BANGKOK, Oct. 12 (UPI) -- A Thai train driver should be fired for ignoring a stop signal and causing a derailment that killed eight people, officials said.
State Railway of Thailand deputy governor Pakorn Tangjetsakao, who chaired an investigation into the Oct. 5 incident, said the panel has determined that Roengsak Panthep, 49, caused the accident when he jumped a stoplight at a station, resulting in a derailment at another station in Prachuap Khiri Khan, the Bangkok Post reported Monday.
The newspaper said the panel resolved that Roengsak should be fired for reckless driving causing deaths and injuries. Other train crew members are facing 15 percent pay cuts for 10 months for failing to alert Roengsak that he wasn't complying with regulations.
The Post said Roengsak claimed he was suffering from high blood pressure and had taken medication for a fever and allergies that made him drowsy.
About 100 railway union members reportedly rallied in Bangkok Monday, blaming the derailment on workloads placed on short-staffed workers and administrative failures.
