Fishy business: Tyre blowout flips lorry in east Thailand

A lorry transporting fish suffered a tyre explosion in Rayong, causing the vehicle to flip and crash into a tree, seriously damaging the entire vehicle.

The driver, 29 year old Sunthorn Yotdam, sustained injuries, while the fish, primarily tilapia numbering in the thousands, were scattered across the road, resulting in an estimated loss of no less than 100,000 baht.

Police from Wang Chan District, Rayong, today received a report of an accident involving a flipped lorry in the middle of the road, causing the transported tilapia to spread across the surface.

The lorry tyre explosion incident occurred at the Chawaew Cooperative intersection, on the Ban Bueng-Klaeng road, 83 kilometres from Wang Chan district, Rayong. Authorities coordinated with Wang Chan hospital doctors and Rayong rescue units to assist at the scene.

Upon arrival, they discovered a distressed pickup truck parked by the roadside, severely damaged throughout.

Pink foam boxes lay strewn on the road with thousands of tilapia scattered on the surface. Officials quickly cordoned off the area to prevent further incidents, before helping to remove the dead fish from the road.

The driver, Sunthorn, was injured and recounted that he was transporting the tilapia from Chon Buri province to a customer in Trat province. Suddenly, he was startled by the sound of a lorry tyre explosion, which caused him to lose control of the vehicle.

The fish were scattered across the road before the vehicle crashed into a roadside tree, causing him serious injuries. Officials then rushed him to Wang Chan Hospital for preliminary treatment.

Once the area was cleared, normal traffic resumed. The total damage was estimated at no less than 100,000 baht. The collected tilapia were to be coordinated with the owner for retrieval, as leaving them would result in total loss due to decomposition, reported KhaoSod.

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