Government Spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee said yesterday the government was looking for a permanent site for the grand exhibition of His Majesty's 60-year reign.

Surapong said the government was considering four places, namely the Agriculture Ministry's museum in Pathum Thani's Klong Luang district, the Science Museum in Pathum Thani, the head office of the Support Foundation of Her Majesty the Queen in Ayutthaya and Don Muang International Airport.

"Prime Minister Thaksin is most keen about using Don Muang Airport," said Surapong, who heads the organising body of the exhibit.

He said the government would also hold more events to honour His Majesty in Los Angeles in the United States, Cambridge in the United Kingdom and at other major cities. The shows would also be held in Thai cities to celebrate the occasion.

Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to the grand exhibition on its final day at Muang Thong Thani yesterday as the organiser expected the number of visitors to break the 6-million mark.

By the end of Saturday, the 16th day of the exhibit, the number of visitors had surged to 5.33 million.

On the final day of the event yesterday, the organiser expected even larger crowds to show up.

By 8am yesterday, people had started queuing to enter the Challenger Building, where the main exhibit of His Majesty was hosted.

Facing huge crowds, authorities asked people to make way for children and the elderly to enter first. They feared many people would be injured should there be a frantic scramble to enter the venue.

Officials also made repeated announcements in attempts to break up the crowds.

They urged people to visit another exhibition of His Majesty's activities inside Impact Arena on the opposite side of the road before coming to view the key exhibition inside Challenge Building.

Everyone in the queue wore yellow shirts in honour of His Majesty.

The organiser said in a press release that it expected the number of visitors yesterday to climb past 6 million.

On Saturday alone, more than 600,000 people turned up, it said.

The show was supposed to have ended on June 4 but because of the strong demand, the organiser decided to extend it for another week to enable more people to attend.

The organiser announced a lot of people had booked CDs and books that were produced to honour His Majesty during this time.

A total of 5,698 paperback books, costing Bt199 each, recounting the life and works of His Majesty were booked by patrons.

The event also saw 1,871 orders for hardcover editions of the book, selling for Bt1,999 each.

Patrons also booked 5,964 copies of a 60-minute CD which tells of His Majesty's life and achievements. The CD cost Bt199.

The event also saw 3,549 orders placed for a 6-hour CD about the King.

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra chaired the closing ceremony yesterday evening.

He led the crowd to light candles and sang songs praising His Majesty.

The Army set off a fireworks display above the exhibition grounds later in the evening.

One visitor, Chaiwut Srimawut, said he and seven other members of his family arrived at the grounds at 9.30am.

Another patron, Sunan Siriwatanakul said he and five members of his family flew from Udon Thani to attend the show.

He said they were impressed by the exhibits of the many accomplishments made by the beloved monarch during the past 60 years.

Piyanuch Thamnukasetchai

The Nation