TODAY is the last day that mourners will be allowed to pay final respects to His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the beloved late King of the Chakri Dynasty, inside the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall.
Tens of thousands have flocked to the
throne hall in the final week as the public has been allowed to pay
respects to the late King since October 29.
King Bhumibol passed away on October 13 at Siriraj Hospital after a long
illness during which he received medical treatment for many years. He
was in his 89th year.
The gate for mourners will close today at midnight to allow for the
preparation for the Royal Cremation that is scheduled from October 25 to
29 inside Sanam Luang’s main grounds. The official cremation will be on
October 26.
Mourners attending the Throne Hall will pay final homage before the Royal Urn placed in front of the King’s coffin.
As the final day draws nearer, more and more people have headed to the Grand Palace to pay final farewells to the late King.
At first, the daily closing hours for the mourners was 9pm and the
initial closure day was scheduled for last Saturday. However, because of
the increasing number of the mourners, HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn on
September 26 had the deadline extended to midnight today.
During the extended period, the gates have remained open for mourners
around the clock.
Everyone who is already at the scene before midnight
today will be allowed to pay final respects.
Yesterday an estimated 40,000 people queued with one line stretching
from Democracy Monument to a screening point near the Rattanakosin Hotel
and another from Mon Bridge to the Ror Dor roundabout, where screening
also took place
Some mourners had been in the queue the previous night but had not made
it inside the palace, so they were back to try again yesterday.
The Royal Household Bureau yesterday reported that 12,532,492 mourners had viewed the Royal Urn in the past 335 days.
Donations received to make merit for the late King totalled
Bt876,090,282, the bureau said. On Tuesday, 88,602 mourners visited the
throne hall and donated Bt5,712,411.25, with the final visitors admitted
at 3.50am yesterday.
The highest records for visitations were set on October 1 at 90,300
mourners, Tuesday at 88,602, Monday at 78,948 and September 26 at
73,889.
Source - TheNation
