Phuket's horror week road toll climbs to six dead in five days

[webfact]

Phuket's horror week road toll climbs to six dead in five days
Eakkapop Thongtub


Sontaya Jonglaaiat, 21, was the seventh person to die in Phuket road accidents in less than a week. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

PHUKET: -- A woman died after her motorbike slammed into the back of a stopped six-wheeled truck in Mai Khao this afternoon (July 6), bringing the number of deaths in Phuket road accidents to six within the past five days.

Sontaya Jonglaaiat, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, near the Tahchatchai police checkpoint, after rescue workers responded to a call to provide assistance to a Chinese tourist whose motorbike was struck by the same truck.

The truck driver stopped his vehicle in the left-hand lane to help the Chinese tourist, who suffered only minor injuries, then Mrs Sontaya slammed into the back of his stationary vehicle.

A helmet was found on the road within metres of the impact point, where Mrs Sontaya’s motorbike remained upright, jammed under the rear of the truck.

Mrs Sontaya was the sixth person to die in Phuket road accidents in less than a week.

Earlier today two women died after a runaway cement truck crushed them and their motorbike on Patong Hill.

On Friday, Laksameeduen Sawasdeeraksa, 27, died from serious head trauma after she collided with a power pole while swerving to avoid a runaway truck that mowed down several house and shopfronts after its brakes failed while descending Patong Hill.

Later that same day, three people escaped life-threatening injuries after a pick-up truck crossed the central reservation of Thepkassttri Rd and slammed into a car stopped at traffic lights on the other side of the road.

Late on Thursday night, two Burmese workers died when the truck they and 40 other labourers were travelling in the back of failed to climb Nakalay Hill in Kamala and rolled downhill. The workers were thrown from the back of the truck, which came to rest only after landing in a canal.

Of those who survived, seven were hospitalised and 26 injured.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-horror-week-road-toll-climbs-to-six-dead-in-five-days-53090.php


-- Phuket News 2015-07-07

[Pimay1]

From reading continuing reports it seems like every week is horror week.

[NongKhaiKid]

Time for some mild hand wringing and all sorts of promises etc that will come to nothing.

[fiddlehead]

It's a wonder there are not more.
Last night, I drove home around 10PM from the airport.
Counted 6 motorbikes with no lights.
Although it was raining on and off and the roads were very wet, I was passed by numerous SUV's going over 100 km/hr.

How they can avoid all of those crazy, kids on motorbikes with no lights, I don't know.

Even saw 2 cops on motorbike running a redlight.
Go figure.

[Deli]

Many just ride or drive like s... and they are on a suicide mission.

Nobody can help these people, as they don't realize what they are doing

[fareastguy]

No change brings the same result every time.... NO CHANGE!!!!!

read the same news next week..

[Lupatria]

I'd like to hear the baseless comment from the Dutchess of Tourism here again: "Thailand is safe for travel."

[robertthebruce]

Even in Monsoon season they still drive like a bat out of hell ??? Safety in any shape or form, is ignored on a daily basis, not just with the driving.

Thailand needs to do something about this....

Shocking figures throughout the country.....

Driving is not a pleasure that's for sure.....

[sawadee1947]

not really NEWS at all. Only business as usual. Next week probably the same....and so on and so on....

[Rimmer]

Off topic post in caps about Chiang Mai removed

[stevenl]

not really NEWS at all. Only business as usual. Next week probably the same....and so on and so on....

Yes, traffic can be bad and dangerous, but six dead in five days really is exceptional, therefor news.

[jackanapes]

from all accounts Phuket is a dangerous place accidents and deaths galore ,I wonder if the lorry driver had his warning lights on and having just had an accident with a Chinese motorbike rider was he tested for drinks and drugs .

[NamKangMan]

not really NEWS at all. Only business as usual. Next week probably the same....and so on and so on....

Yes, traffic can be bad and dangerous, but six dead in five days really is exceptional, therefor news.

"six dead in five days really is exceptional" - sadly, it's not exceptional at all.

Phuket has approximately 400 road fatalities each year, and remember, these people die at the scene, not in a hospital, at a later stage, as these deaths are not counted.

400 / 52 = 7.69 per week.

These statistics, on average, are standard for a week on the road, on Phuket.

[stevenl]

not really NEWS at all. Only business as usual. Next week probably the same....and so on and so on....

Yes, traffic can be bad and dangerous, but six dead in five days really is exceptional, therefor news.

"six dead in five days really is exceptional" - sadly, it's not exceptional at all.

Phuket has approximately 400 road fatalities each year, and remember, these people die at the scene, not in a hospital, at a later stage, as these deaths are not counted.

400 / 52 = 7.69 per week.

These statistics, on average, are standard for a week on the road, on Phuket.

Looking forward to your statistics and the source.

[NamKangMan]

not really NEWS at all. Only business as usual. Next week probably the same....and so on and so on....

Yes, traffic can be bad and dangerous, but six dead in five days really is exceptional, therefor news.

"six dead in five days really is exceptional" - sadly, it's not exceptional at all.

Phuket has approximately 400 road fatalities each year, and remember, these people die at the scene, not in a hospital, at a later stage, as these deaths are not counted.

400 / 52 = 7.69 per week.

These statistics, on average, are standard for a week on the road, on Phuket.

Looking forward to your statistics and the source.

A PG article some months ago.

I think the article was also the subject of a thread on TV.

I'll try to find it.

From memory, I think it was 400 per year.

Edited July 7, 2015 by NamKangMan

[stevenl]

"six dead in five days really is exceptional" - sadly, it's not exceptional at all.

Phuket has approximately 400 road fatalities each year, and remember, these people die at the scene, not in a hospital, at a later stage, as these deaths are not counted.

400 / 52 = 7.69 per week.

These statistics, on average, are standard for a week on the road, on Phuket.

Looking forward to your statistics and the source.

A PG article some months ago.

I think the article was also the subject of a thread on TV.

Still looking forward to the statistics and exact source.

[NamKangMan]

@ stevenl

Why do you say "six dead in five days really is exceptional?"

It's not, for Phuket.

[jobwolf]

I really don't understand why in Phuket so much consideration is given to outdated and dangerous and road unworthy Vehicles like Busses and Trucks.

Is it because the Police is not capable or is no other Transport available or is it because.......?

How high does the death toll have to rise before something is done about the situation???

[stevenl]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

Edited July 7, 2015 by stevenl

[Jimlove]

There is no responsible politicians that are willing to change anything - too busy grabbing bribes and exploiting the poor - meanwhile people are getting killed daily cause of their ignorance of how to drive safely

"It starts with the people" and Thailand is a very dangerous place to enjoy your Holiday

btw Love the nickname "Duchess of Tourism"

[NamKangMan]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

This is an old wiki link.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road fatality stats in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate

[stevenl]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

This is an old wiki link.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road fatality stats in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate

So how many dead on Phuket according to your link?

Never mind, you were claiming something, could not substantiate that claim so now you're coming with other statistics that also don't substantiate your claims.

[Nobb]

Thai will always have horror week because most Thai drivers have no education on driving laws. No car or truck inspections and no rules they should obey. The truck driver i wonder if he had his rear light on to show a warning to on coming traffic. The car and truck drivers should be told only to pull over on a busy

highway for immergency reasons only.

[overherebc]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

This is an old wiki link.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road fatality stats in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate

So how many dead on Phuket according to your link?

Never mind, you were claiming something, could not substantiate that claim so now you're coming with other statistics that also don't substantiate your claims.

Does it really mean that much to you. Are the statistics more or less important to you than the effect those deaths have on peoples lives?

. It's obvious that too many people are being killed on Phukets roads and a 1% difference in numbers doesn't make it better or worse.

Are you a bean counter?

[stevenl]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

This is an old wiki link.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road fatality stats in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate

So how many dead on Phuket according to your link?

Never mind, you were claiming something, could not substantiate that claim so now you're coming with other statistics that also don't substantiate your claims.

Does it really mean that much to you. Are the statistics more or less important to you than the effect those deaths have on peoples lives?

. It's obvious that too many people are being killed on Phukets roads and a 1% difference in numbers doesn't make it better or worse.

Are you a bean counter?

Exactly, peoples lives are important. So it is important to give correct numbers, 130 and 400 make a big difference.

[sabye]

RIP to this young lady who died far too young.The article says the truck was stopped so that means the young lady hit the truck. Wonder if her cellphone was in her hand? Not the truck drivers fault. I was in Phuket a couple of days ago. I was looking for a parking spot down on the beach road and just as I found one and started to turn into it a young man came zipping up between me and the parked cars that I was pulling in between and he hit the side of my truck and knocked the young lady, that was riding on the back of his bike, off of the bike and dragged her down the road about 30 meters. All because he was too impatient to wait for me to pull into the parking spot. There are two lanes in the same direction at that point but instead of passing me on my right side where the extra lane is he tried to cut inside and as a result this young lady will still be hurting with all the scrapes and bruises she got. He left her there and took off from the scene. She was very lucky that she didn't do a header into one of the parked cars as neither were wearing helmets. Lack of knowledge of correct driving procedures, safety and lack of patience kills a lot of motorcyclists every year in Thailand.

[NamKangMan]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

This is an old wiki link.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road fatality stats in the world.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate

So how many dead on Phuket according to your link?

Never mind, you were claiming something, could not substantiate that claim so now you're coming with other statistics that also don't substantiate your claims.

I can't find the link, but I do rmember it was in the hundreds.

From memory, there was also another article, with statisics from the various Embassies on the loss of life of their citizens in either Thailand and / or Phuket, so, it would be accurate, and not "rubbery" Thai statistics.

Even with the old wiki link I posted, it shows thousands die on the roads in Thailand, each year. Phuket being a province, do you really think only 130 people are killed here, each year?

What about the fact that a road death is not counted unless it's at the scene?

Where did you get the figure of 130 from anyway? That's an insult to the families of the countless others who die on Phuket's roads each year.

Edited July 7, 2015 by NamKangMan

[NamKangMan]

@ stevenl

This is not the article I was referring to, it's one I found whilst looking for the article I posted about.

It states 80 people die on the roads in Thailand per day

http://asiancorrespondent.com/131679/thailand-road-deaths/

Are you suggesting Phuket contributes less than 1 death per day to the 80 deaths per day across the country?

[NamKangMan]

Since 2012 no statistics have been released anymore, at that point in time the dead on Phuket roads totaled about 180 a year. Correction, about 11 dead a month in 2011, so around 130 in that year.

According to PhuketWan the road toll could be improving slightly since then.

So yes, 6 dead in 5 days is exceptional, apparently also to the author of this article.

Here's an article from 11 months ago.

5 dead in 1 day here.

http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Teenagers-among-five-dead-horror-day-Phukets/32498#ad-image-0

[billphillips]

Notice the position of the truck in relation to the White line and the side of the road.