Bangkok braced as floodwaters bear down
Source: Agencies |
October 25, 2011, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
MORE districts in Thailand's capital were on high alert yesterday as floods bore down from northern Bangkok and authorities faced a race against time to pump water toward the sea and defend the business district.
Hundreds of people were evacuated over the weekend as water in residential areas of the northern Lak Si and Don Muang suburbs reached as high as two meters, testing flood defenses and spilling from canals and rivers.
Thailand's worst flooding in five decades has killed at least 356 people and affected nearly 2.5 million, with more than 113,000 living in temporary shelters and 720,000 people seeking medical attention.
Central areas and the industrialized provinces of Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi and Ayutthaya on the fringes of the Bangkok are the worst hit, but with rivers and canals at constant risk of bursting, the city of at least 12 million is on edge.
Floods in northern Bangkok were seen as inevitable, with most canal gates opened since Friday, diverting an estimated 8 million cubic meters of water each day around the east, west and center of Bangkok via the vast Chao Phraya River, in which levels reached a seven-year high.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's government and Bangkok authorities have been at odds over managing the crisis and have been accused of sending conflicting signals or playing down the threat.
But Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra was blunt in his assessment, saying residents in six more northern areas should protect their belongings and be ready to move out.
He said: "After assessing all indicators, we found the situation is getting serious and we expect it to get worse. I have said if the situation becomes a crisis I will be the first one to tell you, and now I am telling you."
Twenty-eight of Thailand's 77 provinces are affected, with water covering an area 16 times the size of Hong Kong.
Yingluck said it could take as long as six weeks for floods to subside. Authorities were battling to pump water out to sea before the high tide at the end of the month.
The economic toll is expected to be high. The central bank has said growth might be around 3 percent this year, not 4.1 percent as previously forecast. Some economists say growth in southeast Asia's second-biggest economy could be less than 2 percent this year.
The crisis could dent Thailand's reputation as an attractive destination for foreign investment, with seven industrial zones shut down. The government estimates more than 650,000 employees are temporarily out of work.
Sukhumbhand has said the capital needs to be saved because it is the country's economic and administrative heart.
Hundreds of people were evacuated over the weekend as water in residential areas of the northern Lak Si and Don Muang suburbs reached as high as two meters, testing flood defenses and spilling from canals and rivers.
Thailand's worst flooding in five decades has killed at least 356 people and affected nearly 2.5 million, with more than 113,000 living in temporary shelters and 720,000 people seeking medical attention.
Central areas and the industrialized provinces of Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi and Ayutthaya on the fringes of the Bangkok are the worst hit, but with rivers and canals at constant risk of bursting, the city of at least 12 million is on edge.
Floods in northern Bangkok were seen as inevitable, with most canal gates opened since Friday, diverting an estimated 8 million cubic meters of water each day around the east, west and center of Bangkok via the vast Chao Phraya River, in which levels reached a seven-year high.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's government and Bangkok authorities have been at odds over managing the crisis and have been accused of sending conflicting signals or playing down the threat.
But Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra was blunt in his assessment, saying residents in six more northern areas should protect their belongings and be ready to move out.
He said: "After assessing all indicators, we found the situation is getting serious and we expect it to get worse. I have said if the situation becomes a crisis I will be the first one to tell you, and now I am telling you."
Twenty-eight of Thailand's 77 provinces are affected, with water covering an area 16 times the size of Hong Kong.
Yingluck said it could take as long as six weeks for floods to subside. Authorities were battling to pump water out to sea before the high tide at the end of the month.
The economic toll is expected to be high. The central bank has said growth might be around 3 percent this year, not 4.1 percent as previously forecast. Some economists say growth in southeast Asia's second-biggest economy could be less than 2 percent this year.
The crisis could dent Thailand's reputation as an attractive destination for foreign investment, with seven industrial zones shut down. The government estimates more than 650,000 employees are temporarily out of work.
Sukhumbhand has said the capital needs to be saved because it is the country's economic and administrative heart.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
