Regional and local news from across Thailand's provinces — in English, from Thai PBS World, Thailand's public broadcaster.
A total of 3,726 cases of drunk driving and 230 cases of driving under the influence have been reported in the first five days of the week-long Songkran travel period, according to the Probation Department.
Road accidents and associated fatalities and injuries during the first three days of the Songkran festival dropped by 30%, 18% and 31%, respectively, compared to the same period last year, according to the Communication Safety Command Centre.
The death toll from road accidents during the first two days of the seven-day Songkran holiday travel period has risen to 71, with 50 people killed in 208 accidents on Saturday. A further 185 people were injured.
Songkran celebrations kicked off on Saturday in Bangkok, as the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) staged a traditional procession carrying the Buddha Sihing from the Bangkok National Museum through the old city to the old City Hall, allowing members of the public to sprinkle water on the image in a merit-making ritual.
An explosion occurred on a speedboat at a pier on Phuket island, sparking a fire that killed a 23-year-old guide and injured five others.
A volunteer firefighter has been found dead near his cashew plantation, next to a community forest in Wang Chin district of the northern province of Phrae, after he was reported missing while working with other volunteers to contain a forest fire.
The Pai and Mae Sariang districts of the northernmost province of Mae Hong Son have been declared public disaster zones, because the levels of PM2.5 dust particles in the atmosphere in were measured at between 43.8 and 318.6µg/m³ (microns) today.
A firefighter lost his life as he and several other volunteers were building a firebreak in a forest in Mae Rim district of Chiang Mai province.
Thailand’s northern tourist destination, Chiang Mai, has remained the world’s most polluted city, with an AQI score of 227 for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, followed by cities in Pakistan and Myanmar.
A new wave of middle-class migrants from Myanmar has boosted Chiang Mai’s economy, injecting capital into various service sectors, according to a research report by the Surin Pitsuwan Foundation.
The northern region recorded the most hot spots and high levels of PM2.5 dust in the atmosphere compared to other regions today, according to the Pollution Control Department.
A man has been detained after he jumped into the enclosure of a world-famous pygmy hippo at an open zoo in Chonburi in an attempt to take photos and video, prompting a warning from the zoo that hippos are dangerous animals which can attack if provoked.
