Five foreign tourists, including a two-year-old boy, were injured when a car suddenly reversed at high speed onto a crowded pavement on Pattaya Sai 2 Road in Nong Prue on Wednesday night.
The incident occurred at approximately 7.50pm.
CCTV footage from a shop near the Pattaya Night Bazaar, also known as the “Made in Thailand Market”, captured the moment when a 57-year-old woman, whose name is ‘Pannee’, stepped into her parked white BMW. Before she could even close the door, the car surged backwards, mounting the sidewalk and ploughing into pedestrians.
The injured included a US national, an Indian couple and an Australian man and his two-year-old son, who was in a stroller at the time of impact. All five were rushed to a nearby hospital, where medical staff are monitoring them closely due to the force of the collision.
The out-of-control vehicle eventually came to a halt in front of a luggage shop, causing significant damage to merchandise and the storefront. A shop employee also sustained minor injuries.
"It was terrifying," a witness from the massage parlour with the CCTV equipment told reporters. "Usually, we sit right on the edge of the pavement while waiting for customers, but tonight we happened to be sitting further back on the steps. If we had been in our usual spots, it would have been a disaster."
The BMW driver told Pattaya City police that she had parked her car to wait for an insurance agent, following a minor scrape with a motorcycle earlier in the evening.
She claimed that, as she climbed back into the car to retrieve her driver’s license, the vehicle, which she believes had unintentionally been left in reverse gear, suddenly lurched backwards.
She expressed deep regret and stated she is willing to take full responsibility for the incident.
Pattaya police are currently analysing the CCTV footage and interviewing witnesses, to determine the exact cause of the accident, before proceeding with any legal action and compensation claims from the victims.
