A Thai princess next in line to the throne has reportedly suffered a heart attack while out on running and is 'unlikely to recover'. Princess Bajrakitiyabha of Thailand had been out with her dogs when she apparently collapsed in the Khao Yai national park in north east of Bangkok, the Mirror reports.
King Vajiralongkorn is believed to have flown out via helicopter to be with his daughter who is thought to be being kept 'artificially alive' on an oxygen machine after medics allegedly failed to resuscitate her. Journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall reported that according to sources, CPR was carried out on Princess BajrakItiyabha “for more than an hour” but she unfortunately could not be saved.
Mr MacGregor Marshall tweeted: “Some sources are saying that despite CPR being carried out for more than an hour, there was no response and she has been put on an ECMO machine, which basically means she is dead but being artificially kept alive.” It's believed the princess was first taken to Pak Chong Nana Hospital where CPR failed and the King also arrived by helicopter to see his daughter.
She was then taken to Bangkok hospital for the ECMO treatment with witnesses claiming to have seen a hospital helicopter with two military choppers on either side of it.
Reports claim three large military helicopters were spotted returning to Bangkok from Khao Yai at an unusual late hour on Wednesday evening.
“Royal sources say the prognosis for the princess is very grim and it’s very unlikely she will ever recover. But she could potentially be kept artificially alive via ECMO for weeks or even months while the regime figures out what to do," tweeted Mr MacGregor Marshall.
"These events have huge repercussions for the Thai monarchy because it was assumed Bajrakitiyabha would be the next monarch, or would be regent for her younger half-brother Dipangkorn who has autism and will not be able to reign alone." Despite many hours of rumours and speculation on social media, there has been no official news regarding the health of the princess yet.
The Thai Royal Family was contacted for comment.
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