Four people were killed and 25 injured when a train collided with a 10-wheel lorry which cut across the tracks at a makeshift crossing in Khon Kaen yesterday morning.
The wreckage of a 10-wheel lorry lies beside a train in Ban Nong Kung of Khon Kaen's Muang district. It was involved in a collision with the passenger train which was travelling from Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai province. The driver and the mechanic of the train and two passengers were killed in the accident, which left many injured, including the lorry driver. Jakkrapan Nathanri
The accident paralysed rail transport on the upper northeastern routes as the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) and rescue workers treated the injured and tried to remove the train that was damaged in the collision.
The impact of the crash derailed the first train carriage and ripped it in half. The three other carriages remained on the tracks.
Officers at Yoi Sila police station in Muang district of the northeastern province were alerted about 10.30am to the accident, which occurred at a crossing in Bang Nong Kung village in tambon Sila.
The crossing had been made by locals and was not approved by the SRT.
The dead were identified as SRT train driver Pechana Paendee; SRT mechanic Damri Posawat; and passengers Narong Dechama and an unidentified monk.
The lorry driver, identified as Pattarapol Parasi, 25, was among those sent to hospital but was not in a serious condition.
The 25 injured were rushed to hospitals, while the other passengers were left stranded by the accident and later taken to their destinations by car.
Sanu Taengngam, head of SRT officers on the train, said the accident happened 20 minutes after the train left Nakhon Ratchasima heading to Nong Khai.
Before the collision, the train had been slowing down as it approached Samran station, he said.
The lorry appeared suddenly and headed for the tracks, prompting the train driver to sound the horn to warn the driver to stop, he said.
Instead of attempting to stop, the lorry picked up speed but was not fast enough to avoid the collision, he said.
The lorry and the train skidded for about 100 metres before they came to a stop, witnesses said.
Noi Chainok, 61, a passenger from Nong Khai, said she was travelling in the third carriage with her four-year-old grandchild.
Before the crash, she heard the train's horn sound loudly and felt the driver make three attempts to stop the train before she felt the impact of the crash.
After the collision she found her grandchild lying on the ground with a broken nose. She was slightly injured by the crash.
Pol Col Suphakorn Khamsingnok, deputy Khon Kaen provincial police chief, said rescue workers scrambled to cut open the derailed carriage to help the injured and remove dead bodies.
Tracks were damaged at the crash scene which is close to a major warehouse and an oil depot, he said.
Thanongsak Pongprasert, head of the SRT's rail service operations, said several accidents had happened at that particular crossing.
Transport Minister ACM Prajin Juntong said locals had created at least 584 makeshift crossings on SRT railways nationwide without permission from the SRT.
This meant there weren't barriers or warning sirens installed there, he said.
The SRT has approved 775 makeshift crossings and was installing traffic safety equipment at each one, he said.
By the year's end, 130 crossings would be installed with automatic barriers and siren systems, costing 403 million baht.