A Thai motorcyclist miraculously survived after dozing off while riding on a motorway in the central province of Ayutthaya and slamming directly into the back of a truck.
A Thai woman witnessed the incident while travelling with her family and recorded a video, which she later shared on her Facebook account, Supattra Srithara, on Sunday, June 29. In the video caption, she wrote, “A motorcycle on a motorway. Hope the rider is safe.”
In the footage, the motorcyclist is seen riding in the left lane, occasionally swerving into adjacent lanes. Supattra and her family can be heard discussing the rider, suspecting that he fell asleep.
Moments after Supattra commented on his apparent drowsiness, the motorcyclist crashed directly into the back of the truck, prompting screams of shock from her and her family.
The video quickly went viral among Thai netizens, with many fearing that the rider had died in the crash. However, Supattra later updated her followers, saying she was contacted by the motorcyclist’s friend, who confirmed that he only sustained minor injuries.
Supattra shared with Channel 3 on Sunday, June 30, that her family was returning home after visiting a temple in Ayutthaya. Just five minutes after entering the motorway, she noticed the motorbike, despite motorcycles being prohibited on motorways, travelling in the left lane.
Her family honked the horn in an attempt to warn the rider to exit the road, but he ignored them. Supattra said she then noticed him nodding off, so they repeatedly honked the horn in hopes of waking him, but to no avail.
Supattra admitted she did not stop to help the rider as she was travelling with elderly relatives and young children. Instead, she decided to post the video online in case the rider’s family happened to see it.
She later spoke with a friend of the motorcyclist, who told her that he was admitted to the hospital for one day and was now recovering at home. News of his survival made the video even more viral.
In a similar incident reported on June 8, a Thai man crashed his car into the back of a 10-wheel truck on a road in Pathum Thani province and tragically lost his life. His head was reportedly severed and found in the back seat. Compared with this tragedy, the survival of the motorcyclist in Ayutthaya was nothing short of a miracle.
According to Section 139 of the Land Transport Act, a motorcyclist who uses a prohibited expressway can face a fine of up to 1,000 baht. It was not included in the report whether the rider faced any legal punishment for the incident.
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