2 die when van slams into truck on Bhumibol 1 Bridge in Bangkok

[webfact]

2 Die When Van Slams Into Truck on Bhumibol 1 Bridge
By Chayanit Itthipongmaetee
Staff Reporter


A Hyundai van sits wrecked Wednesday morning on the Bhumibol 1 Bridge in Bangkok. Two people inside died instantly.

BANGKOK — Two people died when their van slammed into a truck this morning on the Bhumibol 1 Bridge.

Van driver Roongmanee Brooks, 34, and passenger Jeerasak Kladkam, 20, died immediately in the accident.

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1458101871


-- Khaosod English 2016-03-16

[ratcatcher]

He was obviously obeying the speed limit and driving with regard to road and traffic conditions etc. Not a 16 passenger van at least.

RIP etc.

[DM07]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

[trogers]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

50 km/h will do, head on.

[oldsailor35]

Looks like "slammed" is an understatement !

[ratcatcher]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

50 km/h will do, head on.

But, in this case, the Hyundai van rear ended a moving truck and as DM07 says, the truck was probably doing 80km/h, so van was moving right along.

[trainman34014]

RIP those lost. No real surprise though is it in the hub of incompetent and selfish drivers.

[docshock13]

Truck hauling tapioca flour. Van hauling ass. What a smash up!

[nottocus]

Rest in pieces by the looks of it.

[FloridaExport]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

Why would you make that assumption? He could have just as easily decided to pull over and stop for a nap.

Edit: I did read that the truck driver was driving over the bridge, but that doesn't mean he was.

Edited March 16, 2016 by FloridaExport

[Scott]

My condolences to the friends and family of the two victims. I wonder if he fell asleep at the wheel with his foot on the accelerator to have such a horrible crash. Some of those trucks travel very slowly going up those bridges and around curves.

[DM07]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

50 km/h will do, head on.

...only it says. they slammed into the truck from behind!

Means: they were both going in the same direction...

[little mary sunshine]

Another stupid speeding van....Sure wasn't worth it!!

From this mangled mess, they never knew what hit 'em.

[soalbundy]

My condolences to the friends and family of the two victims. I wonder if he fell asleep at the wheel with his foot on the accelerator to have such a horrible crash. Some of those trucks travel very slowly going up those bridges and around curves.

Then for once at least the truck driver was doing the correct thing. I wonder who pays the installments on the van now, family and friends perhaps,

[Maeklong]

I'm pretty sure Roongmanee is a woman's name, and given that the surname is Brooks, she may have had a foreign husband.

The passenger, Jeerasak, was a 20 year old male.

The time of the accident was not stated, but in the caption below the picture it said "this morning".

Presumably, since the pictures were taken during darkness, that the accident happened in the early hours of the morning.

RIP.

[xerostar]

Were there any significant tail lights on the truck ? probably not ..

Was it an unlit, dark area of road? possibly ..

Was the truck moving slowly? probably ..

Was the van driving at high speed? likely

Was the van driver inattentive? definitely ..

Was the van driver drunk ? likely ..

When all of the above factors are combined it's a recipe for disaster often found on Thai roads at night.

Tragic? definitely ..

RIP

[tomyumchai]

another 1 of those big trucks that just APPEAR in front of you in the darkness...... i find my headlights pick them out quite easily, even at non sensible speeds. thais seem to have problems seeing things in the dark.

[DrTuner]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

That a H1 or what? Looks like it was made out of paper, the truck barely has a scratch.

[Transporter]

My condolences to the friends and family of the two victims. I wonder if he fell asleep at the wheel with his foot on the accelerator to have such a horrible crash. Some of those trucks travel very slowly going up those bridges and around curves.

Then for once at least the truck driver was doing the correct thing. I wonder who pays the installments on the van now, family and friends perhaps,

Really! Where does it say that? Maybe he changed lane suddenly or braked very hard and had no working Stop lights?

[Transporter]

I'm pretty sure Roongmanee is a woman's name, and given that the surname is Brooks, she may have had a foreign husband.

The passenger, Jeerasak, was a 20 year old male.

The time of the accident was not stated, but in the caption below the picture it said "this morning".

Presumably, since the pictures were taken during darkness, that the accident happened in the early hours of the morning.

RIP.

So are you thinking she didn't even see it coming when the collision occurred?

[SOTIRIOS]

....terrible....

...and the implications of one of the posts.....even worse....

...terrible....

[swerver]

another 1 of those big trucks that just APPEAR in front of you in the darkness...... i find my headlights pick them out quite easily, even at non sensible speeds. thais seem to have problems seeing things in the dark.

Thais not only have problems seeing in the dark.

They have far more serious problem with depth perception.

Depth perception

noun

depth perceiving ability: the ability to perceive objects and their spatial relationship in three dimensions

Microsoft® Encarta® 2006. © 1993-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

​In my last job in the Middle East all new hires had to take the company drivers test to be issued the company driver license to drive company vehicles. Thai new hires with Thai driver license sixty (60) percent FAILED the Depth perception test.

New hires from the Philippines didn't have that problem, consequently we had 120 Thais vs 1500 Philippines employees.

I just bought a new car and on the third day a stupid Thai woman hit the back of my new car while it was standing still in mid-day traffic on Pattaya Beach Road 3. Problem, no depth perception for which she MUST wear spectacles (glasses) but glasses do not make you look beautiful so 99% of Thai woman but their glasses while driving in their handbag. So now I'm sitting here 30km out of town without a car which is in the body shop to get the damage repaired.

In the Real world if you have to wear glasses for depth perception correction it shows on your driver license MUST WEAR GLASSES and in addition the photo on the driver license shows you wearing glasses, NOT SO IN LOS. So in LOS they wear their glasses to past the Depth perception test and then put them back in their handbag. SO THEY LOOK BEAUTIFUL.

LOL in LOS

[bheard]

"Two people inside died instantly."

I reckon the reporter got that right, what a mess!

[Varangkul]

another 1 of those big trucks that just APPEAR in front of you in the darkness...... i find my headlights pick them out quite easily, even at non sensible speeds. thais seem to have problems seeing things in the dark.

Thais not only have problems seeing in the dark.

They have far more serious problem with depth perception.

Depth perception

noun

depth perceiving ability: the ability to perceive objects and their spatial relationship in three dimensions

Microsoft® Encarta® 2006. © 1993-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

​In my last job in the Middle East all new hires had to take the company drivers test to be issued the company driver license to drive company vehicles. Thai new hires with Thai driver license sixty (60) percent FAILED the Depth perception test.

New hires from the Philippines didn't have that problem, consequently we had 120 Thais vs 1500 Philippines employees.

I just bought a new car and on the third day a stupid Thai woman hit the back of my new car while it was standing still in mid-day traffic on Pattaya Beach Road 3. Problem, no depth perception for which she MUST wear spectacles (glasses) but glasses do not make you look beautiful so 99% of Thai woman but their glasses while driving in their handbag. So now I'm sitting here 30km out of town without a car which is in the body shop to get the damage repaired.

In the Real world if you have to wear glasses for depth perception correction it shows on your driver license MUST WEAR GLASSES and in addition the photo on the driver license shows you wearing glasses, NOT SO IN LOS. So in LOS they wear their glasses to past the Depth perception test and then put them back in their handbag. SO THEY LOOK BEAUTIFUL.

LOL in LOS

When I applied for my Thai driving licence, I was told to remove my glasses for the photograph! I once had a Thai driving companion who admitted that he could not see over 30 feet in front of him in the dark!

[robblok]

another 1 of those big trucks that just APPEAR in front of you in the darkness...... i find my headlights pick them out quite easily, even at non sensible speeds. thais seem to have problems seeing things in the dark.

Thais not only have problems seeing in the dark.

They have far more serious problem with depth perception.

Depth perception

noun

depth perceiving ability: the ability to perceive objects and their spatial relationship in three dimensions

Microsoft® Encarta® 2006. © 1993-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

​In my last job in the Middle East all new hires had to take the company drivers test to be issued the company driver license to drive company vehicles. Thai new hires with Thai driver license sixty (60) percent FAILED the Depth perception test.

New hires from the Philippines didn't have that problem, consequently we had 120 Thais vs 1500 Philippines employees.

I just bought a new car and on the third day a stupid Thai woman hit the back of my new car while it was standing still in mid-day traffic on Pattaya Beach Road 3. Problem, no depth perception for which she MUST wear spectacles (glasses) but glasses do not make you look beautiful so 99% of Thai woman but their glasses while driving in their handbag. So now I'm sitting here 30km out of town without a car which is in the body shop to get the damage repaired.

In the Real world if you have to wear glasses for depth perception correction it shows on your driver license MUST WEAR GLASSES and in addition the photo on the driver license shows you wearing glasses, NOT SO IN LOS. So in LOS they wear their glasses to past the Depth perception test and then put them back in their handbag. SO THEY LOOK BEAUTIFUL.

LOL in LOS

I read up on depth perception.. not much can be done for it with glasses. But please show me my error because I would like to be educated.

*edit* for some something can be done my apologies.. but for many not.

Edited March 16, 2016 by robblok

[Ocicat]

Most of these big trucks have very poor rear lighting systems. Some that do, aren't even red. And with no clearance lights at the top of the truck they are very deceptive. On a similar topic, I would estimate about 75 percent of motorbikes have no tail lights and are a real menace on the highway. We drive between Khon Kaen and Nong Rua very frequently and I dread that drive at night. It seems most motorbikers are on some sort of a suicide mission. A lot of them have a basket in front for carrying things and when there is something in the basket, the headlight is blocked out. Duh

[gemguy]

Those vans look great...but they are about as crash resistant as a beer can made from aluminum.

Watch the video below and you will get a better idea of what those new cars and other motor vehicles are made of

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynhumAumc8Q

Cheers

[dcnx]

another 1 of those big trucks that just APPEAR in front of you in the darkness...... i find my headlights pick them out quite easily, even at non sensible speeds. thais seem to have problems seeing things in the dark.

I almost hit a black parked truck, on the highway, in the lane, in a dark spot, in the middle of the night. Wasn't a reflector on the thing. It boggles the mind what goes through the minds of some of them when they leave their vehicles.

Such deaths can be easily prevented.

[ramrod711]

From the photo I would say the van went under the cargo deck of the truck. That would explain the cab being swept back, zero chance of survival.

[Thongkorn]

I am no expert, but...HOLY SH1T!

With the damage of that van....how fast was he going, when he hit the truck?

Just assume the truck was going 80 km/h....

50 km/h will do, head on.

A HGV will do the same damage at walking pace as a car doing 60mph.

Or if you multiply the speed and wieght i.e. 60x20 ton=1200ton. Then the speed and wieght of the car say 1 ton at 60mph=60ton. So you have a wieght of 60 ton hitting 1200ton. Would you stand in between them.

Edited March 16, 2016 by Thongkorn