2 Killed After Car Plunges off Loei Mountain

A file photo of Phu Tok in Loei’s Chiang Khan province.

LOEI — Two passengers were killed after a truck plummeted from a cliff on the Phu Tok mountain in Loei’s Chiang Khan district.

Nitat Raweewonganotai, 39, and Sasiwimol Prom-ngam, 26, died after a pickup shuttling people up the mountain slid off a cliff while they were on the way down Tuesday afternoon. The vehicle fell 50 meters.

The driver, 45-year-old Suriya Boopa, was still being treated at a hospital as of Wednesday morning.

Police are investigating the cause of the accident. Chaiwat Chuenkosum, the provincial governor, ordered additional, unspecified safety measures at all tourist attractions.

Phu Tok is a small mountain popular with tourists for offering views of a “sea of fog” and the Mekong River. No personal vehicles are allowed up to the mountain’s peak, only vehicles regulated by officials.