Two injured Chinese tourists are now in stable condition in a Bangkok hospital after a bus collision which left three other Chinese citizens dead on Monday.

The three deceased Chinese victims were identified as Jiao Jianmin, Yang Wenkuan and Li Yali.

"The two seriously-wounded Chinese tourists are out of critical condition and are stable now," Xie Fugen, a counselor with the Chinese embassy, told China Daily Tuesday.

The bus with 26 passengers aboard crashed into a train carrying oil at 4:30 pm on Monday when driving in the Sattahip District of Chonburi Province, 96 kilometers east of Bangkok.

The accident occurred when the bus tried to cross a junction with the railway while a train was coming, local police were quoted as saying by the state-run Thai News Agency.

Four passengers were killed immediately by the accident and the other one passed away upon arriving at hospital, according to local police. The victims included a Thai driver and a Thai tour guide.

The accident also left the remaining 21 Chinese tourists injured, including two seriously wounded, with one having a broken thigh bone and the other suffering heavy bleeding from a facial bone injury. Fortunately, two other members of the 26-person tour group happened to escape the tragedy as they stayed in a hotel on Monday due to illness, said Xie.

Staff from the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok have been visiting the hospitalized tourists and discussing measures to deal with the aftermath of the accident.

"The injured people will stay in hospital for the time being, and we will work out detailed measures to deal with the accident in the next few days," said Xie.

Investigation over the cause of the accident is still ongoing. The tourist group, organized by the China Travel Service in Beijing, arrived in Bangkok last Friday and was scheduled to stay in Thailand for a week before they moved on to Singapore and Malaysia.

(China Daily February 4, 2004)