Economic Zones Provided with Increased Protection from Floods

(15/10/2011)

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra told provincial governors to protect all economic zones from floods, especially in Bangkok, which is the most important economic center of the country. Speaking at the Flood Relief Operations Center at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok, the Prime Minister explained that the Government was concerned about the hardships of flood victims in all affected provinces. It has provided assistance for them without discrimination. At the same time, emphasis is placed on protecting economic zones in all districts. Prime Minister Yingluck said that she would communicate more with the people to provide them with better understanding about the current situation. On the part of Bangkok, she said, more embankments had been built in the city’s outer areas, while royally initiated projects were help to protect the inner areas, as well. In addition, more canals were dredged to hold flood water. The Prime Minister urged all people involved to look after embankments in order that Bangkok would be least damaged by flooding. Meanwhile, the Director of the Flood Relief Operations Center, Police General Pracha Primnog, has reaffirmed that the flooding situation in Bangkok was manageable. He said that the outer areas of the city might be affected and that the Government had sympathy for the people facing hardship. The Prime Minister was told that the Chinese government offered assistance worth more than 80 million baht and it was ready to provide more, if requested. Because of the severe flooding situation, Prime Minister Yingluck has decided to postpone her official visit to China, which was earlier scheduled for October 19-21. The Israeli government has also pledged to give technical assistance to Thailand in disaster management in which Israel has expertise. The government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic on October 13 donated 1.5 million baht to help flood victims in Thailand. A report from the Federation of Thai Industries said that Japanese investors understood the flood crisis in Thailand and still had confidence in the country, with no plan to shift their production bases from Thailand to other nations. According to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, as of 15 October 2011, 606 districts in 61 provinces in the North, the Northeast, and the central region have been affected by flooding. Most unfortunately, 297 people have died. The flooding situation has also hit more than 800,000 families, comprisjng 2.48 million people. Measures have now been prepared to cope with flooding in five vulnerable provinces in the South, namely Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Surat Thani, and Pattani.