Baby driver: Thai father's video of 10-month-old at wheel of moving car sparks outrage

A Thai father has sparked outrage after he posted a video of his 10-month-old baby daughter standing on his lap and holding the steering wheel while he was driving along a main road.

The video shows the little girl gripping the steering wheel, instead of being securely fastened in her car seat, while trying to balance as the car travels at speed in Nakhon Nayok, a province northeast of Thailand’s capital, Bangkok.

The father decorates the short clip,which has been heavily criticised on Thai social media, with captions such as: “What are you looking at? I’m learning to drive,” or “I’m totally crashing into anyone who’s in my way.”

The original footage has since been removed but not before it was widely circulated on Facebook and YouTube, and picked up by the Coconuts news website.

Many internet users failed to see any funny side to his antics. The site quoted the 29-year-old father, Teerapat Duangdennakthong, as telling Amarin TV of his surprise at the vitriolic reaction to what he thought was a light-hearted post.

“She was sitting on my lap. I didn’t force her. She just stood up and touched the steering wheel. People insulted me on Facebook. Some people call us a moron or even a murderer,” he said.

The video prompted several comments on a Facebook site focused on exposing bad driving on Thai roads, which have been ranked the second most lethal in the world after Libya’s by the World Health Organisation. There are an estimated 24,000 road deaths in Thailand every year.

“That’s it right there. No concept at all about how dangerous driving a two ton metal machine can be,” remarked one commentator.

Duangdennakthong, a mechanic, admitted being reckless but argued that he normally put his daughter in a car seat.