Eight Buddhist monks were killed and 13 other people injured when a pickup truck struck a walking pilgrimage in northeastern Thailand on Thursday, in a tragedy that has shaken a country where such processions are a familiar sight.
What happened
The crash took place in Mukdahan province, in Thailand's northeast, at around midday, Khaosod English reported, citing police. A group of about 30 monks was walking along a roadside as part of a pilgrimage on foot — reportedly heading toward the district of Don Tan — when the pickup truck ran into them.
Five of the monks died at the scene and three more later died of their injuries in hospital, police said. Thirteen others were injured, several of them seriously. Emergency services took the casualties to nearby hospitals, and officers sealed off the area to gather evidence.
The driver
Police said their preliminary investigation indicated that the pickup was being driven by a juvenile, who had allegedly taken the vehicle without the permission of a parent or guardian before the collision, according to Xinhua. The Bangkok Post reported that the driver was a boy of about 11, though some early accounts gave slightly different ages. Thailand's minimum age to drive is 18. Authorities have not released the child's identity, consistent with the legal protections afforded to minors, and the circumstances remain under investigation.
As with any such case, the details are preliminary and the driver is entitled to a presumption of innocence while investigators establish what happened and whether any charges will follow.
A country of pilgrimages
Walking pilgrimages and processions by monks — including early-morning alms rounds and longer devotional journeys — are common across Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country where monks are widely revered. That the victims were monks on a religious walk has lent the crash particular resonance, and images of saffron robes at the roadside spread quickly on Thai media.
The tragedy also draws renewed attention to Thailand's road-safety record, one of the worst in the world. The country consistently records high numbers of road deaths, and accidents involving pedestrians on rural roadsides are a persistent danger. Road-safety campaigners have long pressed for tougher enforcement and better protection for people walking along the country's highways.
For now, the immediate focus is on the victims and their monastic communities. Authorities said the investigation into the cause of the crash is continuing, and the confirmed toll could change as injured survivors are treated.
