CityNews – A Red Songtaew killed two passengers after the handbrake failed causing the songtaew to roll down the mountain near Bhubing Palace and crash into a souvenir shop.
On December 5, a group of elderly tourists were heading to the songtaew, or red truck, to return home after visiting the Bhubing Place on the Doi Suthep-Pui Mountain for fathers day. The owner of the songtaew parked on a steep hill and left his vehicle unattended as the passengers began to board. Two women in their 60s were seated and another passenger, 74, was about to step in when the handbrake gave way and the car hurtled down the mountain road before crashing into a souvenir shop.
The driver, identified as Yongyuth Boonlert, tried to chase his songtaew but was unable to reach it in time. The 74 year old woman boarding at the time suffered minor injuries but the two women sat in the truck died upon impact. It was reported that the songtaew was parked on a slope as much as five metres above the souvenir shop.
CityNews was unable to find out whether the police are opening an investigation or treating the incident as an accident at this time.
