SAMUT PRAKAN, Thailand – A luxury electric Porsche rolled backwards into a canal in Bang Phli district on 5 September after its owner left the vehicle unattended on a sloping frontage outside an automotive parts shop, sending the car across a road and into nearly five metres of water. The dramatic incident, captured on closed-circuit television footage, unfolded in a matter of seconds and resulted in no injuries, though it caused significant traffic disruption as rescue teams worked for hours to retrieve the submerged vehicle.

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The car, bearing an auction personal registration plate, had been parked outside the owner’s shop on Khlong Send Nam Suvarnabhumi Road in Bang Pla. The owner had stepped out of the vehicle only moments before it began to roll backward, crossing the thoroughfare and plunging into the Suvarnabhumi water-supply canal. The waterway, used for local supply purposes, proved deep enough to fully submerge the electric sports car, leaving only traces of its disappearance visible on nearby security cameras.

Upon realising what had occurred, the owner immediately contacted traffic police from Bang Phli Police Station and summoned Bang Phli rescue workers to assist with the recovery effort. Officials deployed a large crane to the scene, and the operation to lift the Porsche from the canal stretched over two hours. During this time, one lane of the road was temporarily closed to facilitate the heavy lifting, resulting in traffic queues that extended for several kilometres and caused delays for motorists travelling through the area.

The owner’s son later provided an account of the sequence of events, explaining that his mother had arrived at the shop and exited the vehicle without having turned off the engine, engaged the Park setting or applied the parking brake. Within less than a minute of her departure, the car rolled backward across the road and into the canal. He noted that other drivers travelling along the road spotted the runaway vehicle and managed to brake in time, narrowly avoiding collisions with the Porsche as it made its unguided descent into the water.

The family expressed their apologies to patrons of the shop and to the wider community, acknowledging that the incident should serve as a cautionary tale for all motorists. They emphasised the critical importance of thoroughly checking that a vehicle is securely stationary before exiting, regardless of how brief the intended absence may be. The Porsche, a relatively new imported electric vehicle that had been ordered less than two years prior, was covered by voluntary insurance, which is expected to mitigate the financial impact of the accident.

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The episode has drawn attention to the particular risks associated with electric vehicles, which operate silently and may not provide the same auditory cues as internal combustion engines to alert drivers that they remain active. While the vehicle’s advanced engineering did not prevent the rollaway, the incident has prompted local residents and business owners to renew calls for heightened vigilance when parking on inclined surfaces. The swift response of emergency services ensured that the canal was not contaminated by battery fluids or other hazardous materials, though authorities are continuing to monitor the water quality as a precautionary measure.

-Thailand News (TN)