Floods “won”t affect” Bangkok

Northamers may also participate in run-offs.

An aerial view of the flooded residential zone in Tha Wang Pha district in Nan, one of the provinces in the North hit by flooding. (Photo: Disaster Response Association of Thailand Facebook)
A panoramic view of the flood-stricken private area in Nan, one of the northern provinces affected by flood, in the Tha Wang Ga district. ( Photo: Disaster Response Association of Thailand Facebook )

Bangkok and another river regions will not be affected by the flooding, according to Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai, who claimed the caretaker administration is in control of the situation.

Officials in Chiang Rai, Phrae, Nan, Phayao, and Sukhothai have mobilized more resources, according to Mr. Phumtham on Thursday, according to Mr.

According to Mr. Phumtham, who cited data from the Meteorological Department and the Royal Irrigation Department, run-off from higher ground follows the rain rains rather than storms and/or another weather anomalies.

The storms are expected to begin receding in the next few weeks, as the main reservoir in the region, the Sirikit Dam in Uttaradit state, is only about 60 % full and is able to get in more run-off, he said.

He said that the RID, the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, and the Office of Natural Water Resources ( ONWR ) have been given the task of closely monitoring the situation, especially in the provinces that have been hardest hit by the floods.

The Interior Ministry has been instructed to establish crisis centers to facilitate coordination with appropriate organizations in flood-hit places and declare those areas to be disaster zones so that emergency funds can be distributed right away.

The Transport Ministry has been given the task of surveying road injury and building wooden bridge to help transportation, while the Education Ministry has been instructed to shut schools down in flood-hit places.

The Commerce Ministry has been given the task of ensuring the presence of basic items at fair prices.

Asked about claims that this year’s floods might be worse than in 2011, Mr Phumtham said:” Do n’t panic. The amount of liquid is reasonable, if there is no more rain, the situation will improve”.

All relevant organizations are doing everything possible to manage the rainwater in the north and stop the surplus water from entering the Chao Phraya River, according to caregiver agriculture and agribusiness minister Thamanat Prompow. To guard Sukhothai and Phitsanulok, which are located upstream of the Yom River, he said, the Yom River’s water may be diverted to Uttaradit’s Sirikit Dam.

Capt Thamanat said he would attend Phayao, Phrae, and Nan on Friday.

He said this year’s storms will not be as bad as in 2011, as the country’s three key reservoirs can also get in more fluids.

Nevertheless, Surat Charoenchaisakul, chairman of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration’s Department of Drainage and Sewerage, said run-off from the North is expected to arrive in Bangkok around the end of this month.

In expectation, City Hall is reinforcing storm windows along the Chao Phraya River, he said, adding the ministry has repaired 60 out of 120 reported vulnerabilities. The BMA is distributing bags to flood-prone communities to help promote storm windows by monitoring the liquid levels.

” We have eight to nine days to prepare. Because there is n’t a reservoir to halt the stream, he said, the Yom River’s liquid will flow to Bangkok, Chai Nat, and Nakhon Sawan.

In September and October, the North may experience more rainfall and run-off from Bangkok. When water levels in the town’s canals fall, water may be pumped out”, he said.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra took to X, previously Twitter, to show her concerns about the disaster situation, saying as she has still to assume full power, Mr Phumtham may lead the president’s disaster response and planning.

The Meteorological Department urged those living in the North and Northeast to be wary of large to really heavy rains from Aug 21 to August 27 while the ONWR has issued a warning for possible display floods and landslides in 35 counties until August 30.

According to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, seven regions have been hit by storms, with 12, 777 communities affected as of Thursday, especially Chiang Rai, Phayao, Lampang, Nan, Phrae, Phetchabun and Udon Thani.