Thai Cameraman Dies In Highway Crash After Covering Opening Of A Road-Safety Centre

[Briggsy]

IN Channel has just shown footage of the accident scene which unfortunately showed a shot of the deceased with out the usual blurring and that's totally inappropriate.

According to IN the driver of the 2nd pick up had five relatives on board and they were on their way home to Mahasarkham for Songkran. The female driver supposedly said she had overtaken a bus on the nearside because it was " driving too slow " and didn't see the parked vehicle.

Seems we have heard this all to often

"Didn't see" or "didn't look"?

Alas...thai language doesn't differentiate between the two...

I'll keep it brief

"Didn't see" = mai dai hen

"Didn't look" = mai dai doo

[Andre0720]

IN Channel has just shown footage of the accident scene which unfortunately showed a shot of the deceased with out the usual blurring and that's totally inappropriate.

According to IN the driver of the 2nd pick up had five relatives on board and they were on their way home to Mahasarkham for Songkran. The female driver supposedly said she had overtaken a bus on the nearside because it was " driving too slow " and didn't see the parked vehicle.

Seems we have heard this all to often

"Didn't see" or "didn't look"?

Didn't think, didn't care. It's all the same.

normal way would be no-one parks a car on the highway, and if some tv crew wants to do where are the BIB to escort them it's also part of their job description

As it stands now, they park and double-park just about anywhere..

[khaowong1]

Now this is just wrong..

[diamondmax]

Yet another accident caused by a bloody bus sticking in the righthand lane, at a speed slower than the flow of trafic, when they should move to the left.

When will the police do something about these dangerous bus drivers.

[Greer]

An unending campaign by Channel 5 to improve road safety, properly train/educate drivers, for proper policing of the roads and punish dangerous driver would be a nice tribute to the the victim and the family.

The death of cameramen and journalists covering dangerous stories is a dreadful and often forgotten side to the media industry, but this is such an unnecessary accident, and the tragic result so devastating to his family and friends. I agree that perhaps TV5 should consider a road safety campaign, to help raise awareness of the issues, and at least try to get people to take some care when driving.

Very sad to hear of this, especially as I work in the broadcast industry.

[Greer]

IN Channel has just shown footage of the accident scene which unfortunately showed a shot of the deceased with out the usual blurring and that's totally inappropriate.

According to IN the driver of the 2nd pick up had five relatives on board and they were on their way home to Mahasarkham for Songkran. The female driver supposedly said she had overtaken a bus on the nearside because it was " driving too slow " and didn't see the parked vehicle.

Seems we have heard this all to often

I'm saddened to hear about yet another needless death on the roads - no doubt caused by lack of decent learner driver training, next to useless driver tests to acquire the license to drive, and the strange observance that many Thai drivers become extremely aggressive when behind the wheel - totally at odds with normal observed good manners and respect that the Thai general show to each other.

One comment though - I live with my family on a particularly dangerous 5km road that sees death and injury nearly every day. My family and my young children have witnessed many 'blood and guts' accidental deaths often enough, and although pretty shocked at first, with lots of questions off the kids - they've all got over it, and as a plus side have gained a severe respect for the dangers of a main road.

Now when the kids see a bad crash, all what’s said is "he blood and sausages come out - he dead man" and that’s that - and BTW, brains on the road is 'white sausages'.

So if censorship is inappropriate - who is it inappropriate for? Why is seeing death bad or inappropriate?

I don't like the modern, western, trend towards censorship in Thailand. Censorship was not here when I arrived 18 years ago, and I'd rather it wasn't here now.

Folks should have in plain view the death and destruction caused by reckless driving or any other reckless behavior so they can learn from it.

Just my tuppence worth - my apologies if slightly off topic.

Fair point. They put shocking pictures on cigarette packaging to stop people from smoking. Up country the police often display mangled vehicles at intersections as a warning. Why not run TV ads showing exactly what happens in a road crash to bring home to people the consequences of what they do.

Its not just about censorship to prevent children being exposed unnecessarily to pictures of death (it is horrific to them and is not an image that a child needs to live with), it is also, and in reality maybe more importantly, about the privacy of the family and their wishes not to have pictures of the death of their loved one printed or broadcast. How would you feel if it was a close relative of yours and horrific pictures of them were made freely available to all and sundry, including all sorts of weirdos and ghouls who may not treat the images with respect?

[cup-O-coffee]

So transport minister Chadchart Sitthipunt opened a road-safety centre on the Mitraparp Highway, huh?

Wow! I'll bet that gets more notice and patronage than the lot next to it with the buffalo grazing in the swampy water.

Safety centers do not drive down the road. Nor do they get any visibility to other drivers who are driving down the road. Instead, they sit a ways back off the road; out of sight and out of mind.

What a waste.

Instead, for the cost of that white elephant, he could bought a fleet of 100 vehicles and put uniformed, trained drivers in them and given them traffic police empowerment; to drive down these roads and pull over people behaving poorly and fine them on the spot.

Thais. Always doing it a day late and a dollar short, with any benefit doing more good for that water buffalo than the people.