At the same time, Bangkok authorities have been reviewing crowd safety as the capital’s Songkran festivities draw to a close. Aranya Phonchaiya, deputy permanent secretary for the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and commander of the city’s Songkran disaster prevention and mitigation centre, said a meeting was held on April 15 at the BMA Command Center at City Hall in Din Daeng to monitor the situation and safety measures.
She said overall attendance in Bangkok from April 10 to 14 reached 3,145,215 people. Of that number, 1,521,589 joined events at 16 main highlight locations across the capital.
Silom Road recorded the highest concentration of revellers, drawing 652,974 people between April 12 and 14. At some points, daily attendance exceeded 140,000.
Officials also reported 16 fatalities from accidents across Bangkok during the period.
On Khao San Road, water-splashing activities were scheduled to end at 10pm on the final day. Aranya said the city had instructed municipal officers to work in coordination with Phra Nakhon district officials and police at screening points, particularly during the closure period when no more people would be allowed into the area, and later when crowds were being cleared after the event.
She said the city also plans to draw lessons from this year’s celebrations in each area to improve management for future festivals and support more sustainable urban event planning.
