A peculiar incident unfolded on May 18 in northern Texas when a man drove a Tesla Cybertruck, a futuristic electric pickup truck, into Grapevine Lake to test the vehicle's "Wade Mode" water-fording feature. The vehicle stalled in the water and required a crane to retrieve it.

Witnesses recorded video as the Cybertruck slowly descended the shoreline before water rapidly began flooding into the vehicle. In the footage, someone can be heard joking, "Hey, you can't park here," just as the truck was about to submerge.

According to reports, the driver and passenger managed to drive only a few feet before the vehicle struck a large underwater rock. Both occupants were forced to escape through the passenger window and wade to a nearby marina.

Police revealed that the driver admitted to intentionally driving into the lake to test the Cybertruck's Wade Mode, one of the vehicle's off-road features.

However, this function was designed for fording shallow water such as streams or stagnant water areas and does not activate automatically—users must manually enable it according to the vehicle's manual. Police warned that despite the vehicle potentially being capable of fording shallow water, operating it on public waterways may violate regulations and poses serious safety risks.

Authorities used a crane to retrieve the waterlogged Cybertruck from the lake overnight. The driver was arrested and charged with operating a vehicle in a restricted lake area, lacking proper vessel registration, and violating multiple water safety regulations.

Nonthaburi Municipality is launching a major water-based cultural tourism initiative to attract both locals and tourists on free boat tours visiting eight sacred sites along the Chao Phraya River. The "2569 Boat Tour - Paying Respects to Buddha and Deities" project runs on four consecutive Sundays: May 24 and 31, and June 7 and 14, 2569, offering participants a complete spiritual experience at all eight temples in a single trip.

The special highlights include scenic views of both riverbanks, comfortable and peaceful atmosphere, and knowledgeable local guides providing historical information at each location. The eight sacred sites are: 1) Shrine of Goddess Mae Tham Thim (Goddess Chui Bui Nia), revered for safe travel and success; 2) Wat Tai Meung, an ancient temple built during Rama II's reign (1852) housing the revered Luang Pho Dam Buddha image, popular for seeking protection and business blessings; 3) Wat Ton Od, an old temple on Khlong Om Nonthaburi canal where devotees seek life advancement; 4) Wat Sai Ma Tai, featuring the 700-year-old Luang Pho Yai Buddha statue in meditation pose, renowned for career advancement and property sales blessings; 5) Wat Kaen Ok, offering river viewpoints with significant Thai political historical importance; 6) Buddhatsathan Cheing Tha, a historic archaeological site recently restored by Nonthaburi Municipality and Fine Arts Department, combining two ancient temples from late Ayutthaya period - Wat Cheing Tha and Wat Na Bot - where devotees pay respects to the Tiger Father Spirit and Luang Pho Sua, ancient clay deities.

The Student Loan Fund (SLF) is calling on over 5,200 employers to begin implementing salary deductions for loan repayment through the e-PaySLF system administered by the Thai Revenue Department, effective May 2025. Employers can register for seminars on the SLF website to learn about the system's procedures and operational details, with funds required to be submitted by June 15, 2025, and subsequently by the 15th of each month. The SLF notes that borrowers with outstanding balances should settle arrears independently before entering the automatic deduction process, and employers are encouraged to register for training sessions available at www.studentloan.or.th or contact the official SLF employer LINE account for questions. The organization expressed appreciation for employer cooperation, noting that salary deductions not only help borrowers maintain consistent repayment but also preserve the revolving education fund to create sustainable educational opportunities for future generations of students.

PromptPay digital payment system processed 2.21 billion transactions totaling 4.24 trillion baht in April 2025, according to National IT and Telecom Excellence (NITMX), the government infrastructure provider for payment systems. Despite entering the long holiday period and Songkran festival—when economic activity typically shifts from business to tourism and household spending—PromptPay maintained high and steady usage levels, underscoring the importance of digital payment infrastructure in supporting efficient money circulation throughout Thailand's economy around the clock.

April 2025 saw 2.21 billion PromptPay transactions, up from 1.96 billion in the same period last year, representing 13% year-over-year growth. Transaction value stood at 4.24 trillion baht, down slightly from 4.28 trillion baht the previous year, a decline of 1% year-over-year. Despite the modest slowdown in total transaction value, growing transaction volumes reflect widespread daily usage of PromptPay, particularly for small-to-medium transactions such as peer-to-peer money transfers, merchant payments via QR code, and travel and tourism-related spending during Songkran.

Continuous growth in registrations reflects broad access to digital services. The number of registered PromptPay users continues to rise steadily, demonstrating that PromptPay has become digital financial infrastructure accessible to all user levels. Users across all segments rely on PromptPay as their primary tool for convenient, fast, and secure real-time money transfers. As of end-April 2025, total PromptPay registrations reached 82.67 million identifiers, comprising 82.26 million from the general public and 0.41 million from businesses.

Transaction volume peaked early in the month, reflecting sustained spending in preparation for the festival. The highest daily transaction count of 73.88 million occurred on Wednesday, April 1, 2025, at the month's beginning. This aligns with typical post-payday spending behavior and the period of preparation before Songkran, including travel planning, consumer goods purchases, and family money transfers.

This phenomenon highlights PromptPay's role as "financial infrastructure supporting money circulation," linking economic activity from households through service and retail sectors. Particularly before long holidays, users tend to accelerate financial transactions in advance. The peak occurring on an early-month business day also reflects consumer and business behavior managing liquidity and spending continuously through digital channels, with PromptPay remaining the primary system supporting high transaction volumes with stability.

Overall PromptPay usage in April 2025 demonstrates the system's role as national payment infrastructure capable of supporting continuous economic activity—during regular business days, holidays, and periods of high usage density—while maintaining stability and enabling real-time 24-hour transactions. This reinforces PromptPay's position as the backbone of the country's digital payment infrastructure.

The family of 34-year-old Suphap, known as 'Nam L', held a spiritual ceremony at the bus depot where the collision vehicle was stored before retrieving her body from the Police Medical Institute. Buddhist monks performed a spirit-summoning ritual and cloth-draping ceremony as relatives gathered in grief, with her brother calling out tender farewells as he promised to take her home to Chiang Mai. Inspections of the charred bus 206 revealed extensive fire damage throughout the entire vehicle, with passenger seats completely burned and white cloth from the day of the incident still remaining inside.

Police are accelerating their investigation following a reconstruction of the incident yesterday morning, with a briefing scheduled after witness interviews. Phuripath, the 37-year-old brother of the victim, expressed that the accident reflected critical failures in public transportation safety standards and called for stricter enforcement of driver discipline, safety inspections, and training protocols. He revealed the family is waiting for final clearance from the Police Medical Institute, expecting to receive the body by afternoon today before returning home to Chiang Mai to conduct funeral rites.

Phuripath described the emotional toll of seeing the completely destroyed bus, stating that no compensation could replace his sister's life or heal the psychological damage to the family. He appealed to relevant authorities to strengthen safety regulations and enforcement to prevent similar tragedies. He remembered his sister as the family's pillar—a hardworking, kind-hearted woman who was deeply devoted to improving her family's wellbeing and often sought his guidance on life matters.

Myanmar's military recaptured the Thai border trading town of Mawtaung on Tuesday after a two-week offensive, according to confirmation from resistance forces, with at least 4,000 civilians displaced amid the fighting. The Karen National Union (KNU), whose armed wing had held the town since November, confirmed the loss. KNU secretary Padoh Saw Ehna Doh told The Irrawaddy that resistance forces ceded control of Mawtaung on Tuesday. Myanmar state media reported the military lost control of Mawtaung in Tanintharyi Region in November but retook it on May 19 following a two-week counter-offensive involving more than 200 major and minor clashes, with at least 24 opposition fighters killed according to state reports. The junta acknowledged that some military members also died but provided no casualty figures. Regime forces deployed artillery and airstrikes during the offensive, and sources indicated the resistance withdrew due to overwhelming military firepower. Mawtaung is a relatively minor trading post that handled US$26.7 million in freight during the 2023-2024 financial year. The counteroffensive was reportedly triggered after 50 trucks carrying military reinforcements were dispatched to Thebyu village, 41 kilometers away, before three columns encircled the town. Aid volunteers reported that at least 4,000 residents from Mawtaung and nine surrounding villages fled their homes. The Myeik-Mawtaung border road, used to transport goods into Thailand's Prachuap Khiri Khan Province via the Singkhon checkpoint, had been closed since the KNLA captured the town in November. Although Mawtaung is not Myanmar's largest border crossing, its recapture holds symbolic importance in the ongoing civil war.