Crane Collapses On Passenger Train In Thailand’s Northeast, Death Toll Reaches 25

At least 25 people were killed and around 80 others injured after a construction crane collapsed onto a passenger train in northeastern Thailand on Wednesday morning, causing several carriages to derail, Reuters reported.

The accident took place in the Sikhio district of Nakhon Ratchasima province, about 230 km northeast of Bangkok, when a crane being used for an elevated high-speed rail project fell onto a train travelling from the Thai capital to Ubon Ratchathani province.

Local police said the crane struck three carriages, with the impact forcing the train off the tracks and sparking a brief fire in one of the affected coaches. The blaze was later brought under control, after which rescue teams began searching through the wreckage.

“The death toll has now reached 25. The search for more bodies is ongoing,” Police Colonel Thatchapon Chinnawong told Reuters by phone.

Transport Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said there were 195 passengers on board the train at the time of the crash and that he had ordered a full investigation into the incident. Those killed were travelling in two of the three carriages hit by the crane, he said.

Images released by the transport ministry showed overturned carriages lying beside shrubland, while firefighters were seen battling flames as thick smoke rose from the wreckage. Video footage of the site, verified by Reuters, showed rescue workers attempting to extract victims from a buckled carriage, with several badly injured passengers already being loaded into ambulances.

Police said emergency operations were continuing after the fire was extinguished, as teams worked to assist survivors and recover bodies from the derailed train, Reuters reported.

The high-speed rail project, one of several currently under construction in Thailand, runs above the existing railway line. Part of the collapsed crane remains suspended by supporting stanchions built for the new route.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a regular press briefing that Beijing attached great importance to the safety of overseas projects and personnel and was examining the situation.

“At present, it seems that the relevant section was under construction by a Thai enterprise. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.”

The rail line is expected to eventually connect Thailand to China via Laos.

The Thai government said last year that more than one-third of construction had been completed on the Bangkok–Nakhon Ratchasima section, with the full route to Nong Khai, near the Lao border, scheduled for completion by 2030.

(With inputs from Reuters)