The car missed the bend and shot off the road, landing upside down in a pool.
Police named the three dead as the driver, Jaroon Sukkua, 57, Naruemon Luichan, 50 and Chawancha Maharae, aged six. The two injured were Sukanya Luichan, 53 and Luksana Nuanjui, 33, the child’s mother.
The five were driving through Phang Nga at about around 7:30 am, on their way to their birthplace in Nakhon Sri Thammarat province, when the accident took place.
“It seems the car was being driven quite fast,” said Pol Lt Sornsak Chandee of Takua Tung Police. “There is a sign before the curve warning drivers to slow down to less than 50 kmh.
“We have accidents quite often on that bend – two or three times in the past three months. There were two deaths there in December.
“When we arrived, we could see only the back wheels of the upside-down car. It took an hour to pull it from the pool,” he said.
“Mrs Luksana was badly hurt so we did not tell her at that time that her daughter had died,” Lt Sornsak added.
All five were sent to Phang Nga Hospital. The three dead are to be sent back to Nakhon Sri Thammarat for their funerals.