An 11-year-old boy runs over a group of monks in Thailand, leaving eight dead

At least eight people have died this Thursday after an 11-year-old boy driving a van ran over a group of monks in the province of Mukdahan, located in the east of the country and near the border with Laos.

The authorities have indicated that this is a “tragic incident” in which numerous people have been injured. The accident took place on the Ban Na Si Nuan road, in the Don Tan district, according to information from the newspaper ‘Thairath’.

The minor allegedly took over his parents’ truck, which he drove to the center of the town of Mukdahan, where he subsequently lost control of the vehicle and collided with a group of monks who were nearby.

Preliminary information pointed to five deaths and several injuries, although authorities have subsequently confirmed at least eight dead monks. In total, there were around thirty monks in the area at the time of the incident.

Emergency teams rushed to the scene to transport the injured to several hospitals in the area.