A man was electrocuted and engulfed in flames before being swept away by strong currents in the Nan River after coming into contact with a high-voltage power line hanging from a bridge in Pichai district of Utttaradit province on Wednesday morning.
The man was attempting to secure a drifting fish raft to the bridge when the tragic incident happened in Ban Dong village Moo 3 in tambon Phaya Man of Phichai district in the northern province.
The fish raft, believed to have broken loose in tambon Tha Mafueang, was seen floating rapidly downstream due to strong currents.
Video captured the moment the raft passed under the bridge, showing a man aboard attempting to tie a rope to the structure. As the raft drifted past, the man came into contact with a hanging high-voltage cable, resulting in a powerful electric shock that engulfed his body in sparks.
He then fell into the river and disappeared beneath the fast-moving water, leaving onlookers in shock.
Jakapan Chanthrathippayarak, who chairs the Taluk Krathiam tambon administration in Phrom Phiram district of Phitsanulok province, told reporters that he had been alerted by officials in tambon Phichai earlier that a raft was drifting downstream towards his community.
A rescue volunteer and owner of the JT Motor Sound Audio business, Mr Jakapan said he drove to the bridge to assist. When the raft arrived, he recorded the video of the incident.
‘The raft was moving very fast. As soon as it passed under the bridge, the man tried to tie it but was suddenly electrocuted. His body fell into the river and disappeared,’ he said.
Rescuers later managed to retrieve the raft along the Nan River bank, but the man’s body has not yet been found.