Sisaket: Royal water was bestowed upon the bodies of seven innocent people during a solemn ceremony in Sisaket Province. The ceremony was held to honor those who tragically lost their lives at a gas station in Kantharalak District following a Cambodian attack.
According to Thai News Agency, the event took place at Wat Maha Phuttharam, a royal temple also known as Wat Phra To. His Majesty the King graciously provided royal bathing water and laid wreaths on the bodies of the seven victims who perished in the unrest along the Thai-Cambodian border. Six of the deceased were civilians killed at a gas station in Ban Phue, while one individual died from a bomb attack on a house in Village No. 4, Sao Thong Chai Subdistrict. Sisaket Province Governor Mr. Anupong Suksomnit presided over the ceremony, attended by the families of the deceased. Merit-making ceremonies and the chanting of Buddhist scriptures will be conducted nightly until August 2, leading up to the royal cremation ceremony on August 3.
Mr. Khomsan, a 40-year-old husband and father to some of the victims, shared his grief after retrieving the bodies of his wife and two children from Sisaket Hospital. With the help of a volunteer, makeup was applied to their bodies as he bid them a final farewell. He expressed that he has not dreamt of them since their passing, likely due to insomnia. Mr. Khomsan plans to rely on government assistance for funeral arrangements and welfare, vowing to remain strong and persevere for his late wife and children, as his wife had always encouraged him to do.
In a related development, Khon Kaen residents gathered to pay their respects to Sergeant Major Apirom Songput, or Sergeant Yam, who was killed while defending Thai national sovereignty along the Thai-Cambodian border on July 29th. Holding Thai national flags, the locals stood in front of the PTT gas station in Ban Thum, Mueang Khon Kaen District, as Sergeant Yam’s body was transported back to his hometown in Dan Sai District, Loei Province.
One resident remarked that upon learning of Sergeant Yam’s body being transported via Maliwan Road, they stood with the national flag to offer support to the surviving soldiers and their families, expressing gratitude for their sacrifice. Sergeant Yam’s body is scheduled to arrive at the Silvisuttho Nong Khong crematorium at Wat Neramit Vipassana in Dan Sai District, where the royal cremation ceremony will occur on August 4th.