CREDIT: khaosod.co.th

Chon Buri:- Several Chinese tourists were injured when their chartered bus heading to Pattaya was cut in front by a truck, causing it to fall to the roadside and crash into a road sign Friday afternoon, police said.

The accident occurred amid reports that thousand of Chinese tourists were descending on Pattaya after a Chinese firm gave a bonus to its over 12,000 staffs by paying for their visit to Thailand. Their destinations include Pattaya.

Pol Lt Thanakrit Nitsaphan, a highway police officer on duty, was alerted of the accident at 1:30 pm. He was informed that the accident happened at the kilometer marker No 28+300 on the Chon Buri-bound motorway.

He rushed to the scene with Ruam Katanyoo Foundation rescuers and found that a bus with Bangkok license plate hit a road sign on a roadside of the motorway. The left front part was dissolved by the impact that also broke the windshield.

When the officials arrived, many Chinese tourists were standing trembling and several were slightly injured. The rescuers rushed the injured tourists to the Chularat 9 Hospital.

The bus driver, Witthaya Phakkaew, 24, said he was transporting 30 tourists from Bangkok to Pattaya when the accident occurred.

He said that after he passed through the Lat Krabang toll gate, a truck changed lane from the leftmost lane to cut into his front while he was driving on the third lane.

He was driving fast so he had to swerve to the roadside and the bus graced the road rail guard before it stopped at the road sign.

"He was driving fast so...."

Gee, what a surprise!

He condemed himself, driving too fast!

good. 30 Chinese tourists telling their friends not to come here. get those photos up on facebook.

He was only 24 !! Do you know anybody who has an HGV licence or passenger vehicle licence for a large bus ??

Bet he has neither,

21 years old in France too , to become a bus or coach driver ;

I got my driving license for buses when I was 21 1/2 years old .

Thousands?? So the company sends them all in 1 go ??

Geee thanks

Funny how they try to link the accident to the influx of 12 000 tourists from China, that is right Thailand blame the owner of the company who pad for the trip, no thought on blaming the truck or the bus driver. Never Thailand or its peoples fault. Thailand you wanted a lot of toursists ... you got them ... now take care of them and ensure they have safe journeys

Always nice when a truck going 45 mph pulls out in front of another vehicle going 65 0r 70.

bad buses go to Pattaya...

Only two 'Bus Crash' headlines in the Thaivisa News headlines today. What's going on... are the drivers being more careful?

That'll learn 'em'

Thai drivers have a bad habit of cutting in front other drivers. I witnessed too many incidents like this. When it comes to commuting in Thailand, I feel unsafe. Many taxis do not have a seat belt.

This kind of thing is in the news several times a week now. Its amazing how many tourist we are injuring and killing in this country now.

Something doesn't quite add up here...if the truck swerved from the left, then surely the bus would swerve to the right to get out of the way? How did it end up against the guard rail on the left?

A bus driver of all people should drive defensively and be alert to the other loonies on the road, as opposed to hammering along with little or no margin for error. Rarely in an accident involving two or more vehicles is only one driver to blame.

With all these coach / bus / mini-bus accidents every week, many of which are over-turning, 100's an 100's of passengers are getting injured.

Do the insurance companies representing these public service vehicles pay for hospitalization, medical treatment, operations, compensation, to the injured ???

With all these coach / bus / mini-bus accidents every week, many of which are over-turning, 100's an 100's of passengers are getting injured.

Do the insurance companies representing these public service vehicles pay for hospitalization, medical treatment, operations, compensation, to the injured ???

Insurance companies?? Representing?? Public services??

that made me smile, "the bus "STOPPED" at a road sign-- a good job it didn't "STOP" at a tree then.

The OP got some good words, including the usual's, such as rushed etc.

I particularly like the front of the bus 'dissolving' and the tourist 'trembling'.

Only word missing seems to be brakes and failed.

Could we get more bus drivers like this to do some more damage to the reputation here and slow down the Chinese invasion?