Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/BANGKOK: At least 11 people including two children were burned to death in a passenger van crash in central Thai over the Lunar New Year holiday, local police said Monday.
Traffic accidents are common in Thailand, which has notorious road safety records, particularly during hectic public holidays.
Police Colonel Yingyos Poldej said that the van carrying 12 citizens was travelling from Amnat Charoen province to Bangkok when the van veered off the road in central Nakhon Ratchasima Saturday night.
Yingyos said that one man had climbed out the window, but other citizens were trapped and died in the blaze.
Van crash
Thanachit Kingkaew, a 20-year-old student and the lone survivor said he was asleep when he awoke up to a jolt after hearing the scream.
He said that when he woke up, the van was upside down and he did not see what had happened.”
“After the crash, the blaze started engulfing the whole van starting from the back.”
He said that he started kicking windows and managed to crawl through the small hole and soon after that, the van exploded.”
Nikhom Seaun, a volunteer with the local rescue team, said that the van exploded just seconds after it engulfed in flames.
He said that it took less than 30 seconds for the blaze to consume the whole van.”
“I could not do anything with a fire extinguisher I had. The van then exploded three to four times.”
Yingyos, the local police, said the van had used fuel and compressed gas, but initial reports indicated the gas tank did not leak.
He said that he thought the fuel caused the fire, and they were still investigating what caused the van to veer off the road.
