Good Luck Statue Topples, Crushes Man to Death

A Thai man died this week after being struck in the chest by a 440-pound Buddhist statue purported to offer good luck, local outlet Coconuts Bangkok reported.

Saranyu Kanyamai, 40, and another man were moving the statue to a temple sermon hall to prepare for a local monk's cremation ceremony in Sisaket province. They had been lifting the statue off of a pickup truck when it toppled onto them.

Police officers and medics arrived on the scene but couldn't save Saranyu. His colleague, Asisak Cahtthasai, was taken to the hospital with back injuries but ultimately survived the ordeal.

The statue was said to give luck to anyone who prayed at the site. But despite its promise, the statue had already garnered a bad reputation: Years ago, a piece of scaffolding at the same temple fell and killed a worker, Metro U.K. reported.

A similar fate befell a village chief in Khon Kaen, Thailand in 2019. When he tugged away a cloth to reveal 16-foot tall monument meant to give good fortune to locals, the statue collapsed, killing him under the rubble.