BANGKOK (The Nation/Asia News Network): Some 18 passengers and motorists were injured when the brakes of an electric bus malfunctioned and it smashed into three cars on Bangkok’s Rama II Road during Tuesday (Sept 26) morning rush hour.
Boonmee Janthaphan, 59, driver of No 558 electric bus, said he was driving down Rama II Road when he realised the brake was not working. He had just driven the bus past Soi 4 of Rama II Road.
The driver said he tried to keep driving the bus straight on the four-lane road but was unable to avoid the vehicles crossing the Bang Pra Kaew intersection.
Officers from nearby Bang Mod Police Station and rescue staff rushed to the scene to help the victims and to clear the wreckage. Some vehicles were so badly damaged that victims had to be cut out of them. The incident saw traffic standing still for several kilometres.
The injured were taken to four hospitals nearby for treatment and there were no reports of deaths as of press time.
Rama II Road, which runs from Bangkok’s Chom Thong district to Ratchaburi province in the southwest of Thailand frequently sees road accidents caused either by motorists or road construction.
