A car slammed into the fence of the Erawan Shrine on Friday night (July 22), injuring seven people in the compound of the popular attraction.
The Toyota sedan apparently lost control, hit the fence and came to a stop inside the shrine compound at the Ratchaprasong intersection in central Bangkok, Thai Rath reported.
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According to the Daily News, they were paying respects to the Hindu god at the shrine at the time.
Those injured were identified as Mr Jonto Kurniawan, 73, from Indonesia; Mrs Rosita Kurniawan, 56, also from Indonesia; Mrs Ong Chey Tao, 70, from Singapore; Miss Ng Icon Leng, 35, also from Singapore; Miss Leena Bong, 81, from China and Mrs Kanuengnit Techorai, 55, who was the driver of the car.
Police rushed to the area and said the driver might have had an epileptic seizure and lost control of the car. Further details on the driver and those injured have not been released.
“It was an accident,” Lumpini police commander Pornchai Chalodet told AFP of the crash. “A lady had epilepsy while driving and couldn’t control the car.”
“We were praying and then suddenly we heard a big noise and we saw a car coming inside. We ran like crazy. It was very scary. At I first thought it was a car bomb but everyone was very calm around us,” a 21-year-old tourist from Vietnam, who gave her name as Kristy, told AFP.
The Singapore government has said that it has gotten in touch with the two injured Singaporeans and will stay in touch with them to provide any assistance if needed.
The Erawan Shrine was the site of a bombing in August last year that killed 20 people and shocked the country. Two Uighur men from western China are on trial in connection with the attack, which police say was made in retaliation against a crackdown on human trafficking networks.
