News Digest

Motorcycle bomber strikes at Bangkok shrine leaving at least 15 dead

At least 15 people have been killed and many more are injured after a bomb blast in central Bangkok. It is thought a motorcyclist carried the bomb and exploded it outside the Erawan religious shrine in the downtown Chidlom district of the Thai capital, and locals said it sounded similar to a loud thunderclap. The shrine sits at the Rajprasong intersection which has been the centre of many political demonstrations in recent years. CCTV footage shows a huge orange fireball and people fleeing down the street away from the site of the explosion.

All I can say now is there has been an explosion in central Bangkok involving a motorcycle bomb.

Deputy national police chief Aek Angsananond

Police are warning there could be further devices and reports suggest at least one other device has been made safe. Bangkok resident Lucinda-Jane Chastain told Sky News: “The whole building shook. We all ran to the windows. It was quite hard to see what was happening but we could see debris in the street. All we can see is a horrible mess on the road. This is at the very heart of Bangkok.”