Thai PM sends condolences to families of victims in Cambodian festival tragedy

BANGKOK, Nov 23 - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Tuesday extended condolences to Cambodian premier Hun Sen to the families of hundreds of lives lost in a stampede at the annual water festival in Cambodia.

The stampede occurred Monday on a narrow bridge, greatly overcrowded, in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.

"On behalf of the Government and people of Thailand, I wish to extend my sincere condolences and sympathy to you and, through you, to the bereaved families of the victims in this tragic incident.

"My thoughts are with the people of Cambodia in this difficult time. The Thai Government is ready to provide support and assistance to our friends in Cambodia,” Mr Abhisit said in the statement to his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen.

Thailand Tuesday offered an initial 30,000 dollars in emergency aid to Cambodia following the deadly tragedy.

At least 378 people were killed in a stampede on Koh Pich Bridge at the annual festival for the Great Lake, a Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said Tuesday, adding that the number of casualties was still rising.

Many of the deaths were caused by suffocation and internal injuries, reports indicated, some 755 more people injured in Monday’s tragedy. (MCOT online news)

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