SURIN, Thailand – Eighteen students were injured when a school transport van reportedly suffered brake failure, hit a pickup truck and crashed into a power pole in Surin on the morning of November 2. The accident occurred at about 7am on the Surin-Sikhoraphum Road, inbound to Surin city, near a PTT petrol station in Salak Dai subdistrict. The Toyota van was carrying 18 students, including two kindergarten children, when it struck the rear of a Toyota pickup before mounting the pavement and hitting a high-voltage power pole.
Rescue workers used hydraulic cutting equipment to free a seven-year-old girl whose right leg was trapped beneath the dashboard. It took nearly an hour to release her before she was taken to Surin Hospital. The van driver, aged 48, told officials that he had left a petrol station and tried to brake after a pickup moved in front of him, but the brakes failed. A Chevrolet pickup driver involved in the collision said the van appeared to be travelling at high speed before hitting the first pickup, which was then pushed into his vehicle.
All 18 students were conscious when assessed at Surin Hospital. Two were admitted for observation and close medical monitoring. Police are to question all three drivers and examine CCTV footage to establish the cause of the crash. (TNA)
