A long-distance bus carrying Thai and foreign tourists left the road and crashed into a power pole at dawn today (July 3).
The driver lost control of the first-class air-conditioned Transport Co vehicle and it crashed into a power pole on the Surat Thani-Nakhon Si Thammarat Road in Kanchanadit district.
Ten people including Indian tourist Amit Jain, the driver and eight other Thais were killed in the crash. Five bodies were unidentified and were sent for autopsies at Surat Thani Hospital.
Another 17 people, both Thais and foreigners, were injured and are being treated in local hospitals.
The bus left Bangkok at 7.50 pm yesterday en route to Surat Thani where the passengers were due to take a ferry to Koh Pha'ngan.
An initial investigation suggested that the front right tyre burst, causing the driver to lose control. The bus slammed into the power pole at full speed and then turned on its side.
With power lines down and fuel leaking from the smashed bus, local authorities had to cut electricity supplies to the area while the rescue of the injured and the retrieval of bodies took place.