The Ministry of Transport is stepping up safety measures for public transport to improve passenger safety following a tragic bus fire that claimed the lives of 20 students and three teachers on Tuesday.
The response will include checks on thousands of buses using compressed natural gas (CNG), standard requirements for buses used on school field trips, and safety training for teachers and students.
Authorities were responding to reports that the bus involved in Tuesday’s tragedy in Pathum Thani had been in service for more than 50 years, had been modified multiple times, and that the CNG modifications were improper.
Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit said a special committee would work on both urgent and long-term measures aimed at enhancing safety in all types of vehicles and reducing the severity of accidents.
Experts from the Engineering Institute of Thailand will be asked to join the committee, which will also inspect the ill-fated bus and safety equipment on board, as well as the cause of the fire, he said.
The Department of Land Transport (DLT), meanwhile, will tighten controls on modified vehicles and is prepared to order all vehicles using CNG to come in for an for inspection.
It will also issue standard requirements for buses used on field trips while provincial transport offices will assist schools in selecting appropriate vehicles. Teachers and students will be given advice on how to use onboard safety equipment, including safety belts, hammers, emergency exits and fire extinguishers.
“In terms of emergency response, travel plans must be prepared by the transport safety manager who will select routes, designate rest stops and inspect vehicles and drivers,” said the minister.
Citing an initial report from the DLT, Mr Suriya said the bus involved in Tuesday’s fire was a single-deck bus, not a double-decker, and was equipped with the required safety equipment onboard. The emergency door at the rear was functional, he said.
The bus was carrying 39 students, from Kindergarten 2 to Mathayom 3, and six teachers from Wat Khao Praya Sangkharam school in Lan Sak district of Uthai Thani, on a field trip. It caught fire on an inbound lane of Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, near the Zeer Rangsit shopping centre in Lam Luk Ka district.
An inspection on Wednesday found no signs of a front tyre explosion as reported earlier. DLT officials and a police forensic team are now inspecting the CNG installation system, brake and steering systems to determine the cause of the fire, according to Mr Suriya.
Early reports from first responders said the front left tyre had blown out, causing the wheel to catch fire. The driver lost control and the bus swerved into the median barrier. Flames rapidly engulfed the vehicle.
Mr Suriya said the ministry was also considering restricting the use of double-decker buses to inner-city areas only and prohibiting their use for interprovincial transport.
Operating licences suspended
The DLT has suspended the transport operation licence granted to Panisara Chinnaboot, operator of Sing Buri-based Chinnaboot Tour. The licence will be revoked if the investigation reveals the tragedy was caused by negligence on the company’s part, he said.
The registration of Kanittha Chinnaboot as the company’s transport safety manager has been revoked and an investigation ordered into Alternative Resource Engineering Co, which provides gas-fuelled vehicle inspection and testing services.
Mr Suriya said the licence of the bus driver, identified as Samarn Chanphut, 48, who turned himself in to police on Tuesday night, has also been suspended.
Deputy Transport Minister Surapong Piyachote said the DLT would order all 13,426 vehicles using CNG to be inspected within 60 days, starting with 2,935 non-scheduled buses. The permits will be revoked if they fail to meet the standards required.
A law will be introduced to require employment of staff on board non-scheduled buses, similar to those on public buses. They must receive training and pass an emergency response and passenger assistance test, he said.
Bus operators will be required to provide guidelines for emergencies, similar to what airlines do, he added.
For the long term, the ministry will overhaul regulations involving all passenger vehicles which include phasing out gas-fuelled buses, he said. (Story continues below)
A relative of one of the victims of Tuesday’s bus fire prays as she prepares to leave with the body from the forensic institute at the Police General Hospital in Bangkok on Wednesday. (Photo: Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha)
‘Hold owners accountable’
Grieving families wept as they offered prayers on Wednesday for the victims at the site of the accident in Pathum Thani.
Others gathered outside the Police General Hospital in Bangkok where the remains of the 20 children and three teachers were returned to relatives after DNA testing was needed to identify them because they were so badly burned in the inferno.
Monks and staff at the school in Uthai Thani began preparations for five days of funeral prayers for the victims, who are expected to be cremated next Tuesday.
Jayseth Thaiseth, a Bhumjaithai MP for Uthai Thani, on Wednesday urged the House of Representatives to explore ways to enhance safety measures to prevent another tragedy.
Pheu Thai MP Jittipot Wiriyarote said laws should be amended to hold vehicle owners accountable to ensure they keep up with vehicle maintenance and properly oversee their drivers.
Some groups have called for school field trips to be scrapped, and the Ministry of Education has ordered a suspension pending improvements to the safety of bus passengers.
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said the problem is not with school trips as they enable students to widen their horizons, but with improperly maintained and inspected buses.
Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn of the opposition People’s Power Party also said field trips are valuable for students’ learning, while the real issue at stake is safety management of public vehicles.
Thailand has the second-worst road safety record in Asia, after Nepal, with around 20,000 deaths reported every year — an average of more than 50 a day.
Police cordon off the scene of the bus fire in Pathum Thani as investigations into the cause of the fire that killed 23 people begin. (Photo: Pongpat Wongyala)