Six hurt as car hits Erawan Shrine

Six hurt as car hits Erawan Shrine

A car struck the fence and stopped inside the Erawan Shrine compound on Friday night. (Photos by Panumas Sanguanwong)
A car struck the fence and stopped inside the Erawan Shrine compound on Friday night. (Photos by Panumas Sanguanwong)

A car slammed into the fence of the Erawan Shrine on Friday night, injuring at least six people in the compound of the popular attraction.

The Toyota sedan apparently lost control, hit the fence and came to a stop inside the shrine compound at the Ratchaprasong intersection in central Bangkok, Thai Rath reported.

FM 91 Traffic Police radio reported earlier that at least five people were injured, but Thai Rath said the number had risen to six. They were paying respects to the Hindu god at the shrine at the time, according to the Daily News.

Those injured were identified as Mr Jonto Kurniawan, 73, from Indonesia; Mrs Rosita Kurniawan, 56, also from Indonesia; Mrs Ong Chey Tao, 70, from Singapore; Miss Ng Icon Leng, 35, also from Singapore; Miss Leena Bong, 81, from China and Mrs Kanuengnit Techorai, 55, who was the driver of the car, the traffic radio station Jor Sor 100 reported.

Police rushed to the area and said the driver might have had an epileptic seizure and lost control of the car. Further details on the driver and those injured have not been released.

"It was an accident," Lumpini police commander Pornchai Chalodet told AFP of the crash. "A lady had epilepsy while driving and couldn't control the car."

"We were praying and then suddenly we heard a big noise and we saw a car coming inside. We ran like crazy. It was very scary. At I first thought it was a car bomb but everyone was very calm around us," a 21-year-old tourist from Vietnam, who gave her name as Kristy, told AFP.

The Erawan Shrine was the site of a bombing in August last year that killed 20 people and shocked the country. Two Uighur men from western China are on trial in connection with the attack, which police say was made in retaliation against a crackdown on human trafficking networks.

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