Videos do not show car crash in China—it happened in Thailand

 

Screenshot of the Facebook post.

 

News Brief

Two video footages of a motorcycle accident were published March 4, 2023, on Facebook. The first clip shows two riders colliding and falling to the ground, while the second clip captured one of the riders getting up and then being hit by a passing white truck. The Facebook post claims that the accident happened in China. The caption, written in traditional Chinese, translates as, “The first hit wasn’t severe until a Chinese driver caused the second crash.”

As of the publication of this report, the Facebook post had been shared 15 times, and it had received 60 comments as well as 194 likes or reactions.

Fact-checking

Through a reverse image search, a YouTube video published Dec. 22, 2015 by The Thaiger was found. A comparison shows that it is identical to the viral footages. According to the information on its official website, The Thaiger is a digital media outlet based in Thailand, and it has previously acquired The Phuket Gazette, an English-language newspaper published in Phuket.

A comparison between the Facebook videos and the YouTube video shows that they share identical details, including street views, incident particulars, and visual features such as the blue title frame in the lower left corner and the red circle highlighting the motorcycle collision. As a result, it is clear that the Facebook videos were created by editing from the original YouTube video. Furthermore, the watermark on the YouTube video indicates that the original footage was provided by the Thai police.

 

Screenshot comparison of the Facebook videos (left) and the YouTube video (right).

 

The YouTube video’s description claims that the accident happened on Thepkrassattri Road in Thalang district, Phuket province, Thailand. This fact is supported by a Google Maps search and a comparison with the Street View photo taken in 2016.

 

Comparison of a screenshot of the video footage (top) and a Google Street View image of Thepkrassattri Road (bottom). (The number “402” that appears on the road in the Street View image is not part of the original road markings but rather an annotation added by the Google Map app.)

 

According to an article published Dec. 22, 2015, on the website of Thailand Daily (ไทยรัฐ), a car accident did occur on Thepkrassattri road in Thalang district at 9:15 a.m. Dec. 20, 2015. The article included a longer CCTV footage of the accident scene that lasts for two minutes.