Lucky escape for rafting group after dam floodgate opens – VIDEO

A group of tourists is lucky to be alive after a worker accidentally opened a dam floodgate nearby. The tourists had just seconds to get out of the way, as a tour guide who realised what was happening, yelled a warning at them. Thai Residents reports that the incident happened at the Sirindhorn Dam in Ubon Ratchathani, in the north-east of the country.

It’s understood an employee at the dam opened the floodgate without realising there were people in the water. The rush of water caused one raft to break away from its mooring, as several others rammed into each other, with items on the rafts being flung into the water. Wuttichai Kumchul, a 33 year old tour guide and raft owner, yelled at tourists who were swimming or sitting on rafts, to get out immediately.

“I yelled to the tourists in the water and to those still on the raft to get out of the water. I rushed onto land for safety and told the tourists to do the same. The water was so strong one of the rafts got loose and crashed into other rafts nearby. There is about 10,000 baht in damages from the incident. The tourists that were in the dam are now terrified for their lives.”

The floodgate at the dam is usually opened in the morning for electricity generation, with a warning message sent to raft operators beforehand. However, this time, the floodgate was opened at 3 pm without warning. It is not known if any disciplinary action is being taken against the employee who opened the floodgate.

SOURCE: Thai Residents