Ten dead, 17 injured in Surat Thani bus accident

SURAT THANI, July 3 – Ten persons died and 17 others were injured when an inter-provincial bus carrying Thais and foreign tourists left the road and crashed into an electric power transmission pole Tuesday at dawn.

The driver lost control of the first-class, air-conditioned Transport Co. Ltd vehicle and it crashed into an electric power transmission pole on Surat Thani-Nakhon Si Thammarat Road in Kanchanadit district.

Ten people including the driver and Amit Jain, an Indian, were killed in the crash. Five bodies were unidentified and were sent for autopsies at Surat Thani Hospital.

Another 17 persons including Thais and foreigners were injured and are being treated in local hospitals.

The bus carried 24 passengers, the driver and two bus attendants, leaving Bangkok at 7.50 pm on Monday en route to Phangan Island in the southern province of Surat Thani.

According to the initial investigation, the front right tire burst, causing the driver to lose control and the bus hit the electric pole at full speed.

Electric transmission wires were ripped apart and gas was leaking from the disabled bus. Local authorities cut the electricity, while a responding fire truck stood by at the crash site. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-07-03

RT @191Thailand: The BKK-Koh Pha Ngan tour bus left Bangkok at 7:30pm last night. There were 24 passengers & 3 bus staff.

RT @191Thailand: Latest news on 10 dead in bus crash: 5 foreign tourists (1 male and 4 female), 4 Thai tourists (4 male) and the driver.

Post Today reporting that 6 of the dead are foreign tourists (1 male & 5 female). The rest are Thai including the driver

shit tyres just waiting to go bang RIP to all.

Awful.

Dangerous roads.

RIP those lost and hopes for a speedy recovery for the injured. One has to wonder how well worn the tyres were and how long ago the tread depth was checked. I've seen many buses here with badly worn and/or under inflated tyres.

shocking... sad news for all involved. Is that Sombat - or do they all have pink blankets?

I really suggest everyone in Thailand planning to use a bus or minivan to first double check all tires!

It also stated it was a 'first class' bus owned by Transport Co.Ltd, therefore no need to worry about the physical condition of the bus, is there?

R.I.P. to all the deceased and condolences to all family and friends in this all too common tragedy. I hope the survivors recover soon.

What a tragedy. RIP.

Caught the bus once from Udon to BKK. Thought it would be good to see the view on the way. Never again, we were upstairs and it felt really top heavy. All day. Nope. Air Asia, $50, 1 hour.

Another tragedy which could be easily avoid ..... maintenance of the buses , tires etc .....Maybe also excessive speed . RIP to all and a good recovery for the injured.

This is the 999 government bus that runs from Bangkok to Koh Phangan (via the car ferry) - the news this morning said that the tire burst, the bus hit the median and then the electric pole, the driver was cut into pieces from the accident.

As this is a government bus I believe that regular maintenance is required but who is to say the tires weren't faulty, there was something in the road, or just old tires and they werent caught. This is really terrible news.

RIP and my prayers for a speedy recovery for those injured.

RIP for the dead, Thai & foreigners. Please out of respect to the dead and injured and their families do not indulge in anti Thai commentary and theories

My experience with Transport Co. buses has generally been very good. Like Nakhon Chai Air they operate modern VIP buses, with the 24 seaters being the best of the best I believe. While it is too early to be sure, it is possible that it was just bad luck, something on the road, or perhaps a faulty tire.

Either way, let's hope that pending the results of an investigation, Transport Co. as a professional outfit, will implement whatever changes are necessary to reduce the chances of this happening again.

Not very nice to watch, but here's a video of the crash:

http://www.springnewstv.tv/news/local/16132.html

Everything I have heard is that this is actually the BKK -> Koh Samui bus (based on googling "Surat Thani bus crash")

My wife's cousin was on the BKK -> Koh Phangan VIP bus this morning and she arrived in Thongsala safely.

I took the bus from Koh Phangan to BKK about 10 days ago and we were using the "Koh Samui" bus so it is possible that they had switched the buses again, i.e. the bus that crashed had Koh Phangan written on it but it was going to Samui

My experience with Transport Co. buses has generally been very good. Like Nakhon Chai Air they operate modern VIP buses, with the 24 seaters being the best of the best I believe. While it is too early to be sure, it is possible that it was just bad luck, something on the road, or perhaps a faulty tire.

Either way, let's hope that pending the results of an investigation, Transport Co. as a professional outfit, will implement whatever changes are necessary to reduce the chances of this happening again.

Or maybe the driver fell asleep.

shocking... sad news for all involved. Is that Sombat - or do they all have pink blankets?

Transport Co. Ltd - I travel with them frequently. I always thought it was a good company.

I really suggest everyone in Thailand planning to use a bus or minivan to first double check all tires!

Good advice and OK in theory but often as not there's little alternative and do you really think you've got the resolve to flag down a bus and then have them wait while you do a tour of inspection. Why stop at the tyres? Good tyres, bad brakes = same problem. Only once (in China) have I let a bus go and waited for the next one due to the state of the tyres and although the next one (three hours later) was an improvement it was still dodgy. Let's face it you take your life in your hands every time you use the roads, particularly in an under-regulated Third World country.

Condolences to the families and friends of those who died in this accident.

dam_n,RIP,waste of lives again...

Shocking. I'll put this on my list of "things to check before boarding a vehicle in Thailand" list. However -- how much choice do we really have? We might check the tires, see that they're worn thin -- and then what? If it's the only bus on our schedule, do we wait for the next bus? Remain in the emergency brace position throughout the trip?

RIP to the victims... I blame the cheap Chinese rubber imports that saturate the market for this one. There was an article about it a few years back -- that the Chinese imports are putting the Thai factories out of business, unfair competition (in terms of pricing etc.) I can't even find any decent interior tubes for my bicycle in this country!!!

RIP those lost and hopes for a speedy recovery for the injured. One has to wonder how well worn the tyres were and how long ago the tread depth was checked. I've seen many buses here with badly worn and/or under inflated tyres.

makes me sick to the stomach, could have been any of my mates, my family or me.

rip, bloody awful way to die. Quiet horrific, I think about their love ones at home, just awful.

I really suggest everyone in Thailand planning to use a bus or minivan to first double check all tires!

And then what? If there were other choices don't you think people would take them?

I have the misfortune of having to travel from rural Rayong to Bangkok regularly and the psycho drivers scare the life out of me and i am a Monk!

RIP to those that died and a speedy recovery to the injured.

Para

I'm speechless. My deepest condolences to the families and friends of all deceased.

A SPEEDY and FULLY recovery for the injured....

RIP to those who died, and a speedy and complete recovery for the injured.

Tragic. My condolences to the families and friends of those who died in this accident. And a speedy recovery to the injured.

Only on Thai Visa can a tragic accident caused by a tire failure caused by ... none of us know ... be seen as an opportunity to cast dispersion on an entire country. Here is a headline: All over the World, even the Western Eden you migrated from, there are accidents. Train wrecks, plane wrecks, bus wrecks, car wrecks, fires, gun accidents, electrocution, falls etc ... yep ... the same things that happen here too.

I read TV for news I would not otherwise find. Much like driving past an accident, it is hard not to look ... in this case ... at the postings. If the authors of these posts carry with them throughout the day this negative attitude toward life and Thailand, small wonder you think the Land of Smiles is a joke. If you had some Thai friends, and no, not the ones you rent by the hour ... you might notice they smile at each-other, and on occasion, at a Foreigner with the correct attitude and respectful language required to earn respect ... and a polite smile.

I am sorry your life here is misery. My guess is, with that that level of internal negativity, it would not be much improved by a change in geography. As they say, you can change your location, but when you get there, you have the same baggage. Enjoy your lazy afternoon, with little else to do but gripe about the Kingdom.

How is it known that a tire caused the accident?

Dangerous roads.

The roads are not dangerous the drivers are.

RT @191Thailand: Pictures of the bus crash in Surat Thani that killed 10 (@Chai_DN) http://yfrog.com/oc85zmkrj