Blade runner: Thai man sparks hospital horror in Chiang Mai
Panic gripped a Chiang Mai hospital this morning after a knife-wielding Thai man stormed the outpatient ward, threatening to slash his own throat in front of terrified staff and patients.
The dramatic standoff unfolded around 11.30am, today, April 25, when the unhinged man burst into McCormick Hospital in Chiang Mai, clutching a knife and pressing it to his own neck as he shouted incoherently.
Witnesses said chaos erupted in the building as nurses screamed and patients rushed for the exits. One staff member expressed her horror to a KhaoSod reporter.
“It was terrifying! No one knew what he was going to do next.”
Security initially struggled to contain the situation before local police arrived and quickly cordoned off the area, evacuating all unrelated personnel from the ward.
By 12.30pm, Special Operations officers had been deployed and were seen negotiating with the distraught man, who continued to pace and wave the blade. As of publication, officers were still working to bring the situation under control with no injuries reported.
Police have not released the man’s name, confirmed what triggered the outburst or apprehended him but sources say mental health issues are suspected.
The alarming incident comes just weeks after another bizarre knife scare in Chon Buri, where a man flipped out over Pad Thai and ended up bleeding on the floor of a convenience store.
In that case, 32 year old Thakorn became enraged after ordering Pad Thai without Chinese chives, only to discover them included. Furious, he grabbed a 30cm blade, stormed into a shop in Na Pa subdistrict, and threatened to harm himself and others.
Police managed to calm and disarm him, while rescue workers treated a deep cut to his leg before rushing him to hospital.
As similar cases make headlines, officials are facing mounting pressure to improve mental health crisis intervention and better equip frontline responders to handle public meltdowns before they turn deadly.
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