"Tell the grandkids I love them": Final message from granddad killed in Thailand crash

[Jonathan Fairfield]

"Tell the grandkids I love them": Final message from granddad killed in Thailand crash

 

A grandfather of four sent a final message saying 'tell the grandkids I love them' just an hour before he died in a tragic accident in Thailand.

 

Ralph Chambers, 68, of Brockworth, was enjoying a pint with his friend Tony Walden in a pub in the Chonburi district in the evening of December 28 when a car mounted the kerb and smashed into the bar.

 

Ralph died at the scene and Tony, who moments earlier had swapped seats with his pal, was seriously hurt.

 

Tony remains in hospital, battered and bruised having witnessed the death of his closest friend.

 

Ralph's family have been told that the young Thai driver who ploughed into the bar swerved to avoid a dog. The Thai man's family have reportedly been visiting Tony in hospital every day.

 

Full story:  http://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/tell-the-grandkids-i-love-them-final-message-from-granddad-killed-in-thailand-crash/story-30031241-detail/story.html

[Cockwomble]

The level of deaths caused by drivers in Thailand has reached an unacceptable level. Everyday, just on my 20 minute drive to work, i witness more moronic driving in that short amount of time than i have seen in years of driving back in the uk.

 

Very sad story

Edited January 6, 2017 by Cockwomble

[champers]

Very sad.

[lostinisaan]

 

 Please, guys keep it civil. An accident is an accident and I don't think that the driver had any intention to kill somebody, or hurt anyone.

The Thai man's family have reportedly been visiting Tony in hospital every day.

 

           We all live under the same sun and shit happens. RIP and a very speedy and fully recovery for the injured one

 

         Nobody wants to do such things and harm other people, but shit happens all around the world, and it happens everywhere when we don't think about it. 

 

       Sorry for the loss of a daddy, friend and I assume a good guy, Cheers.-  

        

Edited January 6, 2017 by lostinisaan

[wakeupplease]

3 hours ago, Jonathan Fairfield said:

Ralph Chambers

RIP mate, those grand kids loved you very much

[AlexRich]

That's a sad tale, one that happens too often in Thailand. I like animals but I would not make a  risky manoeuvre to avoid them if they cross my path ... as a now defunct cat in Jeddah can testify. 

[NCC1701A]

RIP UK man.

Heart breaking to see this mans life with his family and friends in these photos.

 

You can't your guard down for a minute in Thailand.

[cheapskatesam]

The more i read this forum the more things i do in Thailand to 'keep my guard up'

 

I guess i will take more care when choosing where to sit on a roadside bar in Thailand. 

[kannot]

Bloody  things all need eradicating, Im sure many accidents are  caused by these rat arsed  things, "we  love dogs" Thai people are a  joke, let them wander the sreets, crap everywhere, howl at  night and really not taken care of at all, the food  the morons  put out  on the street for them is eaten by rats and flying rats .... pigeons ( notice the population of the pigeons now  has gone beserk)........LAZY thats what the owners are nothing more  nothing less, round them ALL up and destroy them.........preferably with the owners too

Edited January 6, 2017 by kannot

[joepattaya1961]

7 hours ago, AlexRich said:

That's a sad tale, one that happens too often in Thailand. I like animals but I would not make a  risky manoeuvre to avoid them if they cross my path ... as a now defunct cat in Jeddah can testify. 

 

That's my first thought too, but people's reflexes act otherwise at times. 

Your defunct cat in Jeddah may have been a result of a very sudden unexpected move as well as the dog with brain-damage which caused THB 15,000 damage to the front of my car in Naklua some years ago. 

[mikebell]

I've been banging on about dog-related accidents for years.  I bet no statistics are kept but from my extended Thai family's experience, it's a significant percentage.

[LennyW]

Heartbreaking! Cant even enjoy a quiet pint with yer mate.

 

This is one of my biggest fears here, being the victim of someone elses incompetent driving!

 

RIP Ralph.

[guzzi850m2]

Yes all those street dogs are a real pain in the ass.

 

We have a bunch of them outside my village and they sometimes attack us when passing on the scooter.

 

The last couple of years here, I am getting more negative about living here and southern EU looks better and better to me, if it wasn't for my family here, I think I would had been gone already.

 

Sad about the British man dying having a pint in a freak accident.

[phantomfiddler]

C,mon guys, you just don,t drive through a bar to avoid a dog ! My bet would be he was texting.

[whatproblem]

9 hours ago, AlexRich said:

That's a sad tale, one that happens too often in Thailand. I like animals but I would not make a  risky manoeuvre to avoid them if they cross my path ... as a now defunct cat in Jeddah can testify. 

You believe there bs?

[whatproblem]

So because he swerved to miss a dog it wasn't dangerous driving ?he wasn't going to fast that he couldn't stop ? He wasn't not paying attention to driving ? 

Unbelieveable thailand ,

rip 

[steveyinasia]

Rule number one when interviewed after an accident, "it wasn't my fault, it was.....(fill in the blank)

[Thaiwrath]

1 hour ago, guzzi850m2 said:

Yes all those street dogs are a real pain in the ass.

 

We have a bunch of them outside my village and they sometimes attack us when passing on the scooter.

 

The last couple of years here, I am getting more negative about living here and southern EU looks better and better to me, if it wasn't for my family here, I think I would had been gone already.

 

Sad about the British man dying having a pint in a freak accident.

 

Are there no dogs in the southern EU ?

[Krataiboy]

You guys seem to forget that a dog is not just a dog in Thailand. Thais believe it could be a reincarnated loved one. So no contest when it comes to either avoiding the dog or some falang face down in a beer.

[Moonlover]

5 minutes ago, Krataiboy said:

You guys seem to forget that a dog is not just a dog in Thailand. Thais believe it could be a reincarnated loved one. So no contest when it comes to either avoiding the dog or some falang face down in a beer.

Quote: 'Thais believe it could be a reincarnated loved one'.

Oh really! So why do they treat them so damn badly?

 

[lvr181]

11 hours ago, lostinisaan said:

 

 Please, guys keep it civil. An accident is an accident and I don't think that the driver had any intention to kill somebody, or hurt anyone.

The Thai man's family have reportedly been visiting Tony in hospital every day.

 

           We all live under the same sun and shit happens. RIP and a very speedy and fully recovery for the injured one

 

         Nobody wants to do such things and harm other people, but shit happens all around the world, and it happens everywhere when we don't think about it. 

 

       Sorry for the loss of a daddy, friend and I assume a good guy, Cheers.-  

        

 

It was NOT an accident! He was not driving in a safe manner!

 

Please do not mitigate the circumstances of bad driving (this time unfortunately - but yet again - causing death and injury), whether there was any intent or not! 

 

RIP granddad and condolences to your family and friends.

 

 

Edited January 7, 2017 by lvr181
Additional comment

[Banana7]

Was there really a dog? Did anyone else see the dog? Maybe the driver just made-up the dog story and he lost his attention to driving by talking/answering/texting on his cell phone or by some other factor. Regardless, driving into a bar and killing people is absolutely horrendous.

 

 

[Classic Ray]

Agree with lvr181 this was not an accident. Accidents imply there was no avoidable cause. These are collisions. In U.K. Police use this term nowadays as there is always an avoidable cause, except in tiny percentage of mechanical failure not due to lack of maintenance. In this case, lack of dog control, poor driver skill and training and poor road design and engineering with likely no kerb or barrier to deflect the car are the probable causes. The sooner this is realised the more responsibility will be taken by Thais and the more effort will be made to rectify these omissions and faults.

[The man from udon]

I would like to hear tv member geriatrickids views on this story after posting how he gives bags of cash to charities to keep these wild animals on the streets.also preaching how he prefers dogs to humans.tell that to this poor mans family.as I've said before I like and kept animals in the past but wild,diseased vicious soi dogs that have a rotten life of neglect,ill treatment and starvation need to be slaughtered.

[bangon04]

" Ralph's family have been told that the young Thai driver who ploughed into the bar swerved to avoid a dog. "

 

I am sure that makes them feel so much better 

[Thaiwrath]

1 hour ago, lvr181 said:

 

It was NOT an accident! He was not driving in a safe manner!

 

Please do not mitigate the circumstances of bad driving (this time unfortunately - but yet again - causing death and injury), whether there was any intent or not! 

 

RIP granddad and condolences to your family and friends.

 

 

 

Unless there was intention to kill, it was an accident.

 

[rijb]

4 minutes ago, The man from udon said:

I would like to hear tv member geriatrickids views on this story after posting how he gives bags of cash to charities to keep these wild animals on the streets.also preaching how he prefers dogs to humans.tell that to this poor mans family.as I've said before I like and kept animals in the past but wild,diseased vicious soi dogs that have a rotten life of neglect,ill treatment and starvation need to be slaughtered.

 

That's a pretty weak point.  So what's the takeaway?  Only swerve for good dogs?  

[NoshowJones]

12 hours ago, Cockwomble said:

The level of deaths caused by drivers in Thailand has reached an unacceptable level. Everyday, just on my 20 minute drive to work, i witness more moronic driving in that short amount of time than i have seen in years of driving back in the uk.

 

Very sad story

Recently in Roi Et I made a ten minute journey on my motorbike, and on four occasions, I had to take evasive action to avoid an accident, twice with other motorcyclists, and twice with cars.

[The man from udon]

12 minutes ago, rijb said:

 

That's a pretty weak point.  So what's the takeaway?  Only swerve for good dogs?  

You don't have to swerve for a good dog because they will have an owner on the other end of the leash and not running wild.

[The man from udon]

6 hours ago, kannot said:

Bloody  things all need eradicating, Im sure many accidents are  caused by these rat arsed  things, "we  love dogs" Thai people are a  joke, let them wander the sreets, crap everywhere, howl at  night and really not taken care of at all, the food  the morons  put out  on the street for them is eaten by rats and flying rats .... pigeons ( notice the population of the pigeons now  has gone beserk)........LAZY thats what the owners are nothing more  nothing less, round them ALL up and destroy them.........preferably with the owners too

No one owns a dog if it attacks you but if you kick or kill a dog 6 owners will come out of nowhere demanding large sums of money.