Youngsters were covered head-to-toe in mud after crashing their motorcycle into a filthy river bank in Thailand.

The three lads were crammed onto the scooter when they lost control and smashed through a barrier, before landing in the sludge.

Footage shows the kids covered in thick grey muck as they struggled to pull themselves out of the quagmire in Trat province on January 19.

They were eventually hauled to safety by a passing boat that was passing through the estuary. They were hosed down onboard.

Onlooker Mild Sawasdee said: 'They were driving at high speed across the bridge over the river. I was shocked when they fell into the mud.

'But when I saw them safe and covered in mud, I didn't know whether to help first or laugh at them.'

There were no injuries reported, and the motorcycle riders were given a lift home by their friends.

Thailand has one of the world's worst road safety records. Ministers have set the goal of reducing fatalities from 32.7 deaths per 100,000 people to 12 per 100,000 people by the year 2027.

However, a lack of road safety education in schools along with notoriously easy driving tests, police failures to enforce road laws, and chronic under-investment in infrastructure, all appear to hamper the efforts.