Vietnamese tourist badly injured in Bangkok bombing
A Vietnamese man was badly injured in his face and feet in the powerful bomb blast at a Bangkok Hindu shrine, and is being treated at a hospital in the Thai capital.
Mai Van Truong, 25, from the north-central province of Thanh Hoa, is recovering from a heel spur surgery, doctors said on August 18.
He had been hospitalized the night before with his left heel crushed and injuries to his eyes.
He had been at the Erawan shrine on August 17 when the bomb exploded and was tossed in the air.
“I heard a loud noise and found myself thrown around three meters,” he told Thanh Nien.
“I was petrified for a while before I managed to call a friend to the scene for help.”
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| Mai Van Truong, 25, is treated at a hospital in Bangkok after being injured in a bomb blast on August 17 . Photo: Nguyen Tap |
“I was petrified for a while before I managed to call a friend to the scene for help.”
Truong has been in Thailand for half a month.
His friend Le Dinh Van, who is taking care of him at the hospital, said when he reached the scene Truong had already been taken to the hospital.
At the hospital, Van found him covered in blood.
The Thai police said on August 18 they are hunting for a man in a yellow shirt seen in CCTV footage.
“The yellow shirt guy is not just the suspect; he is the bomber,” Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri, a police spokesman, told the Associated Press.
In one CCTV image released by the police, the man carries a dark-colored backpack near the shrine. In another, he no longer has the backpack.
Thailand’s police commissioner, Gen. Somyot Poompanmoung, said authorities do not yet know the man's identity or whether he is a Thai or a foreigner.
The man sat down at 6:52 p.m. and hid the backpack under a bench, he added.
Investigators said the blast was caused by a pipe bomb.
The shrine, situated at a bustling intersection near a large shopping mall, is a big draw for tourists. At least seven people from other Asian countries were reported to be among the dead.
The site is popular among Buddhists as well as Hindu and Sikh members of Thailand's Indian community.
After being cordoned off by investigators, the shrine reopened on August 19.