Two petrol stations bombed in southern Thailand

Two petrol stations in Pattani province in southern Thailand were bombed yesterday evening. No one was killed or seriously injured.

Police believe the attacks were carried out by insurgents and possibly in retaliation to an incident on November 7 when the police killed an insurgent who bombed a petrol station in Pattani. There were seven warrants out for his arrest at the time.

At 8.30pm yesterday, officers from Mueang Pattani Police Station were notified of an explosion at a PTT gas station on the Pattani – Narathiwat Road in Moo 7 in Bana subdistrict near the Pattani Bus Terminal.

Police, bomb disposal units, and firefighters rushed to the scene. Police immediately closed off the area because the pumps were on fire and they feared more explosions could occur. It took firefighters 20 minutes to get the blaze under control.

A PPT employee told police said the petrol station was very busy when two assailants on a motorcycle pulled up and fired around 10 gunshots into the sky.

Then, one of the men took out a bomb and placed it on the petrol nozzle. The bomb exploded immediately, causing a loud sound but fortunately not killing or seriously hurting anyone.

The blast caused damage to four fuel pumps, the roof, the cashier’s office, the glass at a nearby 7-Eleven, and a coffee shop.

CCTV reveals there were around 30 people at the petrol station when the explosion happened.

Around the same time, officers from Yaring Police Station were informed of an explosion at a PTT petrol station along the same road ithe n Piyamu Mang subdistrict.

Bomb shrapnel was scattered all over the scene. The explosion damaged one petrol nozzle.

Similarly, staff said two men pulled into the gas station on a motorbike and shouted that everyone should flee before placing an improvised explosive device on the fuel pump.

Customers fled and the bomb detonated about five minutes later. No one was killed or injured in the explosion.

Police said they were using CCTV to track down the assailants.

Insurgency in Southern Thailand has a long and complicated history. Read The Thaiger’s coverage of it here.