Picture courtesy of Daily News.

 

Another incident struck Rama II Road early morning, at 02:30 on the 31 August, when a construction crane toppled over during work on an elevated highway, crashing onto the road and crushing a pickup truck. Three people were left seriously injured.

 

The incident occurred at kilometre marker 26+500 on the inbound carriageway of Rama II Road, just before Central Mahachai, Samut Sakhon. Workers had been using the crane to hoist heavy steel beams for installation on supporting pillars when it suddenly collapsed.

 

The crane operator was trapped in the cab and had to be rescued by emergency services. The crane boom, struck a passing pickup truck on the frontage road, leaving both the driver and passenger with severe injuries. All three casualties were rushed to hospital for urgent treatment.

 

The impact also brought down power lines, causing a widespread blackout in the area and severe traffic disruption. Police diverted vehicles to Ekachai Road and other nearby routes while the scene was cleared, which took several hours.

 

Authorities are now investigating the cause of the crane collapse.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Daily News 2025-08-31

 

 

 

 

Construction safety in Thailand ??       does not exist 

Crane collapses are all just a part of the allure of Thailand....Rama 2 must hold the world record now!

Its about time there was an incident....been a few months.

22 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

a construction crane toppled over

One of many, every year as far as I can remember.

These incidents are getting far too often now.  Just looking at the photo, it can be seen that even the basics such as pads/mats under the outriggers are missing.  Modern cranes have failsafes/alarms to avoid this type of situation happening, so have they ignored or turned them off?

My butt always puckers up when I drive under bridges, motorways, BTS lines etc. that are being constructed. 

 

Especially if there are cranes around. 

22 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

Authorities are now investigating the cause of the crane collapse

I have an idea....

"Based on reports from Thailand's Department of Highways and news sources like Nation Thailand and Bangkok Post, since 2019, Rama II Road has seen over 2,500 construction-related accidents. This includes at least 148 fatalities and over 1,469 injuries as of August 2025, factoring in the recent crane collapse injuring 3. Data may vary by source, and not all incidents are fully documented"

 

22 hours ago, MikeandDow said:

Construction safety in Thailand ??       does not exist 

They think they can prevent it with many signs saying “safety first”, but have not yet figured out that it is the solution.

33 minutes ago, Trip Hop said:

These incidents are getting far too often now.  Just looking at the photo, it can be seen that even the basics such as pads/mats under the outriggers are missing.  Modern cranes have failsafes/alarms to avoid this type of situation happening, so have they ignored or turned them off?

It is the 'mai pen rai' mentality.

Unfortunately the Rama II drama continues, the executives in charge of this project should all be in prison, likewise the same for the Thai officials who are supervising this project. How far behind schedule is this debacle, 15 years, and they're still at kilometer 37? 

 

This is not only a national disgrace this is a national disaster. The Chinese would have had this project finished in 2 years. 

11 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Unfortunately the Rama II drama continues, the executives in charge of this project should all be in prison, likewise the same for the Thai officials who are supervising this project. How far behind schedule is this debacle, 15 years, and they're still at kilometer 37? 

 

This is not only a national disgrace this is a national disaster. The Chinese would have had this project finished in 2 years. 

agree national disgrace    safety in thailand is a bad word in thailand ,no idea !!  yes china would have it finished ahead of schedule but at what quality and there safety is same as thailands  does not exist 

1 hour ago, Trip Hop said:

These incidents are getting far too often now.  Just looking at the photo, it can be seen that even the basics such as pads/mats under the outriggers are missing.  Modern cranes have failsafes/alarms to avoid this type of situation happening, so have they ignored or turned them off?

Probably . In all my years of working in strict , health & safety  environments in heavy industry in the UK I have never seen or heard of a crane failing  where crane operators and riggers are a skilled occupation . Heavy lift cranes come with a chart showing lifting capacity and the  jib radius . Plus method statements / risk assessments etc and sometimes in the presence of a qualified safety officer  ( IOSH / NEbOSH ) .I have seen in Thailand many crane hooks without a safety latch . 

H&S barely exists in Thailand , even with Western contractors where at best the workers are wearing hard hats and high vis jackets but also open toed flip flops .

23 hours ago, MikeandDow said:

Construction safety in Thailand ??       does not exist 

And to think they have suspended knokair from international flights, talk about double standards.

 

50 minutes ago, superal said:

Probably . In all my years of working in strict , health & safety  environments in heavy industry in the UK I have never seen or heard of a crane failing  where crane operators and riggers are a skilled occupation . Heavy lift cranes come with a chart showing lifting capacity and the  jib radius . Plus method statements / risk assessments etc and sometimes in the presence of a qualified safety officer  ( IOSH / NEbOSH ) .I have seen in Thailand many crane hooks without a safety latch . 

H&S barely exists in Thailand , even with Western contractors where at best the workers are wearing hard hats and high vis jackets but also open toed flip flops .

 

It happens in the UK on the rare occasion but normally due to some unforeseen circumstance that is not reasonably unavoidable and there would never be any unnecessary operatives or pedestrians within the lifting zone.  The weight of the lift along with its radius and physical constraints would be used to select an appropriate crane, whose manufacturers will have already carried out extensive testing on its safe working limits.  Outrigger load calculated and checked against the bearing pressure of the ground below, using mats or ground improvement measures to reduce pressure if needed.  Permit to lift signed off by qualified Crane Appointed Person/Temporary Works Engineer with Lifting Supervisor present during the lift to check that everything is done as per the permit.  Failsafes and alarms on the crane itself being the last bastion.  It's not rocket science to do it correctly.

Happens every .months it's not news any more 

This crane as not collapsed. Its overturned probably due to the load. however other functions can also contribute. My guess is that all safety alarms & radius indicators were either not working or ignored.

Safe & Trusted Thailand😄😄

1 hour ago, Trip Hop said:

 

It happens in the UK on the rare occasion but normally due to some unforeseen circumstance that is not reasonably unavoidable and there would never be any unnecessary operatives or pedestrians within the lifting zone.  The weight of the lift along with its radius and physical constraints would be used to select an appropriate crane, whose manufacturers will have already carried out extensive testing on its safe working limits.  Outrigger load calculated and checked against the bearing pressure of the ground below, using mats or ground improvement measures to reduce pressure if needed.  Permit to lift signed off by qualified Crane Appointed Person/Temporary Works Engineer with Lifting Supervisor present during the lift to check that everything is done as per the permit.  Failsafes and alarms on the crane itself being the last bastion.  It's not rocket science to do it correctly.

True and I bet that most Thai / Lao construction workers have not been trained ,or had an induction . The quickest way and shortcuts prevail . I have seen them being taken up to a height on the forks of a fork lift and also hoisted with their feet in the crane hook .       Working on one plank on a bamboo skeleton of a scaffold quite high up and no safety harness . Light years from Western standards .

3 hours ago, Hardcastle P said:

And to think they have suspended knokair from international flights, talk about double standards.

 

 

Example: I worked at a new multinational oil refinery, opened just 6 months near Rayong. Safety got a lot of very good attention. Big signs indicating that only certified employees, certified visitors etc., would be allowed past the main security entrance.

 

One incident;  car arrives, Thai driver tells a security oficer to open the gate. Sec. guy explains the polidy, driver responds 'but that doesn't apply to me because my brother in law works here'.

 

Further incident; time for a cleanout of all operating vessels. Farang CEO walks around the vessels and suddenly finds an outside worker sittting at the botttom of an operating vessel smoking a cigarette. CEO grabs the cigarettte and wraps in in a clen rag then put the rag with cigarette in a bucket of water. 

 

Outside worker is quite annoyed and asks for his cigarette to be repaced. CEO demands to know if this outside team have attended and safety training. Junior from the safety training team responds 'all the documents have been signed and each member is getting a card showing they have attended / passed the safety training exam later today.

 

CEO ask 'but did they attend any safety training lectures / actvities?'

 

Response 'No because too busy'.

Even after the road is complete, friends are saying they will avoid using Rama II as it will always be dangerous. I don't understand why the companies building it will ever win another contract.