THE toll from the crash with an elephant today rose to six with the death of one of the injured in hospital this afternoon. The elephant also died.

PHUKET: A spectacular crash on Phuket's access bridge and a tragic collision with an elephant that claimed five lives highlighted the dangers on Thailand's roads today.

The Phuket crash involved an 18-wheel vehicle allegedly carrying sand from an illegal quarry that plunged off the bridge into a house, sending people scattering at a nearby market and injuring the driver.

The truck, operated by Blue Sand, a company previously reported for illegal sand mining, was allegedly overweight and speeding at the time of the crash, about 8.30am.

Police are investigating. The driver was taken to Thalang Hospital.

Elsewhere, five people were killed and four others injured in a crash before dawn on Highway 344 between Ban Bung in Klaeng in Rayong province.

A speeding Pajero van rammed into a female elephant with two calves that came out of the roadside jungle and crossed the road immediately, THai PBS reported.

The van then ploughed into the roadside ditch. Three people in the van were killed and two others injured.

The female elephant was seriously injured with broken legs.

As police and passers-by parked their cars by the road side to help, a truck came at speed and rammed the rear of a car that had been parked so occupants could see what was happening. One person was killed.

Forestry officials were sending a truck to take the badly injured male elephant for treatment.

Hospital in Rayong said five people died from the crashes, and five were injured.

Thailand rank in the top three for the world's deadliest roads. Phuket officials have not updated the statistics they once released each month, summarising crashes on Phuket, since April, 2012.