Fast and furious: Bangkok tuk tuk race ends in crash, 3 injured
A high-speed tuk tuk race on a Bangkok road ended in a devastating crash, leaving three people seriously injured, including one driver with a severe head injury.
The incident, which occurred late last night, March 3, sparked a police investigation, with officers awaiting blood alcohol test results.
The collision happened around 10pm on Ratchadaphisek Road in Chong Nonsi, Yannawa district, according to Police Lieutenant Colonel Thiradej Sonklin of Bang Phong Phang Police Station.
Eyewitnesses reported that two tuk tuks were speeding side by side, attempting to overtake each other in what appeared to be a dangerous street race. As one driver made a risky lane change, the vehicle was struck by the other tuk tuk, causing it to flip over.
The driver of the overturned tuk tuk, 28 year old Pichit, sustained a serious head injury and was rushed to a nearby hospital. The other tuk tuk’s driver and his passenger both suffered broken legs.
Police are now investigating the cause of the crash.
“We are looking into the circumstances and waiting for the results of blood alcohol tests.”
Tuk tuks, Bangkok’s iconic three-wheeled auto-rickshaws, are popular with both locals and tourists for their agility and open-air design. However, incidents like this highlight the dangers of reckless driving.
Locals have voiced concerns over tuk tuk drivers engaging in risky behaviour, particularly at night when roads are quieter. Some have called for stricter traffic enforcement to prevent future accidents, reported The Nation.
In similar news, a devastating accident in Mueang Surat Thani district left a tuk tuk driver dead and seven passengers injured, six of them seriously, after the vehicle crashed into a parked timber truck.
Police Lieutenant Thanongsilp Kayannoi of Mueang Surat Thani Police Station received the accident report at 7.05pm on January 13. The crash occurred on a bypass road near the Wipawadee Rangsit camp curve in Bang Kung subdistrict.
Emergency responders arrived to find a 10-wheel truck loaded with rubber wood, registered as 81-1299 Surat Thani, parked on the roadside. A blue tuk tuk, registration 104732 Surat Thani, had slammed into the back of the truck, its front end completely crushed.
The tuk tuk driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
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