On Sunday, April 27, 2025, a taxi driver in Phuket, Thailand, was charged after allegedly obstructing an ambulance carrying a heart attack patient, who later died en route to hospital care.
The incident occurred in the Kamala community within the Kathu district. Pradit Dumlak, 62, collapsed while working in a durian orchard. At approximately 8:15 a.m., relatives called for an ambulance from Patong Hospital. On its way to the hospital along the narrow Kamala-Patong Road, the ambulance was reportedly impeded by a limousine taxi, according to eyewitness accounts cited by Mcot Phuket.
Witnesses stated the taxi attempted to maneuver around a parked vehicle but instead blocked the ambulance, which was actively transporting the critically ill patient. Despite paramedics’ efforts to revive Dumlak inside the ambulance, he was pronounced dead at 8:45 a.m.
Following the incident, local police reviewed security footage and summoned the taxi driver for questioning. Authorities subsequently charged the driver with obstructing an emergency vehicle and violating the rights of a patient.
Officials involved in the investigation were not immediately named. The incident has prompted renewed discussions about the importance of yielding to emergency services on Thailand’s roads.
