Even the dead in Thailand cannot escape Iran war fuel shortages

2026.03.17 13:50 A coffin burns during a Thai cremation ceremony. Many crematoria in Thailand use diesel in their furnaces. Photo: Shutterstock Worsening fuel shortages resulting from the war in the Middle East are threatening sacred funeral ceremonies in Thailand, where Buddhist temples are scrambling to obtain diesel for cremations. The abbot of Wat Saman Rattanaram in Chachoengsao province, about 80km (50 miles) east of Bangkok, warned that a suspension of cremation services was a real possibility. Some petrol stations have run out of fuel, while others allow sales only to vehicle operators. “In more than 50 years, I’ve never seen anything like this,” Phra Ratchwachiraprachanart, the temple’s abbot and ecclesiastical provincial governor, said in a phone interview on Tuesday. “It’s not just us. Many temples are facing this same problem.” In Thai Buddhist custom, cremation typically follows several nights of chanting by monks. Many crematoria use diesel in their furnaces, which are connected to tall chimneys that release smoke in a ritual believed to help guide spirits to heaven. Buddhist monks build cremation furnaces at Wat Rat Samakee temple in Uthai Sawan, northeastern Thailand. Photo: AP The threat to funeral services underscores the growing severity of fuel shortages in Thailand and neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia. The region is heavily dependent on oil imports from the Middle East, where the US and Israeli war against Iran has severely disrupted shipments. Wat Saman Rattanaram, known for a giant statue of Ganesh, the elephant-headed Hindu god, has about 200 litres (53 gallons) of diesel left, enough to carry out only two cremations, roughly its weekly average, the abbot said. Similar reports have emerged from temples across Thailand, from Nakhon Phanom in the northeast to facilities near Bangkok that provide free cremation services. In countries where cremation is common, including India, some temples have already been forced to suspend services due

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