A double-deck coach bound for Songkhla province skidded off a road and crashed into a tree early this morning in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, killing at least 14 and injuring many others.

The coach, carrying 46 passengers and three crew, had left Bangkok’s Southern Bus Terminal, en route to Nathawi district in Songkhla.

The accident occurred near Hatwanakorn National Park at about 1am. Police at the scene reported that the coach belongs to Srisiam Tours.

From a preliminary investigation, 14 people died and 32 people were injured,” Arnon Tangto, a police investigator in Huay Yang district in Prachuap Khiri Khan told AFP, saying a probe is under way.

He said the cause of the accident has not been confirmed, but police suspect the driver — who was badly injured but survived — may not have had enough sleep. “We are collaborating with the hospital to check his blood alcohol level.”

The police are still investigating whether the dead were all Thai.

The rescue team found many passengers trapped inside the vehicle and the injured were rushed to Thap Sakae and Prachuap Khiri Khan hospitals.