Son Finds 85-Year-Old Father Dead in Canal
An 85-year-old man in Samut Songkhram drowned in a canal after likely suffering a sudden health episode from his chronic high blood pressure while working near the water. His son found him face-down in the mud after returning from eating no
Samut Songkhram — A son returned home from eating noodles to find his 85-year-old father dead face-down in a canal next to the house. Police believe the man suffered a sudden health episode related to his chronic condition, causing him to lose consciousness and drown in the mud.
On August 17, Sub-Lieutenant Pisasin Noo-pinit of Bang Khun Thian Police Station received a report of a drowning victim in a canal in Tambon Bang Sakaek, Amphoe Bang Khun Thian, Samut Songkhram. Officers rushed to the scene with duty doctor Kanokwan Chameenichai from Naphalalai Hospital and rescue staff from the Samut Songkhram Sarn Pra Rajesohn Foundation.
At a waterway connecting to the house in Moo 1, Bang Sakaek, they found the body of an 85-year-old man, a garden owner, shirtless and face-down in the mud beneath a wooden bridge. Rescue workers pulled the body up for preliminary examination by a medical examiner. No wounds or signs of assault were found. The man was estimated to have been dead for at least one to two hours.
Nat, 57, the deceased's son and the one who discovered him, recalled that around 3 p.m. he saw his father resting in a hammock under the house. He left to eat noodles outside and returned around 4:30 p.m., but could not find his father. After searching for more than half an hour, he heard his father's phone ringing near the waterside pavilion. Upon investigating, he found the phone and bag, then looked under the bridge and spotted his father face-down in the mud.
Nat explained that his father was a diligent, hardworking man who regularly did tasks around the house. He likely went down to clean the canal or dig mud from a water pump line to prepare for watering the garden, work he did routinely. However, his father suffered from high blood pressure and frequently experienced dizzy spells. Nat believes his father suddenly lost consciousness while working by the canal, fell in, and was unable to save himself.
Initially, the duty doctor and police suspected the man died after losing consciousness from his chronic illness while working by the canal and falling into the mud. The family did not contest the cause of death, and officers handed the body to relatives to proceed with funeral arrangements.
