New plan to retrieve Thai students’ car submerged in river near US park
A US rescue team may be able to retrieve the rental car belonging to two Thai students earlier than expected as water levels in a river have fallen. The car plunged over a cliff and was partly submerged in the river in California in late June.
The Thai Consulate General in Los Angeles was informed on Wednesday of the latest update, which contradicted an earlier report that efforts to reach the car could take a month due to the strong river current and geographical conditions.
There is an extra urgency to retrieve the car amid fears that it could be swept away by the current.
Postgraduate students Thiwadee Sangsuriyarit, 24, and Bhakapon Chairatanatongporn, 28, of South Florida University went missing late last month as they were driving on a highway towards Kings Canyon National Park in California.
Thai Consulate General Tanee Sangrat on Wednesday met with Highway Patrol officers and inspected the area on the highway where the car apparently went off the road and plunged over the cliff.
The Consulate General’s Facebook page published a photo gallery showing Tanee’s visit to the highway, including photos showing damaged highway barriers.
The page also reported that signs of an accident had been found at a curve on Freeway 180 near the town of Fresno. The highway traverses a 195-metre cliff.
Authorities are still treating the two students as missing persons given that they have not been able to retrieve the car.
The car crash was found by a helicopter search late last month but a triggered airbag has prevented authorities from seeing inside the car. The rescue team plans to fly a drone closer to the car but personnel are still unsure what it will see.
