School Passenger Van Crashes Injuring 22 Children

On Thursday morning, a school passenger van overturned at a curve on a road in Non Thai district of Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, injuring 22 students. After being alerted around 7.30 a.m., police and rescue workers rushed to Ban Orphalai Road in tambon Kampang.

They discovered an overturned school passenger van belonging to the privately run Saimit Non Thai School 6 on the side of the road.

Many students, mostly in kindergarten and primary school, were crying out in fear. An accompanying teacher and the van driver assisted them in exiting the vehicle.

Twenty-two students were injured slightly. Rescue workers and medics administered first aid before transporting the injured children to Non Thai Hospital for thorough examinations. After being notified, parents rushed to the scene.

Charnnarong Rassamee, the driver, told police that he had picked up the 22 students from various locations in tambon Kampang to transport them to school. He claimed he lost control of the vehicle around a curve, causing the van to flip over.

According to local media, the driver was attempting to pick up a cup of water from the console behind his seat when the cup slipped from his grasp. As a result, he lost control of the van, causing it to veer off the road and overturn.

11 Burned Alive in Passenger Van

Last week, 11 people were killed when an LNG-powered passenger van crashed into a median ditch on the Mitrapap highway and burst into flames in Si Khiu district, Nakhon Ratchasima. The accident happened around 9.30 p.m.

The driver and 11 passengers in a Toyota van were travelling from Amnat Charoen to Nakhon Pathom province.

The passenger van veered sideways between kilometre markers 99 and 100, colliding with the metal railing and crashing into the ditch in the median strip. The LNG-powered van then caught fire.

Nikom Sae Oun, leader of the Hook 31 rescue unit at Mo Chabok in the nearby Si Khiu district, said he rushed to the scene after hearing a loud explosion and found the van completely engulfed in flames. A passenger was seen attempting to exit the van.

A fire engine arrived quickly and extinguished the fire. However, 11 people, including the driver, were killed in the van.

Thanachit Kingkaew, 20, was identified as the passenger who narrowly escaped death. He was taken to Si Khiu Hospital for treatment.

Governor Saksayam Sirimongkol arrived at the accident scene to inspect the damage. He later visited the survivor at the hospital.

The cause of the passenger van accident was being investigated by police.