Police believe that the driver of a Bangkok to Hat Yai interprovincial bus that crashed in Chumphon may have fallen asleep at the wheel. The driver, named as 43 year old Surachai Buaphet, was killed when the bus crashed into the central reservation and overturned on Petchkasem Road.
Fourteen passengers sustained injuries in the collision, which happened shortly after midnight on Saturday, September 2. Local police were notified of the incident, in the Mueang district of the southern province of Chumphon.
Officers from Tha Sae Police arrived at the scene, along with rescue workers, and found the bus overturned on the road. Mr Surachai’s body was found near the driver’s seat. Fourteen injured passengers, most of them domestic tourists, were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
A second driver from the bus told police that the bus was heading to Hat Yai, near the Malaysian border, when the driver seemed to lose control and hit the central reservation.
In total, the bus was carrying 17 people, including a bus crew member, the 2 drivers and 14 passengers.
The police investigation continues.
SOURCE: The Phuket Express
