Onlookers shocked by pickup truck seriously overloaded with roof panels

Onlookers were shocked by a pickup truck that was overloaded with dozens of roof panels.

Builders were working on a new bar complex when the vehicle arrived with its cargo piled dangerously high on top of the vehicle in Pattaya, eastern Thailand.

Photos show the construction materials stacked some 15ft in the area and stretching across the front and back of the Toyota Hilux pickup truck.

The 30ft long uPCV panels were bundled together and tied down to a custom-welded red metal roof rack.

Shocked British resident Shaun Sharples, the founder of Elite Thai Realty property company, said: '‘The Hilux just arrived at the new, under-construction Maggie Mays Beer Garden Complex on Soi Made.

‘The items on the vehicle are UPVC cladding for the roof. It's an air-conditioned beer garden, one of only two in Pattaya, so they were insulation material to keep the cold air in.'

Bizarrely, the pickup truck arrived at the construction area on September 30 without being flagged for traffic violations. Had a policeman pulled them over, they may have incurred a fine of up to 1,000 Baht for failing to attach a red cloth to the back of the cargo as a hazard signal.

Despite being one of the wealthiest countries in Asia, Thailand suffers from chronic underinvestment in its highways and education, contributing to its poor road safety levels. Only a handful of African countries are worse.