Lt ML Sanya Suksawat of the Phuket City Police was called to the scene, on the southbound lanes of Thepkrasattri Rd about 200 metres south of the Isuzu showroom, at about 3am.
Police together with Kusoldharm rescue workers arrived to find a black Phuket-registered Isuzu pickup truck with massive damage to its front.
The driver of the pickup truck, Sudjai Paponaking, 37, and a 35-year-old Myanmar national working for the Koh Kaew Tambon Administrative Organisation (OrBorTor) as a garbage collector were injured in the accident.
Both men were rushed to Vachira Phuket Hospital.
Of note, the driver’s airbag in the pickup truck deployed on impact, likely saving Mr Sudjai from critical injuries.
Before being sped off for medical treatment, Mr Sudjai told police that he fell asleep while driving and drove into the back of the garbage truck.
Police have yet to report the extent of Mr Sudjai’s and the Myanmar man’s injuries, or whether police have asked Vachira hospital to perform an alcohol test on Mr Sudjai.
It has also yet to be explained how the Myanmar man came to be injured as the garbage truck suffered nearly no damage at all in the collision.
However, it was reported that the pickup truck and the garbage truck were both taken to Phuket City Police Station.