Police said the deadly crash occurred with a “rogue driver” at the wheel, who was trying to flee responsibility of another incident minutes earlier when he had collided with a pickup truck and failed to stop at the scene.
The crash happened on the Chiang Mai-Chiang Rai Highway (Highway No.118) in Ban Pan Fan village of Pa Miang sub-district in Doi Saket district about 11:30am, said Chatchai Promlert, director-general of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.
The Chiang Mai-registered bus with the licence number 30-0485 was heading from Chiang Rai province to Chiang Mai.
The driver of the bus, identified as Somporn Bualuang, 58, had reportedly hit a pickup truck in the Mae Khajan area of Chiang Rai but failed to stop.
The pickup driver gave chase, causing the bus driver to speed up until he lost control. The bus then hit a sedan, careered off a roadside power pole, plunged off the road and overturned.
The driver is among the 12 people injured, two of whom are in critical condition.
He is in police custody at Doi Saket Hospital.
Of the 14 killed – including the 34-year-old Thai tour guide, Pattara Promjaijom – 11 died at the scene. The others were pronounced dead at the hospital.
Families of the dead will receive B1.6 million each from insurance firms and assistance from the Tourism and Sports Ministry, according to Chiang Mai governor Pawin Chamniprasarn.
The government will also pay up to B50,000 each in treatment for the injured.
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