This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.
Preliminary investigations show that a blown tire or a collision with another vehicle could have sparked a fire that engulfed a charter bus and killed at least 25 people, mostly schoolchildren who were on a field trip near Bangkok on Tuesday, officials said.
Victims were trapped inside because the flames spread quickly after the fire ignited aboard the bus carrying 44 passengers – 38 students and six teachers – from the Wat Khao Phra Ya Sangkharam School in Uthai Thani province.
Many other victims suffered injuries in the horrific blaze that broke out as the bus traveled along the Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, a highway in a suburb north of Bangkok, authorities said, adding that the death toll could climb.
“Twenty-three people died at the scene, while two others succumbed to their injuries at Rangsit Medical Center,” acting National Police Chief Kittirat Phanphet told reporters.
A blown tire could have contributed to the blaze by damaging the fuel tank and causing a spark, investigators said.
“Some bodies we rescued were very, very small,” said Piyalak Thinkaew, a rescue worker at the scene, according to a video report by Agence France-Presse (AFP). “They must have been in kindergarten or not beyond Year 2.”
“It must have been the kids’ instinct to escape to the back [where many bodies were found],” he said.
The fire started around 12:20 p.m. as the bus, the second in a convoy of three, was traveling to Nonthaburi province. Local media reported that the buses carrying the children, who ranged in age from kindergartners to young teens, were on their way to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand as part of their school’s field trip.
Anutin Charnvirakul, deputy prime minister and interior minister, visited the scene.
“We’re expediting the autopsy process to allow for religious ceremonies and the swift return of the deceased to their families. All injured are receiving full medical care,” he told reporters.
Chamnan Iamyim, a rescue worker from the Ruamkatanyu Foundation, told reporters that the victims’ bodies would be transported to the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the Police General Hospital for autopsies.
Kittirat said three victims had been hospitalized while 16 others were treated for injuries before being sent home, the Associated Press news service reported.
The police chief said the initial investigation focused on a potential tire blowout, while Deputy Prime Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit said a collision with another vehicle could have been the cause.
“Based on witness testimonies, we believe a tire explosion created sparks that ignited the gas tank in the vehicle, causing the fire to spread rapidly into the passenger compartment,” Kittirat said.
Driver reports to police
He said the bus driver went missing after the fire.
“We have instructed the Provincial Police Region 1 to conduct an investigation and apprehend the driver,” Kittirat said.
Hours later, the driver, who returned to his hometown in Sing Buri province, turned himself in to police at around 7 p.m. local time.
Suriya, who serves as transport minister, said preliminary findings indicated that the bus collided with another vehicle, lost control and struck a roadside barrier.
“This collision likely caused sparks that ignited the fuel tank,” he said, raising concerns about the use of compressed natural gas for public transportation. The bus was powered by CNG.“If CNG proves to be hazardous for this type of vehicle, we may need to consider banning its use. I will review the ministry’s authority on this matter,” he said.
In a post on X, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra wrote that she had dispatched Anutin and Suriya to the scene.“As a mother, I extend my deepest sympathies to the families of those injured and deceased,” she said, adding “the government will cover all medical expenses and provide compensation to the families of the deceased.” In November 2023, the World Health Organization reported that traffic accidents in Thailand result in about 20,000 deaths and 1 million injuries each year. That number works out to over 50 fatalities per day.
Meechai Sa-ard, a moto-taxi driver, was about 1 km (0.6 mile) from the site of Tuesday’s disaster. “There was smoke everywhere. Poor children, I heard they were very little,” he told AFP. “I was hoping that God would be kind so that the rain could put the fire out and the kids would survive.”
