At least one person has been killed and 23 more injured including foreign tourists after two explosions rocked the tourist hotspot of Hua Hin in Thailand, according to local media. Reports suggest that there are British, German, Dutch, Austrian and Italian citizens among the victims.
The blasts took place at night in the resort town, which is located nearly 200km from the capital of Bangkok. Several foreign citizens are believed to be among the injured.
“One foreign man with a wife and child badly injured had bones sticking out of legs according to local people,” eyewitness Edwin Wiek said on Twitter.
“We heard a huge blast and suddenly all the bars around us had to shut down their shutters and everyone was evacuated. I heard there was another explosion. I think there is a total of four explosions in Thailand today," Shane Brett, an eyewitness who was at the center of Hua Hin at the moment of the explosion told RT.
The second explosion was less powerful than the first one that killed one woman, he said. He also confirmed that there were many people lying on the ground and needing treatment.
“The first bomb was next to a bar and a temple and the second bomb was right in the middle of a tourist area. I think they were trying to get as many people injured as possible,” Edwin Wiek said in an interview with RT, suggesting there were at least a dozen of injured people.
Police are currently bringing extra illumination devices to search the area, Wiek added.
The bombs were hidden in plant pots, some reports suggest, while others claim these were motorbike explosions.
A woman selling street food died in the attacks, according to a witness on Twitter.
According to Edwin Wiek's information, the number of injured has risen to 23 with 9 foreigners among them. One person is dead.
At least four of the injured are in critical condition, Bangkok-based news site Khaosod reports.
Two Dutch citizens, two English and one German women are among the victims of the explosion, local TV channel Thai PBS reported.
Seven injured foreigners from Austria, Italy and Germany were sent to a San Paolo hospital, Edwin Wiek said, adding that one of them is in serious condition.
All bars and restaurants in the area are temporarily shut down on the order of Thai authorities.
Hua Hin, a luxurious coastal resort on the Gulf of Thailand popular with locals as well as Western tourists, has seen an increased number of visitors recently planning to celebrate a national holiday there.