The Royal Household Bureau in Thailand has issued an official statement stating that Princess Bajrakitiyabha, the oldest child of Thailand’s King Rama X, has lost consciousness after suffering a medical emergency while training her dogs.
The 44-year-old princess, widely considered second in line to the throne after her younger brother, was rushed to a local hospital in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima with a heart problem on Wednesday and later flown by helicopter to Bangkok.
Large military helicopters were reportedly to be seen returning to Bangkok from Khao Yai unusually late at night on Wednesday. From there she was taken to Bangkok Hospital for treatment with witnesses reportedly seeing a hospital helicopter flanked by two military choppers.
Thailand’s royal palace said in a statement on Thursday she had been admitted to Chulalongkorn Hospital in the capital and was receiving treatment. Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is reported to be returning early from his scheduled trip to Europe.
The Princess collapsed while running with her dogs and lost consciousness, according to the statement. It said her condition had stabilised at a certain level, although did not provide additional detail.
Born in 1978, Princess Bajrakitiyabha is the only child from HM King Vajiralongkorn’s first marriage. The Princess has studied law and international relations, and served as Thailand’s ambassador to Austria. She has also worked in the office of the attorney-general and held a high rank in the Royal Security Command.
She is also known for her love of horses, and has often presided over the country’s grandest annual equestrian event, The Princess Cup.
She had been attending the Thailand Working Dog Championship this week in Pak Chong, a three-hour drive north-east of Bangkok, before collapsing.
The Secretariat of the Sangha Supreme Buddhist Council has notified all temples throughout the Kingdom and Thai temples abroad for the clergy along with the Buddhist community to offer morning prayers and evening prayers to give blessings to the auspicious Her Royal Highness Princess.
