On a downhill road in eastern Thailand, a tour bus carrying 49 people overturned and ended up in a ditch on Wednesday due to brake failure, according to police Colonel Sophon Phramaneehe. As a result, at least 18 passengers lost their lives, while 23 others sustained injuries.

Colonel Phramaneehe added that all the victims were Thai adults on a study trip, and none of them were children. The incident occurred in Prachinburi province, approximately 155 kilometers east of the capital city, Bangkok.

Rescue and medical teams were promptly dispatched to the scene, where they provided assistance to the victims near the overturned bus, which had its undercarriage exposed. A local official, Somjai Phutthasena, confirmed that around 20 injured passengers were transported to a nearby hospital.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra expressed her condolences to the families of the deceased and stated that an investigation into the accident was underway. She emphasized that legal action would be taken if it was found that the bus did not meet vehicle safety standards or was involved in reckless behavior. Additionally, she stressed the importance of conducting thorough vehicle inspections to prevent such accidents in the future.

Thailand has a long-standing issue with road accidents and fatalities, mainly attributed to a lack of enforcement of vehicle safety standards and poorly maintained roads. According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) 2023 report, Thailand ranks ninth out of 175 member countries in terms of road traffic deaths.

In a separate incident last year, a school bus caught fire due to a gas cylinder leak, resulting in the deaths of 23 people, including 16 students. This tragedy marked the country’s deadliest road accident in a decade.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/26/tour-bus-crash-in-eastern-thailand-kills-at-least-18?traffic_source=rss