It was likely the right thing to do as there have been quite a few accidents and fatalities and public safety issues with this company, in addition to delays that have been ridiculously long, and something needs to be done to improve this situation, which is now a national disaster.

But my guess is that companies that are capable of projects of this size are few and far between.

The Death Road Rama 2 project has had over 2500 accidents (including traffic accidents due to the construction work) about 143 dead. About 1440 injuries. In the period 2018-2026. This company has a heavy disregard for safety and it's workers. Above figures exclude the Office of the Attorney General collapse and the latest railway accident, and so many more. This company should be disqualified for all government projects. My prayers and thoughts go to the families of the victims and all the deceased and injured.

Interesting reading all the comments here, but the real problem is that compromise is first hand nature in most SE asian countries. Just watch a so called tradesman work, short cuts are firmly lodged in his brain! Lack of proper training & poor education is where the problems start, then like this crane incident is there a "crane safe" institute in Thailand?? I bet not and as sadly shown here this is the outcome! I managed a crane company in Papua New Guinea where cranes & staff were certified which meant proper training with annual certifications of machinery & equipment & biannual refresher courses for staff & operators. My choice and not PNG law unfortunately which allowed the chinese companies to operate cranes in PNG and just like Thailand, no proper training and no certifications of both personal & equipment which resulted in the same! Its a cultural thing that needs to change and sadly Anutins reaction is probably one of appeasement and not to mention who's family owns Sino Thai !!

7 minutes ago, paul1804 said:

Interesting reading all the comments here, but the real problem is that compromise is first hand nature in most SE asian countries. Just watch a so called tradesman work, short cuts are firmly lodged in his brain! Lack of proper training & poor education is where the problems start, then like this crane incident is there a "crane safe" institute in Thailand?? I bet not and as sadly shown here this is the outcome! I managed a crane company in Papua New Guinea where cranes & staff were certified which meant proper training with annual certifications of machinery & equipment & biannual refresher courses for staff & operators. My choice and not PNG law unfortunately which allowed the chinese companies to operate cranes in PNG and just like Thailand, no proper training and no certifications of both personal & equipment which resulted in the same! Its a cultural thing that needs to change and sadly Anutins reaction is probably one of appeasement and not to mention who's family owns Sino Thai !!

Its most likely that the stringent H&S laws and practices in Western countries are known by Asian countries but are ignored to a large extent as they hinder profits .

I have a simple, mundane question: contract axed 'immediately'.... so who is going to clean up the mess?

6 hours ago, webfact said:

a high-speed rail project in Nakhon Ratchasima province, where work was nearly complete.

Can't imagine anyone feeling comfortable taking a Thai-built high-speed train.........

Maybe they should try baby steps first.

Something like constructing a walk-able sidewalk perhaps.

22 minutes ago, Travel Dude said:

The Death Road Rama 2 project has had over 2500 accidents (including traffic accidents due to the construction work) about 143 dead.

The death of one construction worker is a tragedy, the death of 143 is a statistic.

There will be a contract, is Anutin entitled to cancel this contract? I doubt it. While the mess is being cleaned up it may be that ItalThai can enforce the contact through the courts so all this could be already agreed political manouvers.

They should be suspended or fired from all of their contracts.

17 minutes ago, Emdog said:

I have a simple, mundane question: contract axed 'immediately'.... so who is going to clean up the mess?

Exactly. Huge case of instantly sloping shoulders. The axing of these contracts is to immediately distance both the Finance Ministry and the State Railways of Thailand from any blowback and ultimately absolve them of any responsibility for the public's safety.

Meanwhile, Khaosod reports ITD have already been awarded 7 government contracts worth 26 billion baht SINCE the collapse of the OAG office last year.

https://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/2026/01/16/italian-thai-developer-wins-26billion-in-contracts-since-building-collapse/

I'm told that Italian-Thai is a misnomer and the actual company is Chinese? There's no connection with Italy as such.

3 hours ago, Classic Ray said:

It just happens that Sino Thai is owned by Khun Anutin’s family and are Italian Thai’s main competitor in Thailand.

Surely just a coincidence? And a rapid response so close to an Election - surely just a coincidence?

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has taken decisive action, ordering the termination of two contracts with Italian-Thai Development Plc (ITD) following recent crane collapses that resulted in over 30 fatalities.

Hit them hard in the pocket to compensate for the fatalities and injuries...

Hit them hard for the costs to the raail/train operators.

Then jail the Bosses..

IMHO, someone from ITD should have been in jail a long time ago.

Cancel the contract with immediate effect? That sounds like PR posturing.

The next thing you know there will be a batch of lawsuits and counter lawsuits.

Then there's the election. Who will come out on top? What changes will they push through?

These projects will be stalled for a decade. Idle construction equipment will create traffic bottlenecks.

Only Somchai Q Public will be harmed in the long run as he tries in vain to commute to work through an abandoned construction site.

And by the way, who is going to inspect all the private construction project sites that have ITD as the general contractor? Probably nobody.

I have now moved into a tent, in the middle of a field in deepest Issaan due to my new found fear of all things that involve concrete, here in the Kingdom of Thailand.

18 minutes ago, Front Row said:

Cancel the contract with immediate effect? That sounds like PR posturing.

The next thing you know there will be a batch of lawsuits and counter lawsuits.

Then there's the election. Who will come out on top? What changes will they push through?

These projects will be stalled for a decade. Idle construction equipment will create traffic bottlenecks.

Only Somchai Q Public will be harmed in the long run as he tries in vain to commute to work through an abandoned construction site.

And by the way, who is going to inspect all the private construction project sites that have ITD as the general contractor? Probably nobody.

SRT have already said they are suing ITD. This, rather than focusing on taking care of those killed in their carriages on their railway line by an apparent lack of care and competence by the contractor they awarded the work to.

UPDATE: Italian-Thai clarifies to stock exchange: Contracts for two crane-collapse projects not terminated despite public order from Prime Minister Anutin

https://x.com/KhaosodEnglish/status/2012027032298000835

9 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand's Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visits the site where a construction crane fell onto a passenger train in Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has taken decisive action, ordering the termination of two contracts with Italian-Thai Development Plc (ITD) following recent crane collapses that resulted in over 30 fatalities. Speaking at Government House, Anutin made it a priority to address the alarming safety issues, directing the Ministry of Transport to cancel contracts and initiate legal proceedings against the company.

The incidents have raised significant public concern, with the Prime Minister underlining the necessity for quick intervention to restore public confidence and reassure foreign investors. Mr Anutin noted a concerning pattern of accidents linked to ITD, including a notable incident involving the collapse of the State Audit Office building. These repeated accidents have prompted an immediate and robust response from the government.

The Prime Minister, who also leads the Bhumaithai Party, stressed the importance of accountability. He stated the state's responsibility to ensure safety and compensate for losses while seeking damages from negligent contractors. His emphasis was on enhancing safety standards in future projects. This statement echoes his comments concerning a crane accident on a high-speed rail project in Nakhon Ratchasima province, where work was nearly complete.

Following the recent tragedies, including a crane collapse onto a moving train in Sikhio that killed 32 and injured 64, followed by another fatal accident in Samut Sakhon, the Prime Minister confirmed that the contracts would indeed be terminated. A new contractor will be appointed with a focus on ensuring public safety as work continues to finish the high-speed rail project, reported the Bangkok Post.

Key Takeaways:

• Prime Minister orders the termination of ITD contracts due to safety concerns.

• Government acts swiftly to reassure the public and foreign investors.

• A new contractor was appointed for the high-speed rail project in response to accidents.

Related Stories:

Multiple Deaths After Crane Collapses Onto Passenger Train

Construction Crane Collapses on Rama 2, at least 1 Dead

  

Adapted by ASEAN Now from Bangkok Post 2026-01-16

 

 

Guess who the Ital-Thai CEO is...non other the bloke who blew the brains out of the black panther a few years ago so he could eat the penis..Did some time in the monkey house to boot. His son is now at the reigns.Mega rich already so not a whole lot will change....Enforcing safety does not make you rich..I suppose.

8 hours ago, Jim Blue said:

The black leopard strikes back !

Very much so - bad karma?

7 hours ago, Classic Ray said:

It just happens that Sino Thai is owned by Khun Anutin’s family and are Italian Thai’s main competitor in Thailand.

Thanks, my thought as well. The way is now open for Sino Thai Construction to bid for contracts!

Furthermore, Premchai has been out on bail since May with health issues after the collapse of the SAO building.
At least he enjoyed the NY celebrations in the comfort of his home.

7 hours ago, LennyW said:

Right thing to do to Ital-Thai, but it will leave thousands of Thai workers out of a job until a replacement company is found/created.

7 hours ago, LennyW said:

Right thing to do to Ital-Thai, but it will leave thousands of Thai workers out of a job until a replacement company is found/created.

Ital-Thai has only had two contracts cancelled, they'll have plenty of other projects to keep their workforce occupied.

Has thailand already forgotten the high rise collapse 6 months ago ? How many died ? What happens about the neighborhood buildings that have had cracks in the walls. ? Not forgetting the sink holes horror films .

How many other accidents have to happen because of inferior materials and management? The poor quality steel has often been mentioned. So why is nothing ever done to change this ?

Lots of talk internationally about the Thai catastrophic situation. Not good.

...Wonder If There Is More To This...(?)

...Example: Someone At The Ready To Step In...(?)

...That Would Bring In Question How The Two Incidents Came About...(?)

13 hours ago, sungod said:

It was the right decision, or do you think they should be allowed to continue?

Yes, in a nutshell who could do it Italian-Thai-Thai have been building the BTS rail system since it was started to be built in the early 1990's,they do know what they are doing ,but over the past year they have let things slip, to put it mildly, may be after this past week they might tighten they belt and improve they safety issues.

Note Anutin has suspended contracts with Italian -Thai, is that in the hope that his own construction company will get the job.

14 hours ago, NedR69 said:

It appears to be a knee-jerk reaction to appease the public and assure them that Thai trains and construction cranes are safe. It was likely a good ride for someone in the fleecing of public safety.

After back-to-back accidents resulting in deaths, this is a proper decision. 

11 hours ago, MikeandDow said:

Reactive decision which is typical for thais

well this time they made the right move. There's clearly something wrong with that company. Shut it down until they can figure out something better.

14 hours ago, sungod said:

It was the right decision, or do you think they should be allowed to continue?

Such a decision, made public all over the media, suggests an Italian company may be at fault. Whilst that's possible, his decision at the time was based on no evidence, and was designed to blame farang, yet again, for anything and everything that goes wrong with Thailand, and that is wrong with Thailand. It's a cheap shot.

He may have called me a dirty Farang but I support this decision. Clearly this company needs to be replaced or at least shutdown until they can follow safety protocols.

15 minutes ago, KhunHeineken said:

Such a decision, made public all over the media, suggests an Italian company may be at fault. Whilst that's possible, his decision at the time was based on no evidence, and was designed to blame farang, yet again, for anything and everything that goes wrong with Thailand, and that is wrong with Thailand. It's a cheap shot.

What farang !!!! the italian who founded the complany are long gone there are No farang involed in the company its All Thais its NOT an italian company its easy to do simple research before posting, your post sounds like paranoia on your part