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Haunted by negligence, Phuket parents of Molly continue fight for justice
Tanyaluk Sakoot


Molly’s mother, Phakkamon Duangchaytemcharat, had little chance of avoiding the gaping hole in the road. It was dark, it was raining and the sinkhole was eight metres wide and two metres deep.

PHUKET: -- One year ago today (Dec 11), Molly Anne Bailey, aged just 7 years old, died from injuries sustained when the pickup truck her mother was driving slammed into a huge sinkhole that was marked with ineffective warning signs.

Molly’s mother, Phakkamon Duangchaytemcharat, had little chance of avoiding the gaping hole in the road. It was dark, it was raining and the sinkhole was eight metres wide and two metres deep.

Ms Phakkamon and Molly’s father, Gordon Bailey, are still in grief, the loss of their much loved daughter leaving a chasm in their hearts, as they today continue their ongoing fight for justice.

Lt Col Boonlert Onklang, the Thalang Police officer tasked with investigating the case, hopes to hand the Public Prosecutor the charge sheets by Christmas Day. The three charges, to be brought against Srisoonthorn Municipality, are for negligence causing death, negligence causing bodily harm, and causing physical and mental injury, he explained.

“This case has taken so long because evidence and witness statements must be taken from both sides, especially from those involved in the construction and from municipal officers,” Col Boonlert told The Phuket News on Tuesday (Dec 8).

“But it will be finished soon, no later than December 25. By then, all the case documents will be sent to the Provincial Phuket Prosecutor’s office for them to follow up on.”

Srisoonthorn Mayor Worawut Songyod, who a year ago said that Srisoonthorn Municipality did not have the funds to install “safer” warning signs around the sinkhole site, this week noted that the sinkhole was fixed soon after the accident.

Full story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/haunted-by-negligence-phuket-parents-of-molly-continue-fight-for-justice-55360.php


-- Phuket News 2015-12-11

[siliconvalley]

Dear Mom

I love my 2 year old daughter. I love (a little bit) my wife.

But in death.......Those construction workers PURPOSELY. KNOWINGLY. want someone to get hurt....

They put money on what car year,how many deaths, or what time you get in accident.

Good Luck Darling. Corruption will win.

[zaphod reborn]

There will never be hope for Thailand until the justice system is modernized. When the courts can hold the government, corporations, property owners and landlords liable for safety violations, fraud and theft, and properly compensate victims, these problems will be sorted out.

[fritzzz25]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

[richard_smith237]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

[stevenl]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

She was not wearing a seatbelt.

[Bobobirdiebuddy]

Like many things done here, the lack of a proper work ethic is clearly evident. Walking down any soi in Bangkok, you can see the result of the carelessness of the Thai (or often Burmese) worker.

[graeme64]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

The answer to your question is YES I do know. Mother walked out of hte car with a broken arm. Seat belt was on.

the answer to the next question - had the Mother been drinking I don't know. Not sure any one does.

Who had the greater responsibility to THAT child. The Municipality or the childs mother. THAT is who failed this poor child. More than any one else.

[KamalaRider]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

The answer to your question is YES I do know. Mother walked out of hte car with a broken arm. Seat belt was on.

the answer to the next question - had the Mother been drinking I don't know. Not sure any one does.

Who had the greater responsibility to THAT child. The Municipality or the childs mother. THAT is who failed this poor child. More than any one else.

Please stop speculating about alcohol as no one has done it earlier, not even the evening in question.

[KamalaRider]

Stop speculating, she was the only daughter. I know her father, not well but I do know he's grieving badly over his daughter. I have driven that road many times and there's NO WAY to discover the missing part in the road when dark.

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

Edited December 11, 2015 by seedy
Quote hidden post

[cornishcarlos]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

Stop speculating, she was the only daughter. I know her father, not well but I do know he's grieving badly over his daughter. I have driven that road many times and there's NO WAY to discover the missing part in the road when dark.

But Molly wasn't restrained in the vehicle, that is the issue..

Sure the hole was the cause of the accident but the child should have been properly secured, as the mother was.

No doubt both parents are still missing their precious little girl and always will. Educating others is the way fwd...

Edited December 11, 2015 by seedy
Quote hidden post

[mercman24]

i am sure i read earlier that there was a "branch" put across the road, and someone removed it ? so shouldn't there have been some sort of proper barrier, as obviously by the photo the road was impassable. so that spells neglect on the part of the local council to me

[Snackbar]

I've seen kids sitting on the drivers lap, kids jumping around, unrestrained. Kids riding motorbikes as if they are toys.

Either the parents are unaware, don't care or can't control them. As a parent, my responsibility is to protect my children. Not blame others when the unthinkable happens.

Stop the destructive blame game, and educate people.

[Alwyn]

People here blaming the parents make me want to puke. Just 20 minutes before this crash a motorbike went down the same hole and the ambulance had only been gone from the scene five minutes earlier. The reason the bike went down is because the green plastic fencing/barrier type stuff had been removed so he thought the road was now open (as did Molly's mother) The police or locals didn't even bother to put a warning up! She hadn't been drinking but the kid was not strapped in as she was in the back of the truck Just please stop with the finger pointing and respect Gordon's grief.

[seedy]

Troll / Flaming post, Derogatory Post, and replies hidden.

A little girl has died. Show some respect

[Maggusoil]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

. . . and that, it sounds like, is shifting the blame to the drivers? My experience of road hazards in Thailand is that they are usually indicated by a couple of branches of a brush or tree 25 meters or so from the hazard. You have to be kidding.

Not enough money to throw up a couple of yellow and black barricades? and a stream of witches hats? Ridiculous.

[Snackbar]

As sad as it is. The kid should have been restrained. Perhaps something good may come out of a terrible accident if all children are required to be restrained by law.

Don't hold your breath.

[SOTIRIOS]

...disgraceful.....

[DogNo1]

A real tragedy! Roads and walkways, even in Bangkok, are in bad shape and not repaired or maintained. There seems to be no will for improvement. Maybe a successful prosecution in Phuket would bring some change. As it is now, as soon as you walk out of your five-star hotel in Bangkok, you will quickly find yourself walking in the road dodging cars and motorbikes because there is no sidewalk. When you do get to a sidewalk in the premier Ratchaprasong area of Bangkok, you have to walk very carefully to avoid holes and irregular areas that can cause you to stumble and fall. I saw an older Western woman stumble over an obstruction just yesterday. Shameful condition for such a prominent area! I guess that the shoppers can just stumble along the streets between the luxurious shopping malls where they are expected to pay five-star prices.

[lvr181]

But the "hole" was quickly fixed according to Srisoonthorn Mayor Worawut Songyod! Huh? So everything is ok now?

I bet the Mayor would not be so complacent if it was a member of his/her family!

Cannot afford safety/warning barriers? Life is cheap for some authorative idiots.

[Loles]

Rest in Peace dear little Angel.

Thailand is very dangerious reason of extreme high level of negligence and laziness.

[Thaidream]

This is clearly negligence on the part of the city administration .the only thing that will change this mentality is to have people press negligence charges when things like this happens. When the cities start to get hit in the pocketbook- things will change.

[manarak]

People here blaming the parents make me want to puke. Just 20 minutes before this crash a motorbike went down the same hole and the ambulance had only been gone from the scene five minutes earlier. The reason the bike went down is because the green plastic fencing/barrier type stuff had been removed so he thought the road was now open (as did Molly's mother) The police or locals didn't even bother to put a warning up! She hadn't been drinking but the kid was not strapped in as she was in the back of the truck Just please stop with the finger pointing and respect Gordon's grief.

While the accident is very tragic, RIP little girl, you had no choice in what happened - but on the other hand I am honestly put off by the headline "seeking justice".

Negligence on the authorities's side doesn't automatically mean the drivers (of both the car and motorcycle) were not responsible. Pointing out responsibilities is not finger pointing people for faults.

Accidents can happen without someone being clearly negligent or clearly at fault, but there always is someone responsible for his actions.

And regarding responsibility, the commonly accepted rules of the road are very clear:

1- the driver of a vehicle is always responsible for driving at a speed allowing for spotting obstructions on the road and for stopping the vehicle in time

2- it is not allowed to transport passengers in the back of a truck without safe seating. IMO exposing a passenger to such danger voids any possible damage claims to third parties

3- children's legal guardians or people in charge of temporary custody (such as vehicle drivers in absence of guardians) have to make sure children are properly protected in their child seat. Other grown up passengers have the responsibility of wearing a seat belt

As I see it, yes, there has been negligence, the people responsible for removing the barriers as well as the officials responsible for securing the first accident's site should be sanctioned for failing to properly do their duty.

A public apology would be in order.

Beyond that, I don't really see how "justice" would look like.

Who can seriously transport a small child in the back of the truck without any protection and then sue for damages?

Edited December 12, 2015 by manarak

[bubblegum]

No money for warning signs but the huge hole was fixed shortly after the accident. So who payed for that?

[KamalaRider]

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

Stop speculating, she was the only daughter. I know her father, not well but I do know he's grieving badly over his daughter. I have driven that road many times and there's NO WAY to discover the missing part in the road when dark.

But Molly wasn't restrained in the vehicle, that is the issue..

Sure the hole was the cause of the accident but the child should have been properly secured, as the mother was.

No doubt both parents are still missing their precious little girl and always will. Educating others is the way fwd...

No it's not the issue.

How on earth can you make that into THE issue. Can't you see the road is gone and the issue is that the local administration KNEW about this.

None of us will know if the girl would have survived strapped in or not, most likely she would have but I think the girls mother have her own thoughts and regrets and I for one will NOT add extra grief for her.

To be very blunt, the little girl died that evening, she can't feel a thing anymore, her parents still live the nightmare of losing their child, let them heal with what means they can muster, blame is too late.

They know better now as probably all their friends and relatives.

The ones that NEVER learns are the local administration everywhere, the kickbacks are too great for them to resist.

Without the corruption, they probably would have had the money to fix it PROPERLY or built the road properly the first time around.

Edited December 12, 2015 by KamalaRider

[FangFerang]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

Restraints in my opinion would not have helped much. In severe impacts, they are not very effective for children.

My question is: did the airbags deploy?

[KamalaRider]

People here blaming the parents make me want to puke. Just 20 minutes before this crash a motorbike went down the same hole and the ambulance had only been gone from the scene five minutes earlier. The reason the bike went down is because the green plastic fencing/barrier type stuff had been removed so he thought the road was now open (as did Molly's mother) The police or locals didn't even bother to put a warning up! She hadn't been drinking but the kid was not strapped in as she was in the back of the truck Just please stop with the finger pointing and respect Gordon's grief.

While the accident is very tragic, RIP little girl, you had no choice in what happened - but on the other hand I am honestly put off by the headline "seeking justice".

Negligence on the authorities's side doesn't automatically mean the drivers (of both the car and motorcycle) were not responsible. Pointing out responsibilities is not finger pointing people for faults.

Accidents can happen without someone being clearly negligent or clearly at fault, but there always is someone responsible for his actions.

And regarding responsibility, the commonly accepted rules of the road are very clear:

1- the driver of a vehicle is always responsible for driving at a speed allowing for spotting obstructions on the road and for stopping the vehicle in time

2- it is not allowed to transport passengers in the back of a truck without safe seating. IMO exposing a passenger to such danger voids any possible damage claims to third parties

3- children's legal guardians or people in charge of temporary custody (such as vehicle drivers in absence of guardians) have to make sure children are properly protected in their child seat. Other grown up passengers have the responsibility of wearing a seat belt

As I see it, yes, there has been negligence, the people responsible for removing the barriers as well as the officials responsible for securing the first accident's site should be sanctioned for failing to properly do their duty.

A public apology would be in order.

Beyond that, I don't really see how "justice" would look like.

Who can seriously transport a small child in the back of the truck without any protection and then sue for damages?

Because this isn't USA or Europe. Your or mine safety culture doesn't exist here.

I don't defend this reckless culture, but I won't impose mine on them either, apart from when I'm the designated driver.

First time when me and my wife went back to her village, we drove all the way up in our car.

Naturally after a day or two after arriving, we had to drive the family around for them to meet long distant friends or go for some sightseeing.

I had one rule when driving them around and that was to use the seatbelts.

The youngest of the kids 1 1/2 years old didn't want to use her seatbelt and so she cringed out of it, noticing that, I stopped and told the others I won't drive one more meter if they didn't strap her in again. I did so with a very friendly tone of voice.

My wife's mother, her brother and his wife looked at me as I was a crazy person, but they understood my reasons although none of them have ever been in a car crash.

The brother later asked her why I was so strict with that, as he pointed out, they can use their hands to prevent their head or body being hit, if they crash, they are protected in the car, not like on a motorbike.

Too much ignorance, magic and superstition makes people believe too much, as in the chinese movies, people leap from tree to tree, floating in the air, spinning around, fighting.

Edited December 12, 2015 by KamalaRider

[Alwyn]

People here blaming the parents make me want to puke. Just 20 minutes before this crash a motorbike went down the same hole and the ambulance had only been gone from the scene five minutes earlier. The reason the bike went down is because the green plastic fencing/barrier type stuff had been removed so he thought the road was now open (as did Molly's mother) The police or locals didn't even bother to put a warning up! She hadn't been drinking but the kid was not strapped in as she was in the back of the truck Just please stop with the finger pointing and respect Gordon's grief.

While the accident is very tragic, RIP little girl, you had no choice in what happened - but on the other hand I am honestly put off by the headline "seeking justice".

Negligence on the authorities's side doesn't automatically mean the drivers (of both the car and motorcycle) were not responsible. Pointing out responsibilities is not finger pointing people for faults.

Accidents can happen without someone being clearly negligent or clearly at fault, but there always is someone responsible for his actions.

And regarding responsibility, the commonly accepted rules of the road are very clear:

1- the driver of a vehicle is always responsible for driving at a speed allowing for spotting obstructions on the road and for stopping the vehicle in time

2- it is not allowed to transport passengers in the back of a truck without safe seating. IMO exposing a passenger to such danger voids any possible damage claims to third parties

3- children's legal guardians or people in charge of temporary custody (such as vehicle drivers in absence of guardians) have to make sure children are properly protected in their child seat. Other grown up passengers have the responsibility of wearing a seat belt

As I see it, yes, there has been negligence, the people responsible for removing the barriers as well as the officials responsible for securing the first accident's site should be sanctioned for failing to properly do their duty.

A public apology would be in order.

Beyond that, I don't really see how "justice" would look like.

Who can seriously transport a small child in the back of the truck without any protection and then sue for damages?

Firstly, the makeshift barricade had only been removed that night - nobody knows who or why. Secondly, it's a small dark and unlit soi and the gaping wound was on the exit of a fairly tight bend so there was no warning time. Thirdly, there is no law in Thailand that says rear passengers have to wear seat-belts so I have no idea what you mean by 'safe seating' because as you can see, it's a four door truck with rear seats. Fourthly, Molly was 7 years old, not a baby or a tot needing a baby/child seat.

FYI, the wearing of seat belts for under 14 year olds only became compulsory in the UK in 1989. The driver was strapped in as per the law. The child was sitting on a back seat (safe back seat). She could not have been driving fast as the road doesn't permit that. A road that had been blocked off due the hole had the safety barricade removed opening the road for usual use, which it clearly was not ready for any use. There was an accidents shortly before with the ambulance leaving only 5 minutes or so before this accident (she landed ON the motorbike) yet nobody (including emergency services, police nor locals) bothered to re-erect any barriers. The council say they knew about the hole but did not rep because of financial restraints.

So here we have a legal car with people sat legally inside and a hazard without proper warning etc etc. Tell me again who is negligent?

[ubonjoe]

Post naming and shaming a company has been removed. Read the Forum Rules

[fritzzz25]

Does anyone know if the child was properly restrained in the vehicle?

I wondered the same thing... given the numbers of children I see unrestrained in cars here I suspect not (but of course, thats just guessing

If not, might a car seat have saved the child?

It's somewhat of a moot point now - campaigning for better lighting & warning signs at danger points is still an excellent idea - Such a tragedy could have been avoided given a little care and foresight.

Restraints in my opinion would not have helped much. In severe impacts, they are not very effective for children.

My question is: did the airbags deploy?

No intrusion into the passenger compartment. Totally survivable with seat belt on. Engineering in the 21st century of vehicles is designed that if you are using the proper safety equipment, you stand a significant chance of surviving. Where do you get this information of not effective for children? Are you saying to leave children unrestrained in vehicles to fly around like a popcorn kernel?