Seven Burmese killed, 12 others injured
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Seven people were killed and 12 others injured today when a pickup truck carrying illegal Burmese migrant workers veered off the road and plunged into a roadside irrigation canal in Ayutthaya, 65km north of Bangkok, according to local police.
The accident in Ban Phraek district left five women and two men dead, including the driver, Suwicharn Boonmen from Sukhothai, as well as injuring 12 other migrant workers sitting in the open back of the vehicle, Ban Phraek police said. Rescue workers spent two hours retrieving the Sukhothairegistered vehicle from the fourmetredeep canal.
Most of the victims were identified as Burmese migrant workers.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that the vehicle was bringing the workers from Mae Sot, in the ThaiBurmese border province of Tak, and was heading to the central province of Lop Buri via the Asian Highway.
As he approached Ang Thong province, the driver saw a police checkpoint and tried to avoid a search and sped away using a Ban Phraek district road as a shortcut.
Police said the driver might not have been familiar with the narrow road. He lost control and veered into the canal.
