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Bangkok bomb: New amateur footage captures moment of explosion outside Erawan shrine

The bomb, which killed at least 20 people, was detonated at rush hour in the heart of the Thai capital

Kiran Moodley
Wednesday 19 August 2015 07:05 BST
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Amateur footage shot by a Chinese tourist on their cell phone provides fresh insight into the moment a bomb exploded in the Thai capital Bangkok, killing at least 20 people and injuring 140 others.

The tourist's video shows the individual walking along a raised walkway roughly 100m from the where the blast took place. The overpass is very busy and shows individuals passing in both directions; the bomb detonated near a busy intersection in the centre of Bangkok.

A bright flash of orange and a loud bang interrupts the night-time bustle and the tourist is heard breathing heavily and panicking over what to do. Screams are heard; confusion reigns.

The improvised bomb blew up at around 7pm on Monday at the Erawan Shrine in the Thai capital, an open-air Hindu temple popular with both locals and tourists. Nine foreigners from several Asian countries were killed.

Police chief Somyot Poompanmoung says the bomb was made with a pipe wrapped in cloth and weighed 3kg. The bomb had a 100m blast radius.

On Tuesday, officials said they had identified a suspect wearing a yellow shirt who was seen on CCTV footage near the shrine.

"That man was carrying a backpack and walked past the scene at the time of the incident. But we need to look at the before and after CCTV footage to see if there is a link," Somyot told a news conference.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said there were "still anti-government groups out there" but he did not give any further details.

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