Boy crashes truck into Thai monks, killing eight

Thai Buddhist monks at Phu Manorom temple in Mukdahan province
A group of Thai Buddhist monks pose for a photo at Phu Manorom temple in Mukdahan province. -AP

An 11-year-old boy has crashed a pick-up truck into a group of monks on a pilgrimage walk in northeastern Thailand, killing eight.

A total of 35 monks from Mukdahan province, about 600km northeast of the capital Bangkok, were on the pilgrimage. 

Five monks were killed at the site on Thursday while three others died in hospital, according to Mukdahan governor Worrayan Boonnarat. 

Fourteen others were hospitalised.

Police said the boy was in custody.

They said the cause of the accident was still under investigation, but they were told by the monks that they saw the vehicle losing balance before it slid off the road and crashed into the group.