Kanchanaburi, Thailand – A pickup truck carrying illegal migrant workers overturned on Highway 323 on Saturday morning, leaving four people dead and at least 31 injured, officials said.
Crash on Highway 323
The emergency call came in at about 9:00 a.m. reporting a Nissan pickup with Bangkok licence plates had crashed at kilometre marker 108 on the road between Thong Pha Phum and Kanchanaburi city. According to investigators, the left rear wheel detached, sending the vehicle across the lane and into a wooded verge, where it rolled over with such force that the container-style bed was torn free and passengers’ luggage was scattered across the scene. The pickup had been travelling at high speed when the driver lost control on a curve.
Rescue teams at the scene
Teams from the Kanchanaburi Rescue Foundation and the Pitak Karn Foundation arrived to find three people dead at the crash site and dozens of injured migrants, initially recorded as 32 — 22 men and 10 women. Six of the wounded suffered severe head injuries and breathing problems and were transferred to Phaholpolpayuhasena Hospital in Kanchanaburi for specialist care. One man died while being conveyed to hospital, bringing the confirmed death toll to four and leaving at least 31 injured.
Flight into the forest and large-scale search
Witnesses told police that many of the survivors fled into the adjacent forest after the collision, prompting an immediate search by local police, soldiers from the Lat Ya Task Force and municipal officials. Officers were able to detain ten migrants, some of whom were injured and were taken to Sai Yok Hospital for treatment. Authorities said the total number of people who escaped into the surrounding area remained unclear.
Driver fled the scene
The driver abandoned the vehicle and fled during the chaos, Police Colonel Natthawut Kantayot, chief of Sai Yok police, confirmed: ‘The driver of the pickup used the chaos to flee.’ Investigators were working to identify and arrest the driver; it remained unclear whether the suspect was Thai or a foreign national.
Broader concerns
Officials noted that the victims were all undocumented migrant workers, and the crash underlined the risks faced by people transported in improvised or overloaded vehicles. Such incidents have repeatedly resulted in fatalities, raising questions about enforcement against human smuggling and the availability of legal pathways for labour migration that might reduce the reliance on dangerous clandestine transport.