A small village in northeastern Thailand has been under attack by what villagers are calling the ‘Widow ghost’. Said to only take the lives of healthy men, the ghost has been attributed to at least ten unexplained deaths in the village of Tambon Tha Sawang.

A medium was brought in by the villagers to address the strange goings-on and to hopefully put an end to the deaths. According to the Bangkok Post, it was revealed that all of the victims had died of respiratory failure once doctors performed the autopsies. The medium recommended that all villagers hang a red shirt outside of their residences to repel the evil spirit.

A spirit medium hired by the villagers said the “widow ghost”, or pee mae mai, also known locally as the lai thai (sudden unexpected death syndrome) spirit, was responsible for their demise.

The medium also told villagers to hang a red shirt outside their homes to repel the evil spirit and also warned that families with only one son have a higher chance of a visit from the ghost.

The reporter said that the widow ghost rumour has spread to other districts, such as Chom Phra and Tha Tum.

“The reason I hang a red shirt is not because of my political views, but it’s because I am worried for my nephew’s safety. I don’t necessarily believe in the story but taking some precaution doesn’t hurt,” said a 61-year-old villager.

The red-shirt group, more formally known as the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD), is a political pressure group opposed to the yellow-shirt People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and those who support the military coup on Sept 19, 2006. Many of them are strong supporters of the Pheu Thai government.

Another villager, 42, said, “Some of the men who died did not show any sign of sickness, they were perfectly fine. When I heard about the rumour, I respected people’s beliefs and put a red shirt on my front door as well.”           –Read more: Bangkok Post

Mysterious deaths, like the ones that have been plaguing the Thai village are usually traced to a strong and deadly infectious disease. There’s been a rash of these types of reports in the last few years in where the deaths are attributed to something supernatural. Fear-stricken residents are usually susceptible to the ploys of scam artists such as mediums or psychics who offer their services to help rid their homes of “ghosts”.

I think it’s time for the villagers of Tambon Tha Sawang to drop the medium and call Erin Brockovich.