The bodies of 20 children and three teachers were recovered after a bus carrying schoolchildren crashed and caught fire near Bangkok.
The bus was returning to Bangkok from a school excursion to Thailand’s north.
Flames engulfed the bus as it burnt under a flyover, sending large clouds of dense black smoke into the sky.
The driver surrendered to authorities 100 kilometres (61 miles) north of Bangkok, according to local media.
Shortly after the horrific incident, footage showed the driver attempting to extinguish the flames, but he apparently departed the site.
According to witnesses, the bus drove into the concrete barrier dividing the highway just north of Bangkok after a front tire exploded.
An violent fire swiftly devoured the bus, leaving many passengers unable to escape.
The cause of the fire is currently unknown. Nineteen students and three teachers are said to have survived, with sixteen of them being treated in hospital for their injuries.
Transport Minister Suriyahe Juangroongruangkit stated that the vehicle was powered by “extremely risky” compressed natural gas.
“This is a very tragic incident,” Mr. Suriyahe told reporters at the scene.
“The ministry must find a measure, if possible, for passenger vehicles like this to be banned from using this type of fuel because it’s extremely risky.”
Piyalak Thinkaew, who was leading the search, said the bodies were difficult to identify since they were so badly burnt.
“Some of the bodies we found were very, very small,” he told reporters at the scene, adding that the fire started at the front of the bus.
65 “The kids’ instinct was to escape to the back so the bodies were there,” he said.
According to forensic police, eleven of the 23 remains found were male, seven were female, and five were unidentified.
The ages of the youngsters on board are unknown; however, the school accepts students aged three to fifteen.
Thailand has one of the world’s worst road safety records, with hazardous vehicles and poor driving causing over 20,000 fatalities each year.
Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, stated that an investigation was underway.
“We have to investigate the trace of driving from the tire marks, the burning trace, and CCTV footage,” according to him.
