A collision on the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, the second in the space of two days, has claimed the lives of 2 people.
The collision, around 9pm on Saturday night, August 16, was between a small Thai-style river ferry boat and a jetski being ridden by Thai actor, Shindanai sae Lim. The Bangkok Post reports that 2 people drowned and another 2 were injured.
It’s understood the collision happened in the middle of the river, in the Phra Pradaeng district of the capital at around 9pm. CCTV footage shows that the jetskis were travelling at high speed at the time.
The jetski, which was also carrying 17 year old Nanyaree Minhongdee and her 41 year old mother, Onlada Silanong, struck the timber boat as it was crossing the river near Wat Bang Krachao Nok.
The 64 year old boat driver, Prayoon Uampathum, and his 44 year old female passenger, Parichat Hoiman, were thrown into the water by the force of the collision. Rescue workers subsequently located their bodies on the riverbed, along with the vessel’s sunken engine.
The passenger’s husband, 48 year old Mongkolsawat Woenkrathok, narrowly survived the accident. He says the couple had hired the boat driver, an acquaintance of theirs, to take them from the Bang Krachao Nok bank to the Rama III bank.
Meanwhile, the two jetski passengers sustained minor injuries in the collision. The actor driving it says he failed to see the motorboat as it had no lights on and, by the time he saw it, it was too late to avoid the collision.
He says he was taking his girlfriend and her mother home from a riverside restaurant in Phra Pradaeng. It’s understood the family were part of a group of 11 people, all of whom were travelling on jetskis at the time. In total, there were 5 jetskis in the water, making their way to a pier in the Chom Thong district.
According to some media reports, the actor was not licenced to drive a jetski.
The incident happened a day after a boat crashed into the Chao Phraya Express service, injuring three Thai women and two Canadian men.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
