Top National Thailand Stories From the Past Week: 264 Songkran Road Deaths, and more

Here is a look at the top NATIONAL Thailand stories, chosen by our Pattaya News/TPN National team, from last week, Monday, April 17th, 2023, to Sunday, April 23rd, 2023.

They are not in any particular level of importance but are listed in the order of date of publication.

Let’s get started and see what the top stories were!

1. At least four bodies were found and six people have been rescued after many local fishing boats capsized in Nakhon Si Thammarat during recent heavy storms.

A ferry was partially submerged and damaged after being hit by waves at a pier near Samui Island.

Strong winds during Songkran have damaged the homes of more than 1,700 families in the northeast of Thailand.

The storms caused widespread damage in some parts of Thailand just prior to Thailand entering the rainy season according to the Thai Meteorological Department.

2. An outrageous shooting at Bangkok’s popular Songkran site at the Royal City Avenue (RCA) left four people injured in the early hours of on April 17th.

Two alleged gunmen in connection witj injuring four people by gunshots at Bangkok’s bustling entertainment hotspot, Royal City Avenue (RCA), on April 17th have been apprehended by authorities.

The outrageous incident angered many on social media.

3. A total of 2,203 road accidents, with 2,208 injuries and 264 deaths, were reported by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) for the Seven Days of Danger road safety campaign during Songkran (April 11th – April 17th).

The highest number of fatalities was in Bangkok with 22 deaths. The highest number of accidents was in Chiang Rai with 68 accidents. The highest number of injuries was in Nakhon Si Thammarat with 70 injuries. This was actually a significant reduction in deaths year over year during Songkran as a nation. This is even more impressive as entertainment parts of Songkran were banned in 2022.

4. Lin Hui, Thailand’s famous giant panda, sadly died this morning, April 19th, at Chiang Mai Zoo in northern Thailand, officials have confirmed.

Chiang Mai locals and netizens across the country bid their farewell to Lin Hui.

5. Thailand has seen a 30% surge in booze sales during the recent Songkran festival in contrast to a declined number of drunk traffic accidents nationally during the festival year over year, according to Thanakorn Kuptachit, an advisor to the Thai Alcohol Business Association.

Thanakorn urged the new government being elected in May to fast track the extension of legal closing times for nightspots and cancel the alcohol sale prohibition between 2 PM to 5 PM in tourist spots in order to stir up spirit and tourism businesses.

And, that is all for this week. Thank you as always for reading the Pattaya News/TPN News!

The original version of this article appeared on our sister website, The TPN National News, owned by our parent company TPN media.

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