Tour bus brake failure injures 38 in multi-vehicle crash
A tour bus carrying passengers from a religious event crashed into four vehicles yesterday due to brake failure, injuring 38 people, with two in critical condition. The incident occurred on Mittraphap Road near Pak Chong, Nakhon Ratchasima.
The crash happened at approximately 1.30am, yesterday, October 20, and police and emergency services were quickly dispatched to the scene. The yellow and white air-conditioned bus, operating between Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi, had picked up passengers from a broken-down bus only 20 kilometres before the crash site.
The accident took place on a downhill slope in the Khlong Dong area at kilometre markers 35 to 36 in the Phaya Yen subdistrict. The tour bus rear-ended an 18-wheeler cement truck, causing serious damage to the front left side of the bus. The bus had reportedly experienced brake problems while navigating heavy traffic.
Emergency responders worked swiftly to extract the injured passengers, who were trapped inside. Among the 38 injured, two women were critically hurt and were immediately transported to Muak Lek Hospital in Saraburi, the closest medical facility. The remaining injured were taken to Pak Chong Nana Hospital, while those with minor injuries declined hospital treatment.
According to Police Lieutenant Colonel Auaychai Phromwong, 68 year old Thanaporn, the driver of the tour bus, explained that he had just switched buses. The original bus had broken down at the foothills of Ban Dai Ma, approximately 20 kilometres from the crash site.
The passengers, totalling 56, were returning from a Kathin ceremony in Nakhon Ratchasima and were en route back to Kanchanaburi. As the bus descended the slope between the Khlong Dong and Muak Lek areas, the brakes failed, causing the bus to crash into a six-wheeled Isuzu truck, a black Toyota pickup truck, another six-wheeled Hino truck, and a white Isuzu box truck.
One passenger recounted the terrifying moments, noting that the bus had been moving slowly due to traffic congestion before it lost control and swerved wildly, colliding with other vehicles. The crash was so sudden that passengers had little time to react, resulting in many injuries, reported KhaoSod.
