The House urgently discussed a motion verbally to find a way to prevent the fire incident on the school bus, urging inspection of the vehicle and the readiness of the driver. Meanwhile, the MP of Uthai Thani shed tears, thanking all agencies for their full assistance, asking that this incident be a lesson leading to tangible solutions, and praising the teachers who did their duty until their last breath.
Today’s (October 2) House of Representatives meeting was chaired by Mr. Pichet Chueamuangphan, First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, to consider an urgent motion verbally requesting consideration of suggestions, opinions and guidelines for raising standards in preventing incidents from the fire incident involving a school bus on a field trip from Uthai Thani Province, which resulted in many deaths, and to find ways to provide assistance and compensation to those affected.
Mr. Jessada Thaiset, Uthai Thani MP of the Bhumjaithai Party, was the first to give a speech with sadness and a tremblin
g voice, saying that he was sorry for the incident that happened. On behalf of the people of Uthai Thani and as a family affected by this incident, he would like to thank all agencies that went to help in a timely manner and to the best of their ability, and thank you for all the hugs and words of comfort that were sent to him. He himself would like to keep the pain that happened to him to himself, let it be something that he has learned to fix and raise the level of prevention so that this kind of incident does not happen to anyone else again.
Mr. Jessada said that yesterday, he traveled to the scene of the incident. What he saw was a vehicle that was completely still, but there was a sound that he heard and knew what it was. There were also children who came to study and learn to gain as much experience as possible. They are ready to go back and tell their parents about what they encountered. However, many students and teachers still traveled back to Uthai Thani.
At the same time, I also saw a teacher who
was injured by the fire because he went to help the students, sitting and blaming himself that he still didn’t do enough, still didn’t do well enough, saw my brother unable to take care of his younger sibling, unable to take his younger sibling back, and saw the parents of the deceased walking around asking to make sure that their child was not in that car or had already returned.
However, it is believed that everyone who has heard this story feels sad and depressed. At the same time, today, members of the House of Representatives are working together to find a solution to the incident. They are asking the government to help collect opinions and suggestions to come up with concrete measures to solve the problem. They do not want to have to learn from this incident again, but rather, they want to learn and be alarmed so that they are aware of what has happened and that measures can be taken to prevent it from happening again. They also emphasize that this is not a matter of politics or any political party, bu
t rather, it is a matter of everyone who must help brainstorm and use their experiences to make serious solutions.
Mr. Jessada also paid tribute to the three teachers in the car where the accident occurred, who performed their duty until their last breath. He promised to continue the teachers’ intentions, who were ready to sacrifice themselves to protect the students.
Mr. Jittipat Wiriyaroj, MP of the Pheu Thai Party, proposed that vehicles used for transporting students, whether for field trips or traveling anywhere, must have their vehicles and drivers inspected to ensure they are as ready as possible to handle unexpected events. Vehicles must be used that use engines that are safer than those using gas. Drivers must have good responsibility. There must be measures to control the standards of field trip drivers. Drivers must have sufficient knowledge and responsibility, similar to pilots who must take care of the lives of all passengers on the plane. They must provide knowledge on how to survive in the ev
ent of an emergency like on a plane. He also proposed that a law be enacted that covers vehicle owners who must be responsible for incidents that occur so that vehicle owners do not neglect to take care of the quality and performance of their vehicles. At the same time, transport operators must be knowledgeable and understand the problems that may occur. They must also be instructed to pay more attention if it is a field trip vehicle for young students. They must be more responsible than usual.
Mr. Jittipat also said that in addition, teachers who go with the study tour group must be mindful and knowledgeable to know how to solve problems or handle accidents that may occur. In addition, educational institutions must consider the organization of study tours. If there are small children, the distance should be set and the quality of the vehicle and driver must be checked. If not ready, the study tour should be canceled.
Mr. Wirot Lakkhanaadisorn, MP for the Prachachon Party, believes that study tours are bene
ficial to students’ learning. Therefore, study tours are not a problem, but a problem in managing the safety of vehicles, especially buses and vans for public transportation of large numbers of people. If neglected, it will be very dangerous. He also noted that the vehicle involved in the accident was installed with CNG gas, but when the bus hit the side of the road, it could immediately spread fire. Therefore, the Ministry of Transport must investigate further because the vehicle is more than 50 years old and has been modified to transport passengers. It is also not registered to use CNG gas. He does not know how the annual vehicle inspection was able to pass. Therefore, the Minister of Transport must tighten the nuts by calling all public vehicles that transport large numbers of passengers and are installed with CNG gas to re-inspect their condition to confirm safety. And the Minister of Education Regulations on hiring buses must be issued to take safety into consideration in all aspects, with training for
teachers and staff to be ready to handle emergencies, including providing travel insurance for students.
Source: Thai News Agency