KHON KAEN: Five family members, including three children, were killed when their pickup collided with a six-wheel truck during heavy rain in Chumphae district in the early hours of Saturday.
The collision occurred on the Chumphae-Chomphu Road at around 1am, said Pol Cap Suphon Dumklang, deputy investigation chief at the Chumphae police station.
Police and rescue workers found the six-wheel truck with Nong Bua Lam Phu licence plates and the pickup with Khon Kaen plates badly damaged during a heavy downpour. Five people were found dead inside the pickup. All were retrieved from the wreckage.
The victims were identified as Phon Thungnok, 41; Atthaphon Hatsapak, 39; Siwakorn Hatsapak, 15; Sathit Thungnok, 13; and Chonthicha Thungnok, 13, all from Champhae district.
Truck driver Pakdee Khamruang, 47, sustained injuries and was detained for questioning, said Pol Capt Suphon.
An initial police investigation found that the truck, loaded with second-hand radiators, was travelling from Nakhon Ratchasima to deliver the goods in Nong Bua Lam Phu when it crashed head-on with the pickup, which had lost control and blocked the road during heavy rain.
Mr Pakdee has been charged with reckless driving causing death.