A look at train accidents in Thailand

Today’s crash is among the deadliest rail accidents Thailand has seen in years, but it is not an isolated incident.

In December 2025, dozens of passengers were injured after a locomotive collided with a stationary passenger train during a shunting operation in Kanchanaburi province.

Earlier, in August 2025, a Bangkok-bound sleeper train derailed near Kui Buri in Prachuap Khiri Khan, injuring several passengers.

In 2023, a freight train crashed into a pick-up truck that was crossing railway tracks, killing eight people and injuring four others.

While most recent incidents have resulted in injuries rather than large loss of life, they have raised repeated concerns about rail safety, operational procedures and coordination during construction work along active lines.

Over 4,500 workers were killed or injured in construction accidents in 2021, according to a study by the Workmen’s Compensation Fund in 2022.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 07:30

Passengers were ‘thrown into the air’

A member of the train’s staff has said that he and passengers were thrown into the air by the impact when the crane fell.

Thirasak Wongsoongnern told Thairath Online that the train had three carriages and most deaths and injuries occurred in the rear two carriages.

He said the train was travelling at a speed of about 120km/h when the accident happened.

He said he tried to help passengers but was unable to reach them as the second carriage had already caught fire.

A female noodle vendor near the accident site described how she was panicked, saying it was a usual day before she noticed the crane was bent and shortly after saw the crane losing balance and falling down.

She described hearing a loud clang of metal, forcing her to run to safety.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 07:15

Health ministry says all remaining passengers rescued

Thailand’s health ministry said that all passengers have been removed from the scene.

It said all injured and non-injured passengers have been removed from the scene of the accident.

At least 22 bodies were recovered and 80 people were injured in the accident.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 06:28

New pictures from crash site

Over 22 passengers are death in the accident (AP)Rescue workers are digging through debris to find trapped passengers (Courtesy of Facebook user Smith)Those killed were in two of the three carriages hit by the crane (AP)Construction was being done for a railway project (AP)

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 06:14

Thailand orders ‘comprehensive’ investigation into train incident

The governor of the State Railway of Thailand has been instructed to conduct a “thorough and comprehensive” investigation into the cause of the accident, deputy prime minister and transport minister Phipat Ratchakitprakarn said.

Ratchakitprakarn added that officials are verifying the identities of those affected and closely monitoring the injured, noting that compensation will be provided to the families of the deceased if they were railway workers.

He said there were believed to be 195 passengers on board the train at the time of the crash.

Aid workers after a construction crane fell into a passenger train in Nakhon Ratchasima province (AP)

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 06:10

What do we know about the construction?

The crane that collapsed onto the train was working on a rail project.

It was a medium-speed railway being built mainly with Thai financing as part of the broader Thai–Chinese High-Speed Railway (HSR) project.

The project began in 2017, and construction was underway under phase one of the Bangkok–Nakhon Ratchasima route.

The railway is using Chinese technology and rolling stock, following delays and operational pauses, particularly during earlier negotiations with China.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 06:01

Mapped: Where did the accident happen?

The passenger train was moving from Bangkok to Ubon Ratchathani in the north-east of Thailand when the accident happened on Wednesday morning.

The train was in the Sikhio district in the western part of Nakhon Ratchasima province, nearly 238km from the capital, Bangkok.

(The Independent )

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 05:47

Death toll rises to 22

The death toll has risen to 22, with 79 others injured, after a crane collapsed onto a train, police said.

Eight of the injured are in a serious condition.

Local police told Reuters there were more bodies in the wreckage that had yet to be retrieved.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 05:37

Around 195 passengers were on board the train

The State Railway of Thailand has said that around 195 people were on board the train that was struck by a crane on Wednesday morning.

The actual number of passengers could vary, officials said, as the estimate was based on its seating plan.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 05:30

Thai government says many passengers are trapped in the train

The Thai government’s public relations department has said that many passengers are trapped in the carriages of the train that derailed after a crane collapsed onto it.

Shweta Sharma14 January 2026 05:23