Woman killed in tourist van-train collision

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Woman killed in tourist van-train crash

Published: 25 Feb 2013 at 15.55
Online news: Local News

KANCHANABURI - A woman was killed and 10 other people injured when a train hit a tourist van on a railway crossing in Sai Yok district on Monday afternoon.

The van, driven by Tossapon Kongprasoot, 28, crossed the track at a spot where there is no barrier or warning lights, in front of Yoko River Kwai Resort in tambon Soom Soom, just as a train carrying about 70 local and foreign passengers was approaching.

The van, carrying 10 passengers, failed to cross the track in time and the train hit the middle of the vehicle, police said.

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NangrongJ
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Discussion 20 : 26 Feb 2013 at 08.4320
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Safedriver - the driver IS to blame. He could wind down his window! The habit that Thais have of emerging from junctions then reacting is very common. What else would we expect with such poor driver training and testing as well as a flippant attitude to road safety.
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safedriver
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Discussion 19 : 26 Feb 2013 at 08.1519
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Every one is quick to blame the driver and he is most likely the one most responsible for this crash. However, I would be interested to know how much the heavily tinted windows or the television or the GPS system contributed to this event. Many drivers in Thailand are driving blind due to stickers or heavy tint on windows. They can not hear what is going on outside due to blaring television sets, radios or DVD players. Their attention is distracted by a GPS system telling them what to do. Looking at the vehicle position and light damage, it seems the train could not have been moving at a high speed. Most likely the driver did not see it.
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robins
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Discussion 18 : 26 Feb 2013 at 07.5218
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@Discussion 16 Even if the van companies do not care about their passengers, I would think the price of the vans would encourage these companies to recruit a higher caliber of driver or supervise their habits better. Those vans are not cheap.
Ironic that this train route is part of the so called "Death Railway" yet is was a Thai driver that caused these injuries and death.
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mitrapaap
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Discussion 17 : 26 Feb 2013 at 06.5217
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Knowing how slow the trains run there and seeing the straight stretch on the picture one must be really dumb to get caught by a train. But then look at some of these drivers and you won't be surprised.
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drsmith
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Discussion 16 : 25 Feb 2013 at 22.5416
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Thailand can have one million mini-van accidents resulting in death and injury each year and will still do absolutely nothing to fix the problem. Are the mini-van companies all owned by politicians?
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derbyram
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Discussion 15 : 25 Feb 2013 at 22.0215
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No barrier or warning lights? Whose bright idea was this? It's contributed to someone losing their life. RIP.
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Robowen
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Discussion 14 : 25 Feb 2013 at 21.1214
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Yes, there are too many unfortunate incidents involving tourists, and it would be wonderful if none of these happened. very little media publicity given to these beyond Thailand (in the UK as one example) so the negative impact on your wonderful country's economy is very slight, at worst. That's no reason for complacency of course, and we will all welcome changes that can make a difference.
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patchar
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Discussion 13 : 25 Feb 2013 at 21.0913
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another story of a reckless and incompetent driver in Thailand. A driver that is paid and supposed to make these tourists enjoy every single minutes of their trips, instead turned it horrible.. I always read here that safety is not a concern in Thai society... why ?
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Robowen
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Discussion 12 : 25 Feb 2013 at 21.0812
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It is difficult to image how it could be anyone except the van driver's fault. The train is on rails and can't go left or right. It can't stop as quickly as a van, as it is so heavy. Unless there was a signal that he train driver passed which indicated that the train should stop at the crossing (and that's very unlikely) it was the van driver's responsibility to ensure that there wasn't a train coming. A tragic incident.
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nitnoi
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Discussion 11 : 25 Feb 2013 at 20.5911
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From the pictures it look like the driver did a short cut.
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