Bangkok tollway accident kills pregnant woman

[webfact]

Bangkok Tollway Accident Kills Pregnant Woman
By Khaosod English



BANGKOK: -- A car crashed into a minivan on Bangkok expressway yesterday, killing one pregnant passenger.

The incident took place near Rama IV exit of the tollway. According to a witness, the white car was travelling on a high velocity before crashing into the black minivan. The impact caused the victim to fling out of the minivan to her death.

The woman was later identified as Ms. Juthamas Chotwongsurojna, 36, who had been pregnant for 5 months. Her husband, Mr. Pantil Nuamjerm, 36, was also reported injured as he was trying to escape his car.

Mr. Bhumichnant Rueangchainan, the driver of the white car who was still visibly shaken by the incident when the police arrived, told the officers that he lost lost control of his car because he was attempting to swerve away from another speeding car.

He later knelt down in front of the victim′s husband and tearfully apologised for his action.

Police said that the CCTV camera could not capture the moment of the incident, however, they are gathering all the information and will later investigate both the suspect and the victim before pressing any charges.

Source: http://www.khaosod.co.th/en/view_newsonline.php?newsid=TVRNNE1EVXpORGd6TWc9PQ==

-- KHAOSOD English 2013-09-30

[robblok]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

[lee b]

These are the kind of storys on here you dont really want to come accross.

[Confuscious]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

You are not a Thai national.

The car driver already knelt and apologized to the victims husband.

This is enough to forgive him for his wrongdoing.

Later he will pay a 1,000 baht fine for speeding and everything will be forgotten until Buddha and his Karma will get a grip on him.

RIP to the woman and her baby,

[Pib]

Sad accident. But it too bad that most Thai's refuse to wear seat/shoulder belts even when available.

[Briggsy]

The seatbelts in minivans, if fitted, are usually firmly tied to the back of the seat and the socket (wrong word) is hidden down inside the seat. It takes minutes of determined effort to find it, untie it and put it on.

Wearing seatbelts is against Thai culture.

[soi41]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

[robblok]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

No I can't because death traps like those minivans are not allowed to work like this in the first world so there are no accidents like these. Id love to have your rose colored glasses though. Its not bashing when its the truth mate, and the truth is traffic is dangerous here because of lax rules and unsafe vehicles.

[osiboy]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

Thaibashing ?? , happen anywhere ?? really ? ,.......in most civilized countries they would be wearing a seat belt , not speeding in fear of loosing their license , and would be more aware of the dangers through education/information , i hope Thais see the so called "bashing" on TV and realize how other countries/people see them , if it makes 1 of them think twice before driving like a 17yo plonker ,..and saves 1 life,...then i will be a happy basher !

[ratcatcher]

Condolences to the familes affected by this tragedy, both the dead woman's and the driver of the "the white car traveling on a high velocity"

[Thai at Heart]

Actually was a high speed collision that killed someone. Accident suggests something beyond someone's control.

Just wait. This will prove to be anything but unavoidable.

[osiboy]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

You are not a Thai national.

The car driver already knelt and apologized to the victims husband.

This is enough to forgive him for his wrongdoing.

Later he will pay a 1,000 baht fine for speeding and everything will be forgotten until Buddha and his Karma will get a grip on him.

RIP to the woman and her baby,

my money says he will also pay this family for taking their daughter from them , 100k-500k is my guess ,....... i'm not a thai national either but i had a guess before you could stop me !

[darrendsd]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

You are not a Thai national.

The car driver already knelt and apologized to the victims husband.

This is enough to forgive him for his wrongdoing.

Later he will pay a 1,000 baht fine for speeding and everything will be forgotten until Buddha and his Karma will get a grip on him.

RIP to the woman and her baby,

He may or may not face criminal charges and receive a 1000 Baht fine, however your comment about being forgiven because he knelt down is your point of view only

How do you know the victims husband forgave him? How do you know if the apology was sincere? How do you know if the husband will or will not take the driver to civil court for compensation?

If you think things like this are forgot about here just because somebody apologizes then you are very much mistaken and to be honest it's a pretty stupid comment

[MichaelJohn]

Aportioning blame won't change the outcome but I would be surprised if the mini van did not have some liability in the accident - they are the cause of a huge number of accidents.

[lensta]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

No I can't because death traps like those minivans are not allowed to work like this in the first world so there are no accidents like these. Id love to have your rose colored glasses though. Its not bashing when its the truth mate, and the truth is traffic is dangerous here because of lax rules and unsafe vehicles.

I agree with you about public minivans, but I think this van was private (as it was black, I have never seen a black public transport minivan in Thailand) my take on the story is that the black minivan was driven by the husband with his wife sitting in the back when it was hit by a white car and the wife was flung out of the van. It also states that the husband was hurt trying to escape his car, as it only metions 2 vehicles involved in the crash, I think it is fair to assume that he wasn't in the white car that hit the mini van, so probably in the van itself. But I could be wrong, just my take on the story.

[OmegaRacer]

The "minivan" was a private car. One of those with several seats and sliding doors.

The husband tried to take his life by jumping from the motorway after the accident, but somebody held him back.

Sad sad story.

[peterbkk9]

I always had the feeling that people in Thailand are not just driving but taking part in a race against each other

I have been driving here for 15 years and never felt safe on the road.

Most drivers just don't know some basic laws of physics and it is scary.

Edited September 30, 2013 by peterbkk9

[EvilDrSomkid]

That picture has captured the tragedy quite well. Look at the peoples faces.

Look at the man kneeling. He is devastated.

He will have to live this. He will not forget.

Do we not usually read that the offender flees the scene? Not so here.

He stayed and actually tries to apologize for his unforgivable actions.

[robblok]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

No I can't because death traps like those minivans are not allowed to work like this in the first world so there are no accidents like these. Id love to have your rose colored glasses though. Its not bashing when its the truth mate, and the truth is traffic is dangerous here because of lax rules and unsafe vehicles.

I agree with you about public minivans, but I think this van was private (as it was black, I have never seen a black public transport minivan in Thailand) my take on the story is that the black minivan was driven by the husband with his wife sitting in the back when it was hit by a white car and the wife was flung out of the van. It also states that the husband was hurt trying to escape his car, as it only metions 2 vehicles involved in the crash, I think it is fair to assume that he wasn't in the white car that hit the mini van, so probably in the van itself. But I could be wrong, just my take on the story.

I think you are right and I was wrong.. then it is sure that the wife did not wear a seat belt. Stupid, but of course the guy driving fast and impacting is to blame too. I always wear my seat belt it already saved my life once hope it never has to do that again.

Good reading.. i made an assumption.. stupid of me.

[LuckyLew]

People in Thailand have yet to figure out that seat belts save lives

RIP to the departed

[Thai at Heart]

That picture has captured the tragedy quite well. Look at the peoples faces.

Look at the man kneeling. He is devastated.

He will have to live this. He will not forget.

Do we not usually read that the offender flees the scene? Not so here.

He stayed and actually tries to apologize for his unforgivable actions.

It's relatively hard to flee from the expressway....

[tominbkk]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

Agree. those minivans are totally reckless. They compete for customers on their routes, so constantly take risks to get ahead.

[Boycie]

Very sad.

Hope one day soon the message of "wearing seatbelts saves lives" will be remembered for every trip In Thailand.

[geezer2]

I cant understand why people thai/farang call them mini vans when they are a mini bus

[richard_smith237]

Of course this does not excuse the guy if he was speeding, but should the doors of those minivans go open so easy ? Is the minivan faulty and accident prone ? No seatbelts in those minivans are bad enough but if those doors open easy during impact its even more so a deathtrap.

Must have been real bad for the husband to see his wife get flung out and die.. poor guy. If the car driver was speeding I hope they really get proof and prosecute him.

Agree. those minivans are totally reckless. They compete for customers on their routes, so constantly take risks to get ahead.

Agreed - but not the case this time. I'm told that the Van was a Black Alphard type van... private, with the husband driving and Wife in the back. Thai news suggests that the Wife had removed the seatbelt due to discomfort (as she was pregnant), the impact had broken the window and the Wife was tragically thrown through. Thai news also reports that immediately following the crash upon realising the loss of his Wife and unborn child the husband attempted to jump off the expressway, apparently the first responders prevented this.

A terrible tragedy. A seatbelt 'could' have prevented the heart-breaking severity of this accident.

Today I witnessed a couple of shocking manoeuvres at high speed from mindless drivers - Consequence are so often ignored...

[Thai at Heart]

I cant understand why people thai/farang call them mini vans when they are a mini bus

Would you prefer death trap?

[soomak]

Instead of turning this thread into another Thaibashing thread, can't we just agree on, a very sad accident, that could have happened anywhere in the world!

Life changed in a splitsecond for the poor womans husband, and even for the driver of the other car.

Smart comments here doesn,t make it any better!

This accident could have happened anywhere, true.

You general comment is simply wrong.

The rate of death from car accidents in Thailand is 10 times (yes 10 times) higher then in some developed countries.

Blaming everything on chance or karma will not change these statistics.

Where I come from, the number of road deaths is on the decline every year, although the population is on the rise, and so is the number of cars.

Why?

Better roads, safer cars, better enforcement of traffic laws (i.e. more automatic speed cameras, high fines), better emergency healthcare, and of course most people wear safety belts.

[kimamey]

I always had the feeling that people in Thailand are not just driving but taking part in a race against each other

I have been driving here for 15 years and never felt safe on the road.

Most drivers just don't know some basic laws of physics and it is scary.

RIP to the victim and condolences to her husband.

I think you may be right about the race attitude. I noticed on a drive from Nakhon Ratchasima to Mahasarakham that cars were overtaking me and weaving in and out of lanes but a few miles later they had slowed down and I passed them again. Shortly afterwards they would do the same thing again as if they just needed the thrill of the race for a while.

[lemoncake]

Accidents happen all over the world , it is worth mentioning that the driver of white car did not run away and did have human decency to accept it and was profoundly sorry.

Surely it does not bring back the dead but how often do you see drivers in Thailand kneeling for forgiveness at the time of the accident?!

RIP to the victim and condolences to husband and family.

No doubt the other driver will live with guilt for the rest of his life

[yooper2001]

Every thai male driver thinks he is a nascar driver. they swap lanes on the freeway like they are in the indy 500 race. thai drivers are the most rude drivers in the world and to top it off the police do not care. I ask you, Have anyone ever seen the police stop a car for speeding in Thailand. In USA the least that the driver would be punished for is called involuntary manslaughter and there would be jail time. Not to mention a million dollar insurance for a wrongful death suit. But maybe he is related to the Owner of Red Bull and he will get away with it.