Man found dead on flooded village road in Thailand

Local residents found a man lying dead on a flooded road in a village in the Muang district of this eastern Central province on Sunday morning, police said.

Police, a doctor from Chao Phraya Abhaibhubejhr Hospital, and rescuers attended the scene to investigate being alerted to the death at about 8 am by Chamnian Somkhun, the headman of Thung Talumphuk village in tambon Non-Hom.

They found the swollen body of the man on the road, which was about 1 meter underwater, about 500 meters from Wat Thung Talumphuk temple. He was believed to have died about eight hours previously. No traces of bodily harm or wounds were found on him.

Found near the body were an old bicycle and a pair of canvas shoes. The man was wearing a sports undershirt and a pair of black shorts.

He was identified as Pricha Thongkampa, 48, from Kaeng Hang Maew district of Chanthaburi province. The man had lived alone in a hut at the edge of Thung Talumphuk village, making a living with manual labor.

Mr. Chamnian, the village headman, said Pricha was last seen at about 10 pm on Saturday riding his bicycle back to his hut after drinking some liquor with friends. He was thought to have fallen into the water and drowned.