Thai woman found alive after knocking from inside coffin just before cremation

A woman in Thailand stunned temple staff after she was found moving inside her coffin moments before cremation, according to a report by Associated Press.

The incident took place at Wat Rat Prakhong Tham, a Buddhist temple in Nonthaburi province on the outskirts of Bangkok. The temple shared a video on its official Facebook page showing the woman lying in a white coffin placed in the back of a pickup truck. In the footage, her arms and head can be seen moving slightly, leaving staff astonished and confused.

Coffin started knocking

Pairat Soodthoop, the general and financial affairs manager of the temple, told AP on Monday (24 November) that the woman, aged sixty five, had been brought in by her brother from Phitsanulok province for cremation. While staff were discussing the process, they heard faint knocking sounds coming from the coffin.

Pairat recalled, "I was a bit surprised, so I asked them to open the coffin, and everyone was startled. I saw her opening her eyes slightly and knocking on the side of the coffin. She must have been knocking for quite some time."

Brother believed she had died

According to Pairat, the woman had been bedridden for around two years. Her health had declined severely, and two days earlier she had stopped responding and appeared to have stopped breathing. Believing she had passed away, her brother placed her in a coffin and drove nearly five hundred kilometres to Bangkok. She had expressed a desire to donate her organs to a hospital there.

However, the hospital declined to accept her body because the brother did not have an official death certificate. As a result, he approached the temple on Sunday for a free cremation service, which the temple offers to those in need. They also refused to proceed without the necessary document.

Temple steps in to help

Pairat said they were explaining the procedure for obtaining a death certificate when the knocking was heard. Staff quickly assessed the woman before arranging her transfer to a nearby hospital for treatment.

The temple's abbot has assured that her medical expenses will be covered by the temple, Pairat added.