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Nobody anticipated that three-year-old Paweenuch Supholwong would survive and live to recount her ordeal. As a gunman rampaged through her nursery in the tranquil Thai township of Uthai Sawan, she lay fast asleep beneath a blanket, surrounded by her classmates. When emergency crews reached the scene, she was the sole child discovered alive and unharmed - in a bloodbath that took the lives of 36 people, including 24 children. During the horrific attack, Paweenuch - affectionately called "Ammy" by relatives and locals - remained sound asleep under her blanket, encircled by her pals and fellow pupils. Upon entering the room, the gunman slaughtered the youngsters surrounding her but spared her life, reports the Mirror . Her mum, Panomplai Srithong, believes he confused her daughter for one of the already deceased victims. Following the end of the rampage, rescue workers found the tot still slumbering. They whisked her from the horror scene with her eyes shielded, protecting her from witnessing the carnage inside. A second child made it out with severe wounds and was rushed to hospital. The catastrophe, which occurred in October 2022, shattered the tiny agricultural community of Uthai Sawan in Thailand's Nong Bua Lamphu province. The perpetrator, named by police as 34-year-old ex-police officer Panya Kamrap, had been sacked from the force earlier that year following drug-related allegations. Following the slaughter, he murdered his wife and young son before taking his own life. Officials have never established a definitive motive. For many locals, the shock remains. People living nearby said such violence was unthinkable in their tranquil township, where everyone is familiar with one another and families often assist in raising each other's children. Paweenuch's parents, who are employed at a Bangkok electronics factory, were hundreds of miles away when they first heard reports their daughter's nursery had been targeted. Initial messages suggested that there were no survivors. "Breathing was difficult," her mother said. "But when I found out my child survived, I was relieved - and I wanted to know if she had any injuries, if there was any damage." Upon finally reaching Uthai Sawan after an extended overnight journey, they discovered their daughter safe in her grandmother's arms. Although she had avoided physical injury, she asked one question that shattered their hearts - she wanted to know where her best friend was. The two had been napping together that morning. Her grandmother gently informed her that her friend had "passed. "That's when she found out," her mother revealed. In the subsequent days, villagers congregated at local temples to mourn, pray and pay tribute to those who had been killed. They also came to see the little girl whose survival had been described by relatives as "a miracle." Mourners tied dozens of white, yellow and red "soul strings" around her tiny wrists - part of a Buddhist ritual intended to summon back a person's spirit after trauma. "It is to bring the spirit back into her body," her mother clarified. "It's like the spirit had left the body and it is being called back." Panomplai lost a cousin in the massacre, one of several adults killed outside the nursery as they tried to reach the children inside. "There's both good luck hidden in bad luck," she said. "I'm fortunate my child is okay, but I lost my cousin. Some people lost their only child, their hope." The nursery, which catered for around 90 local children, is situated next to the district's administrative offices and opposite a sugar cane field. On the day of the attack, several factors - including monsoon flooding and a broken school bus - kept many children away, which may have saved more lives. Nanticha Panchom, who manages the day care, was in the kitchen preparing lunch when the shooting started. "I never thought he would go inside," she said, recalling the chaos. "It is almost impossible to imagine what this will mean for our township. We have lost so many children - our future." Local officials shared similar feelings. Chuanpit Geawthong, who works in the neighbouring office and regularly looked in on the youngsters, said the assault destroyed the feeling of security that had always characterised Uthai Sawan. "Even during COVID, we did not lose anyone," she said. "This is something that affects everyone. Our families are all connected, and now everyone here is grieving." The Thai authorities acted swiftly, dispatching trauma specialists from Bangkok to deliver psychological care and providing financial aid of at least 310,000 baht (around £7,000) per affected household to help with burial expenses and urgent costs.
