An 11-year-old boy crashed a truck into Buddhist monks on a pilgrimage walk in northeastern Thailand on Thursday, killing 10 of them, officials said.
A group of 35 monks from Mukdahan province, approximately 600km northeast of Bangkok, were on the pilgrimage when the incident happened.
Five monks died at the scene, while five others died at a hospital. More than 10 were hospitalised and one remained in critical condition, according to the provincial administration.
The bodies were taken to Mukdahan Hospital as officials worked to contact relatives.
The group started the 260km walk to Ubon Ratchathani province about 30 minutes before the crash.
Fourteen additional monks were hospitalised following the collision. The boy was in custody and police have said his parents may be charged with negligence.
The crash happened at roughly 11am on the Mukdahan-Don Tan Road near Ban Na Wiang Kae in Na Si Nuan subdistrict, Mueang district. The monks had just had a meal nearby, according to reports.
Security camera footage shared by a local rescue group, Ruam Jai Mukdahan Rescue Association, shows the monks walking in a single line on the side of a road before the truck crashes into them.
Map of the Mukdahan province:
The cause of the accident remains under investigation. However, police stated that monks present at the scene reported seeing the vehicle lose balance before it veered off the road and collided with the group.
Local reporting says Pol Col Prayut Rueanthongkham, superintendent of Mueang Mukdahan Police Station, was alerted by local residents that a vehicle had hit monks walking on a pilgrimage. Rescue workers from Ruam Jai Mukdahan Rescue, the Mukdahan Charity Foundation, Mukdahan Hospital and police were sent to the scene.
At the scene, officers found several injured monks by the roadside. Nearby was the suspected vehicle, a bronze Isuzu single-cab pickup truck.
Early reports say the pickup had been taken from the boy’s family home without permission.
Updates as we have them
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