Latest update at 16:45: A crane fell onto a train, raising the death toll to 31. Rescue teams are searching for 3 more missing persons. A good Samaritan described helping passengers, recalling a mother shouting to save her child first.
On 14 Jan 2026, reporters reported that a construction crane owned by the contractor of the Thai-Chinese high-speed rail project, contracts 3-4, for the Lam Takhong–Si Kiu and Kut Chik–Khok Kruat sections, fell onto Express Train No. 21 while it was passing between Nong Nam Khun and Si Kiu stations in Nakhon Ratchasima province. This caused many injuries and fatalities and blocked train traffic on that route, as previously reported.
At 16:00, the Nakhon Ratchasima provincial public relations office provided the latest update as follows:
At 16:30, Anupong Suksamanit, Governor of Nakhon Ratchasima, reported that 29 bodies have been found and 5 persons are missing. The names of the deceased cannot yet be disclosed because the bodies are badly damaged, with missing parts, some burned by fire, and identification documents lost or destroyed in the incident. Authorities must complete identity verification before confirming the victims' identities.
At 17:00 today, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is scheduled to visit the crash site to observe recovery efforts and to visit the injured.
. Uncle To An eyewitness and one of the first to assist said he was welding steel at home when he heard the crane collapse with a loud noise, followed by dust and fire. He ran to the train to help passengers and saw about three dead passengers. He saw a child trapped against a train seat and tried to help. He then heard the child's mother shout, “Don’t worry about me, please save my child first.” He immediately rescued the child and then returned to help the mother. Both were safe. However, the three deceased could not be rescued in time because the carriage caught fire. He saw the three victims burned alive and witnessed passengers in the first carriage fleeing chaotically. He shouted to them to escape first and not to worry about belongings on the train, fearing the fire would spread from carriage 2 to carriage 1.
The latest update at 16:45 reports that rescue teams have found 2 more bodies, raising the death toll to 31, with 3 still missing.
