A man was given a suspended prison sentence for riding a jet ski through water-logged Bangkok streets as the Thai capital declared a state of disaster following intense flooding.
Sorn Keadsiri, 27, deliberately made waves as he rode along the submerged Phetchaburi Road on Sunday evening, sending water spraying across pavements, pedestrian bridge steps, and roadside walls.
Several motorcyclists were also travelling through the area at the time, while other cars had been abandoned after their engines stalled in the floodwater, local media reported.
A video of the stunt, widely shared on Thailand’s social media, showed Keadsiri accelerating and making sharp turns as a friend filmed and could be heard telling him: "Nice… nice. Go straight, go straight. Go straight all the way," the Bangkok Post reported.
He had posted the footage to his own Facebook account with the caption "BKK DRIFT", though the post and account could no longer be found by Monday morning.
Nearby residents complained about the stunt and police in the capital's Makkasan area detained Keadsiri and charged him with causing a public nuisance and obstructing traffic.
The friend who filmed the video was also charged with supporting him in committing the offence, police said.
🇹🇭 When Bangkok's streets are flooded… why not bust out a jet ski?!
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) September 28, 2026
Sadly, this adventurer was arrested. He told police a ‘foreign’ friend talked him into it…
Which country do you think he was from? 😂
Writer: Jamiepic.twitter.com/ANH89eDrZb
During questioning, Keadsiri told the police he had been unaware of cultural norms because he had studied abroad, according to media reports. He said he had only wanted to make people smile during a difficult time.
“People [who make viral content] could never truly understand or experience what it’s like to actually suffer from flooding. Instead of using their greater resources to help others, they use them to make content,” rapper Thanayut Na Ayutthaya told This Week in Asia.
The Bangkok North Municipal Court sentenced him on Monday to one month in prison and a fine of 10,000 baht (£220), reduced to 15 days and 5,000 baht (£110) after he pleaded guilty.
The court suspended the prison sentence for a year and placed him on 12 months' probation. Police impounded the jet ski and said they planned to ask the court to confirm its forfeiture.
Heavy monsoon rainfall had submerged large parts of the city and forced thousands of people from their homes before the stunt, with rainfall in many areas exceeding 300mm over three days, about half of London's typical annual rainfall.
Residents have resorted to alternative means of transport through the waist-deep water, including inflatable paddling pools and shopping trolleys.
Canals have burst their banks, sending muddy water into homes, restaurants, shops and alleyways, and many business owners have moved their goods onto the streets in makeshift boats as customers become too frightened to enter flooded shops.
More than 500,000 homes and 1.7 million people across 41 provinces remained affected as of Monday, Thailand's interior ministry said.
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