BANGKOK (The Nation/Asia News Network): Police have adjusted their safety measures for Songkran revellers at Bangkok’s famous Khao San Road as more than 50,000 people crowded the 400-metre-long strip on the first of the three-day countrywide water fight.
Pol Maj-General Attaporn Wongsiripreeda, commander of the Metropolitan Police Division 1, said on Friday (April 14) that the improved measures were aimed at preventing possible mishaps.
Critics voiced concern that such a large gathering of people in a small area could lead to a stampede in case of panic.
Citing safety concerns, police on Thursday night prevented more people from entering Khao San Road after it became heavily crowded with Songkran revellers. Some estimates said over 50,000 people had gathered there at the time.
Attaporn said that pedestrian traffic would be restricted to one way from the start of the strip close to Chana Songkhram Temple on Chakrabongse Road.
The Songkran celebrants have to walk along Khao San to its end at Tanao Road as they are not allowed to go “against the traffic”, as was the case on Thursday.
Those who want to re-enter Khao San Road have to walk along Soi Ram Buttri next to the famous strip and return to the starting point. Attaporn said that with this new measure, pedestrian traffic was expected to flow better.
Police set up a screening barrier around noon on Friday and informed the visitors about the adjusted rules.
Attaporn said that the number of people gathering in Khao San Road at any given time would be restricted to about 15,000.
No more people would be allowed to enter once the maximum number was reached. People would be allowed in only after those inside had left.
Alleys around Khao San Road are closed to traffic, he said. The officer admitted that the measures could cause inconvenience for revellers, but that they were meant to ensure their safety.
Khao San Road, long known as a starting point for backpacker tourists travelling around South-East Asia, has become a popular place to celebrate Songkran. However, the strip had been without tourists during the Covid-19 crisis over the past three years, when Songkran was either cancelled or held without the splashing of water.
Meanwhile, an adviser to the Bangkok governor, Pol General Adit Ngamjitsuksri, went to inspect Khao San Road on Friday. He said that carts and mobile fences that blocked people’s way and caused a bottleneck were removed.
Also, objects that blocked emergency exits in small alleys branching out from Khao San Road were cleared, he added.
The governor’s adviser said that the number of officials dispatched to Khao San had been doubled to maintain law and order there.
According to him, there were no problems involving disputes stemming from drunkenness but that authorities would not let their guard down.
“Anyone found to exceed the limit would be asked to leave the area immediately,” he said.
