AYUTTHAYA — One person was killed and 23 hurt when a tractor-trailer ploughed into the rear of eight vehicles sitting at a red light in Bang Pa-in district Tuesday night.
Pitsanu Changmuang, 33, died trapped in the wreckage of his black Honda at the Uthai intersection on Rojana Road in tambon Samruen around 8pm. Two other people in the car and the truck driver were injured, said Pol Col Wichian Sucharthansanthia, a duty officer at Bang Pa-in district police.
Seven other vehicles waiting at the signal, including a shuttle bus, also were damaged in the chain-reaction pileup caused by the Bangkok-registered truck.
Police said a total of 23 people in the nine vehicles, including the 18-wheeler, were hurt. Three sustained serious injuries. All were rushed to a nearby hospital. The incident caused traffic congestion in the area for more than three hours.
A police investigation found more than 20 vehicles were waiting the red light at the main intersection when the truck, travelling at high speed, rammed into the rear of the Honda, setting off the crash.
Truck driver Theerayut Thuakrathok, 33, was held in police custody to face charges of reckless driving causing death and injuries.