Relatives of victims of the deadly landslide in Kata on Aug 23 last year filed a formal complaint against the Phra Phuttha Ming Mongkol Sattha 45 Foundation and its president Suporn Wanichkul.
Triggered by heavy rain in the early hours, the landslide killed 13 people, injured 19 others and damaged dozens of homes. Soil from the hill cascaded down, burying houses and buildings in Soi Patak 2, Karon.
“The Big Buddha viewpoint will remain closed until compensation is paid to affected residents and the court case is concluded,” Rattanawangso Panrak, Abbot of Wat Kittisangkharam (Wat Kata), confirmed to The Phuket News this week.
Phuket Bar Association President Rungnapa Phutkaew explained that the Phuket Provincial Court accepted Civil Case No. 520/2568 as a class action on Nov 6.
The case was filed by 25 residents from Kata and Karon who suffered losses from the landslide near the Big Buddha viewpoint.
The court found that the case met the conditions for a group action, allowing the plaintiffs to represent all affected residents collectively. Once the case is finalised, the judgment will apply to all group members under the same ruling, Ms Rungnapa said.
Ms Rungnapa noted that she and her legal team, operating under Lawyers Council Order No. 282/2567, have provided legal support to the affected community since the incident.
“The court has not yet set a date for judgment. It has only accepted the case and begun the investigation,” she said.
Ms Rungnapa recounted how negotiations were held between the Abbot of Wat Kata and local residents in July. At that time, no agreement had been reached, but further talks had borne fruit. Later talks resulted in the Abbot agreeing that the viewpoint would not reopen until compensation had been settled.
Other negotiations between the Phra Phuttha Ming Mongkol Sattha 45 Foundation and the affected residents have also been held, Ms Rungnapa said, but no settlement has been reached.