2 killed, 17 injured When Bus Plunges Into Si Sa Ket Canal

[george]

At least 1 killed, 11 injured when bus plunges into Si Sa Ket canal

SI SA KET: -- At least one passenger was killed and 19 others injured when an air-conditioned bus plunges into a canal in this northeastern province early Sunday.

Police said the Bangkok-Ubon Ratchathani bus plunged into a canal with strong tides in Khun Khan district at 5:30 am.

Police said the bus was carrying about 40 passengers and rescue workers so far pulled out 20 passengers from the bus.

The rest were feared trapped inside the bus and drowned because only the front part of the bus emerged from the water.

-- The Nation 2007-10-21

[maipleur]

It seems every week there is a bus crash here. What a tragedy.

[lazeeboy]

It seems every week there is a bus crash here. What a tragedy.

with all the rain and flooding expect more

[ratcatcher]

At least 1 killed, 11 injured when bus plunges into Si Sa Ket canal

SI SA KET: -- At least one passenger was killed and 19 others injured when an air-conditioned bus plunges into a canal in this northeastern province early Sunday.

Police said the Bangkok-Ubon Ratchathani bus plunged into a canal with strong tides in Khun Khan district at 5:30 am.

Police said the bus was carrying about 40 passengers and rescue workers so far pulled out 20 passengers from the bus.

The rest were feared trapped inside the bus and drowned because only the front part of the bus emerged from the water.

-- The Nation 2007-10-21

Another bus tragedy. Headline reads 1 killed, 11 injured = 12 people.

Next line 1 killed, 19 injured = 20 people.

What happened to the other 20 people on the bus. Is this in fact 20 passengers alive and 20 passengers dead?

That's a lot of deaths isn't it?

[pnustedt]

It seems every week there is a bus crash here. What a tragedy.

with all the rain and flooding expect more

There's been no rain in Sisaket this week and none is expected.

[londonthai]

bus drivers do take yaba to help them staying awake and work some 15h shifts and they do drive madly - in the case of accident the company owner pays some backhand to the cops to release the driver, even if there were casualties.

they should intoduce clocks for the bus drivers - if after some hours the driver is not changed the engine cuts off

[george]

Update:

2 killed, 17 injured when bus plunges into canal

SI SA KET: -- A Bangkok-Ubon Ratchathani bus plunges into a canal in this northeastern province early Sunday morning, killing two people and injuring 17 others.

Police said the bus driver, Sadis Phaophukiew, 45, fell asleep and lost control of the bus, causing it to hit into a bridge fence and plunge into the Huay Samran Canal between Si Sa Ket's Khun Khan district and Surin's Sangkha district.

The accident happened at 5 am.

Police said the bus conductor, Porntida Phothong, 21, died at the scene.

A passenger, Ratchanee Maneephan, 36, died at the Khun Khan Hospital.

Seventeen other passengers were injured slightly and were allowed to go home after receiving treatment at the hospital.

-- The Nation 2007-10-21

[toptuan]

Police said bus carrying 40 passengers. So's where's the other 21?

[JimsKnight]

bus drivers do take yaba to help them staying awake and work some 15h shifts and they do drive madly - in the case of accident the company owner pays some backhand to the cops to release the driver, even if there were casualties.

they should intoduce clocks for the bus drivers - if after some hours the driver is not changed the engine cuts off

If wishes were horses....Beggars would ride londonthai.

[cloudhopper]

Wonder if they ever do blood tests on these drivers....

...or ever release the results.

[Scott]

Condolences to the victims and their families. It's always sad to hear about these tragedies.

[0Mix1up]

Don't travel on overnight buses.

It appears to me that the drivers may do double shifts, 8hr day run into Bkk and 8 out.

Spells danger

Sympathy to the families

[Tony Clifton]

Don't travel on overnight buses.

It appears to me that the drivers may do double shifts, 8hr day run into Bkk and 8 out.

Spells danger

Sympathy to the families

Rode a bus here ONCE. Full of school kids and teachers, bus driver going like a madman on two lane roads, overtaking, braking suddenly, end of a long day. I was new here and asked a teacher

"What's wrong with the bus driver?"

"Nothing, it's normal."

Whenever possible, avoid leaving your life in the hands of another.

Drive yourself.

[qualtrough]

Police said the Bangkok-Ubon Ratchathani bus plunged into a canal with strong tides in Khun Khan district at 5:30 am.

Tides? In canals? In Srisaket?

[exexpat]

Just read that Thailand is sitting on $81 billion dollars of forex reserves. It would be prudent of them to upgrade the safety of the highways by making them DIVIDED, phasing out polluting old diesel buses and using natural gas (and saving even more), enforcing drunk driving penalties...and even switching drivers more often and raising the minimum wage. But of course, This is Thailand. They probably will use it to build yet another 15 useless malls having nothing locals can afford.

Edited October 21, 2007 by exexpat

[qualtrough]

Just read that Thailand is sitting on $81 billion dollars of forex reserves. It would be prudent of them to upgrade the safety of the highways by making them DIVIDED, phasing out polluting old diesel buses and using natural gas (and saving even more), enforcing drunk driving penalties...and even switching drivers more often and raising the minimum wage. But of course, This is Thailand. They probably will use it to build yet another 15 useless malls having nothing locals can afford.

I take it you don't live here any more? Lots of city buses run on CNG now, which along with LPG is increasingly popular with car and truck owners. You can't drive two blocks without passing an LPG or CNG conversion outfit. Divided highways? Reams of them here, but not every road can justify a divided highway. The biggest problem here are the loose nuts behind the wheel, not the roads and vehicles.

[pnustedt]

Just read that Thailand is sitting on $81 billion dollars of forex reserves. It would be prudent of them to upgrade the safety of the highways by making them DIVIDED, phasing out polluting old diesel buses and using natural gas (and saving even more), enforcing drunk driving penalties...and even switching drivers more often and raising the minimum wage. But of course, This is Thailand. They probably will use it to build yet another 15 useless malls having nothing locals can afford.

The 24 highway, on which this accident appears to have occurred, is being upgraded (and divided) at the Korat end, but the traffic at the Sisaket end hardly justifies it. Actually, we could do with a decent shopping mall in Sisaket where there is very little pollution.

[Tony Clifton]

Had a talk with my Thai friend about the dangerous section of motorway I mentioned above and, as far as he knows, a high ranking policeman hit a concrete barrier then burned in his truck, another accident was a van with passengers hit a long truck making a u-turn on the motorway ( u-turns are temporary for long trucks to use while construction is going on), only thing left was the wheels and floor, the whole upper frame was torn to pieces. There surely has been many more accident there.

Safety first!

[torrenova]

Before I got my truck I used to use the Nakhon Air VIP coaches up to Korat and going through the mountains was real scary. Overtaking, undertaking, driving too close etc. I'm never surprised to hear about accidents here.