Some saved, some not: rescuers face Thai train crash havoc

This UGC handout photo courtesy of Facebook user Smith Mikle taken and released on January 14, 2026 shows rescue workers next to the wreckage of a train crash after a construction crane collapse in Thailand's Nakhon Ratchasima province. The health ministry said 32 people were killed, 64 injured and three missing. - Facebook user Smith Mikle/AFP

NAKHON RATCHASIMA: Residents and workers were confronted with a scene of carnage on Wednesday (Jan 14) as they rushed to try and rescue passengers after one of Thailand's worst rail accidents in decades.

"I saw bodies piled up inside a carriage with metal wreckage all over when I looked through the window... We tried to pull them out but they were trapped," 28-year-old waitress Penporn Poomrateuk told AFP.