Thai driver, 48, who fled school bus fire that killed 23, surrenders to police

A 48-year-old bus driver in Thailand was handed four charges after a fire at a highway road near Bangkok killed 23 people on Oct. 1.

According to Bangkok Post, Samarn Chankut surrendered himself to the police in Ang Thong province, south of Bangkok.

He had initially fled the scene after failing to extinguish the fire.

Chankut was ferrying students from a school in the Uthai Thani province to Bangkok when the bus caught fire along Vibhavadi Rangsit Road at around 12:08pm (Bangkok time), reported Thailand English-language media Khaosod English.

Tried to extinguish fire

In a 20-minute clip filmed by a bystander and originally shared on TikTok, Chankut could be seen behaving in a frantic manner as the bus was engulfed in flames.

At the beginning of the clip, he was seen running towards the other side of the road and retrieving a fire extinguisher.

He then walked back to the bus, stopping at the second lane before placing the extinguisher on the ground.

He seemingly fiddled with the handle of the extinguisher, before the clip cut off.

The video has since been removed from the user's account.

ผู้ใช้ติ้กต้อก บันทึก ภาพ ขณะ นายสมาน จันทร์พุฒ อายุ 48 ปี คนขับรถทัวร์ พยายามเปิดประตูฉุกเฉิน หยิบถังดับเพลิงมาช่วยดับ สุดท้ายเอาไม่อยู่ก่อนหลบหนี ล่าสุด ติดต่อเข้ามอบตัวเเล้ว#บัสทัวร์นึกเรียน pic.twitter.com/gsw7hwHcKG

— ittipat pinrarod (@ittipat_tv) October 1, 2024

Surrendered to police, charged for driving with negligence

Chankut later fled and sought refuge at a relative's home in Ang Thong, according to Bangkok Post.

He then turned himself in at the Wiset Chai Chan Police Station on Oct. 1.

During investigations, he said he had experienced "deep shock" when he ran away from the fire.

Chankut said he had driven the bus at around 70kmh or 80kmh when he abruptly felt the bus losing balance as if it had encountered a pothole.

He claimed that the bus crashed into a barrier in the middle of the road and caught fire after a tyre burst, causing him to also lose control of the bus.

There were a total of 39 students and six teachers on board.

Thailand forensic science commander Trairong Phiewphan confirmed on Oct. 2 that the bus was previously using diesel for fuel, but had been installed with 10 compressed natural gas tanks.

Chankut has been charged with four counts of reckless driving causing danger to people or property, reckless driving causing death, careless driving causing physical or mental harm to other people, and failing to provide assistance after an accident.

Thai transport authority suspends bus operator licence

On Oct. 2, the Thailand Department of Land Transport (DLT) temporarily suspended the bus operator's transport licence following the incident, reported The Nation.

Jirut Wisaljit, DLT's director-general, said engineers from the department will investigate the vehicle and its safety equipment to confirm the cause of the accident.

He added that authorities will take legal action against the bus operator should investigations reveal that they are responsible for the incident.

The DLT has also urged other tour bus operators to strictly adhere to safety standards to avoid similar incidents.

Top photos via @wiwat20052536/TikTok & Fire & Rescue Thailand/Facebook