sikishrory said:

This is a government operated bus so should be first in line for checks.

 

Why do you say that?  It was operated by 407 Pattana company who I've used many times from their location in Pattaya just north of Pattaya Klang.

 

[HK MacPhooey]

3 hours ago, SLOWHAND225 said:

 

Low gear going down hill is a bad practice. It heats everything up, especially the transmission. 

The rule typically for commercial drivers is that you go down hill in the same gear you got to the top in.
Shifting while going down hill with a clutch difficult for most people and not something that is taught.
Cleary you can shift an auto but the heat will tear it up before long.  Funny this should come up as I was looking at one of these busses last week and it had no trans. cooler at all which is really odd.

It heats everything up except the brakes thus helping to prevent ‘brake failure’ which is actually brake fade caused by the driver ‘riding the brakes’ which also degrades the brake fluid over time adding to the problem.