https://arab.news/yd8vv
- Former policeman shot dead 36 people, mostly toddlers
- Locals gripped by fear after nation’s worst mass shooting
BANGKOK: Devastated families in northeastern Thailand gathered on Tuesday for the cremation of their loved ones who were killed in a massacre at a nursery that claimed the lives of 36 people, 24 of them children.
Thailand has been shaken by the tragedy that took place at the daycare center in Uthai Sawan area of Na Klang district in Nong Bua Lamphu province last week. It was the worst mass shooting by a sole perpetrator in the country’s history.
Dressed in black and holding portraits of their lost loved ones, family members sat at three nearby temples in Na Klang, where cremation ceremonies took place. They were accompanied by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and two deputy prime ministers — Jurin Laksanawisit and Supattanapong Punmeechaow.
The prime minister did not speak, and his deputy, Laksanawisit, only briefly offered condolences to grieving families.
“Those who have been hurt, I hope they recover as quickly as possible,” he said.
The funerals, sponsored by the Thai royal household, ended three days of national mourning, but grief and fear are likely to grip the local community much longer.
Anurak Paengnoi, a 40-year-old Uthai Sawan administration official, told Arab News there was a persisting sense of fear in the area.
“We still feel this. We are in a panic. Fellow officers in the subdistrict authority office feel the same. It just happened to us. We are in terrible condition. It’s simply horrible,” she said. “It’s indescribable. We still cannot overcome this tragedy.”
Police have identified the attacker as former officer Panya Kamrab, who was dismissed from service earlier this year for possession of drugs.
Kamrab went to the daycare center to see his son and started shooting indiscriminately when he could not find him there.
After the massacre, he shot himself fatally at his own home, where his wife and son were also found dead.