A 62-year-old man was charged with manslaughter after he accidentally caused a tamarind tree, situated just 5 meters from the road, to collapse onto a passing pickup truck. Tragically, the male driver lost his life instantly, and his wife sustained severe injuries. This incident, which took place yesterday, was reported by Deputy Superintendent of Investigation Nitchapon Natkittisupacha from the Wang Noi Police Station in Khon Kaen. The tamarind tree was reported to have a width similar to that of a person.
The crushed Toyota pickup truck, bearing a Chaiyaphum license plate, was discovered beneath the roughly 20-meter-long tamarind tree, with the passenger compartment completely crushed. Inside the vehicle, the 59-year-old driver was found with a broken neck and a fractured skull, resulting in his immediate demise. His 58-year-old wife, who occupied the front left seat, sustained severe injuries. Rescue workers had to use a metal cutter to extricate her from the wreck and transport her to the hospital, as reported by KhaoSod.
An investigation uncovered that the landowner adjacent to the road had sold the tamarind tree to the 62-year-old, Somkhit. The tree he purchased was just five meters from the road. The accident occurred when Somkhit was in the process of cutting down the tamarind tree, causing it to fall onto the pickup truck, resulting in the husband’s fatality and the wife’s severe injuries. Subsequently, authorities questioned Somkhit and pressed manslaughter charges, initiating legal proceedings. The deceased’s body was taken to the hospital and later received by family members for religious ceremonies.
In a related incident with a more positive outcome, in June, a large tree fell onto the residence of the revered Thai monk Luang Pu Mun. Fortunately, the house remained mostly intact. This remarkable event occurred at the Wat Pa Phurithattatirawat Forest Monastery in Sakhon Nakhon, Thailand, during a period of heavy rainfall, causing multiple trees to topple around the monastery.
