A 65-year old Thai woman was found alive in her coffin moments before her cremation rituals were about to begin after knocking was heard from within the woman’s coffin
A woman thought to be deceased was found still alive in her coffin just moments before her cremation ritual was about to begin after staff heard knocking from the coffin.
The shocking discovery was made on Sunday after temple workers spotted movement coming from the woman’s coffin opening it to find a still alive 65-year-old Thai woman inside. The woman – identified as the 65-year-old Chonthirat Sakulkoo – had been bed ridden for about two years and her health was steadily declining, said her brother Mongkol Sakulkoo.
Chonthirat had been bedridden and her health had deteriorated until she appeared to have stopped breathing two days ago. Mongkol claimed that he had been told by officials that his sister had died, with the temple’s general and financial affairs manager saying he had drivern her there to be cremated.
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Mongkol, the woman’s brother, told The Bangkok Post: “I’ve cared for my sister for three years. Officials told us she had died.” He added: “All the documents had been issued, so we placed her in a coffin and brought her to the temple for cremation.”
The incident took place at the Wat Rat Prakongtham Temple, a Buddhist temple in the province of Nonthaburi on the outskirts of Bangkok. According to temple treasurer Pairat Sudthup, staff explained to the family they needed an official death certificate before cremation could proceed.
Sudthup explained while the staff were speaking to the family a faint knocking sound was heard from the coffin. Sudthup said: “I was a bit surprised, so I asked them to open the coffin, and everyone was startled.”
He added: “I saw her opening her eyes slightly and knocking on the side of the coffin. She must have been knocking for quite some time.”
After opening the coffin, temple staff assessed Ms Chonthirat’s vital signs using basic equipment before the woman was transported to the Bang Yai Hospital in an emergency vehicle. Doctors concluded Ms Chonthira did not show any signs of cardiac arrest or respiratory failure.
However they concluded the 65-year-old woman had suffered extreme hypoglycaemia resulting in the woman falling into a deep unresponsiveness resembling death. Hypoglycaemia is a condition caused by a critically low level of blood sugar with symptoms of the deficiency include feeling sweating, feeling hungry, trembling, shaking or having difficulties concentrating. In very severe cases – like Ms Chonthirat’s – people experiencing hypoglycaemia can lose consciousness.
On Sunday staff informed Ms Chonthirat’s family she was healthy enough to return home. However, ultimately doctors decided the woman should remain under medical observation for a little longer before travelling back to Phitsanulok, in northern Thailand.
The case has generated widespread public interest due to the incident highlighting potential gaps in end-of-life procedures. Ms Chonthirat’s family relied on local declarations of death and non-medical paperwork to transport her still alive body to the temple. This paper work was accepted and was sufficient for transporting a presumed corps but not for a formal hospital process.
