Boy, 11, crashes pickup into Thai monk pilgrimage, killing nine

An 11-year-old boy driving his parents’ pickup truck plowed into a Buddhist pilgrimage procession in Mukdahan province in northeastern Thailand, killing nine monks and injuring at least 11 others. The crash cut through a group that officials said included 34 Buddhist monks and five lay followers walking a 260-kilometer route from Mukdahan province to a temple in neighboring Ubon Ratchathani province.

Police said the boy took the truck without permission. Some reports said he may have special needs, but officers said they had not fully questioned him because he was in shock after the crash. Monks told investigators they saw the vehicle swerving before it slid off the road and struck the procession, underscoring how quickly a rural road can turn fatal when a fast-moving vehicle meets an exposed religious march.

Five monks died at the scene and four more later died in hospital. Other accounts said 13 people were taken to hospital, with three or four in critical condition. The dead were taken to Mukdahan Hospital as relatives were notified and officials continued the investigation.

The procession had been on foot for about 30 minutes before the collision, adding to the sense that the route was vulnerable at the very start of the journey. The crash unfolded along a pilgrimage that required monks and lay followers to move in a long line beside traffic in a region where roadside religious events are a familiar part of public life but can be difficult to protect.

The monks were later photographed resting at Phu Manorom temple while authorities worked through the aftermath. The scene raised immediate questions about how an 11-year-old was able to access and drive a pickup onto a live pilgrimage route, and how much protection was in place for a moving religious gathering of 39 people on open roads.