A Scottish tourist was killed and a second seriously injured after crashing a motorcycle into the back of a rubbish truck on a Thai island.
James Stephenson Young, 36, and a friend, Pierre, 30 are believed to have been drinking at a local bar on Koh Samui before trying to ride back to their hotel in the early hours of Thursday morning.
They are believed to have ploughed the white Honda scooter into the back of the bright yellow garbage truck while trying to overtake the vehicle as made a turn on a dark narrow road at around 1 am local time.
Police and paramedics arrived at the scene and performed CPR on James, who had been a pillion passenger, for around 10 minutes. However, James, from Bonnyrigg, in Edinburgh, Scotland, was pronounced dead and found to have a broken neck and severe head wounds.
Pierre, whose surname has not been released, was taken to the Koh Samui Hospital for treatment.
Officers said that several beer cans were found in the under-seat storage compartment of the motorcycle and they will question the survivor once he is stable.
Garbage truck driver Atthaphon Wichien, 42, said he called the emergency services after hearing the two men crash into the back of the industrial waste vehicle.
He said: 'At the time of the incident, my crew and I went out to collect trash in the Chaweng beach area and were heading to the garbage disposal plant. Suddenly there was a loud noise at the rear wheel while making a turn.
'So we parked and went down to look. I saw that a motorcycle had crashed and found two tourists injured. I immediately called the police and informed them of what happened. I am very sorry.'
Officers said they found cans and alcoholic drink bottles under the motorcycle's seat. Police believe that the tourist may have been drinking at nearby bars before returning to their accommodation.
Lieutenant Colonel Chatchavil Nakmousik said: 'From the initial investigation, we found that the two vehicles were travelling in the same direction. The garbage truck was in the front.
'James was the passenger. The rider tried to overtake the garbage truck but was not able to, leading to a collision. We will summon the truck driver and also the injured tourist for questioning. We will also be checking through the CCTV.'
Thailand has one of the world's worst road safety records, with dozens of tourists and ex-pats being killed every year on the roads. In June, Canadian Christian missionary Marine Scott, 49, was killed instantly after being hit by a pick-up truck while cycling in Kanchanaburi.
Ministers have set the goal of reducing fatalities from 32.7 deaths per 100,000 people to 12 per 100,000 people by the year 2027.
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