Tragic flood in Kanchanaburi: Officials braved forests and floodwaters to find the bodies of two mother and daughter victims swept away when their pickup truck was caught in flash floodwaters in Thong Pha Phum. Their bodies were pinned under tree branches only 10 meters apart.
On 29 Sep 2026, reports confirmed that a pickup truck was swept off the road into fast-flowing water. After the incident, officials and eyewitness villagers narrowly rescued two men alive, while two others were swept away by the current. The event occurred around 17:00 on 27 Sep 2026 near Ban Huai Suea, Village No. 1, Cha Lae Subdistrict, Thong Pha Phum District, Kanchanaburi.
The two missing persons were Mrs. Tong, 55, and her daughter Nicha, 12. They were mother and daughter. Nicha was a fifth grader at Ban Huai Suea School.
Mr. Anusorn Sanga-saeng, District Chief of Thong Pha Phum, Mr. Akkhanit Klangprapan, Head of Lam Khlong Ngu National Park, along with park officials, Thong Pha Phum Police Station officers, Pitak Kanchan Foundation at Thong Pha Phum, volunteers from the Disaster Relief Unit of Thailand, base Than 34-00 Boonwipa, Kanchanaburi Rescue Foundation, local administrative officers, Mr. Boy Tha Khanun's four-wheel-drive team, and villagers mobilized continuously to search for the missing.
At 22:00, the search was suspended for the safety of officials due to nighttime and the flash flood’s intensity, which made search operations difficult and hazardous for all personnel involved.
On the morning of 28 Sep, the officials regrouped to resume the search, establishing a temporary command center. Mr. Sathaporn Thongphumphatthavee, Kanchanaburi Provincial Administrative Organization member for Thong Pha Phum, and Mr. Nitiphon Tantiwanich, headman of Cha Lae Subdistrict, joined the effort. Despite exhaustive searching, no signs were found. The accident site was rugged and isolated, with no phone or internet signals, forcing officials to communicate solely via radio.
Despite the challenges and dangers of the search, officials and villagers prayed for a miracle that the mother and daughter would be found safe and alive. Unfortunately, the hoped-for miracle did not occur.
At 15:00, officials intensified their search downstream in lower areas where floodwaters flowed, carefully navigating debris and fallen trees. Eventually, they found Nicha, 12, lying on her back pinned under tree branches. Officials carried her body to the temporary command post, requiring considerable effort. District Chief Anusorn Sanga-saeng personally visited the site.
Officials then concentrated on searching for Mrs. Tong. By 18:00, they found her body also lying on her back pinned under a large tree branch. The location was only about 10 meters from Nicha’s body, both having been swept approximately 300 meters from the accident site by floodwaters.
After clearing debris and branches pinning the bodies, officials carefully carried them out. The rescue was difficult due to having to navigate steep, waterfall-like slopes through floodwaters.
Once the bodies were retrieved, officials coordinated with the Thong Pha Phum Police Station investigators and the duty doctor at Thong Pha Phum Hospital. The Pitak Kanchan Foundation at Thong Pha Phum volunteered to transport the mother and daughter for autopsy at Thong Pha Phum Hospital. The family did not dispute the cause of death.
Most recently, at 01:30 on 29 Sep, officials completed moving the mother and daughter’s bodies to their home in Village No. 1, Cha Lae Subdistrict, Thong Pha Phum District, for religious funeral rites.