Flooding in Bangkok Likely to Persist for One Month

(07/11/2011)

Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said that the flooding situation in Bangkok is likely to persist for one month, while the water level in the city is expected to begin to subside after the middle of November. Minister Pichai said that various affected factories would resume their operations within the next three to four months. The Government has rehabilitation plans to bring quick recovery to industrial estates whose operations and facilities have been damaged by the flooding. If the factories needed to replace their devices and equipment, they would be encouraged to turn to energy-saving ones. He said that 140 water pumps would be used to drain water out from the Saha Rattana Nakorn Industrial Estate and the Rojana Industrial Park in Ayutthaya province on November 10. Water drainage in other industrial estates would also be accelerated. As for the affected people, he said, the Government has prepared a comprehensive rehabilitation plan to assist them. Regarding flood control in Bangkok, the Flood Relief Operations Center revealed that the six-kilometer-long barrier, or the “Big Bag” floodwall, which had been set up recently, would help slow down the flow of water from the north of Bangkok to a certain extent. This would also enable the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to drain water more efficiently. The setting up of the Big Bag floodwall is also being considered in Bang Kruai to slow down the water flow in the western side of Bangkok. Meanwhile, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration thanked the Flood Relief Operations Center for providing it with more water pumps to help drain water in eastern Bangkok, as the situation is still worrisome. It is also concerned about the flooding situation in the western part of the city. According to the Flood Relief Operations Center, a number of water pumps were imported by the Government and some were donated by the private sector. It believed that if the volume of the in-flow was brought down, water drainage by the Bangkok city should be manageable. Moreover, the Government has sent a team to assist the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to drain water into various canals. The problem of leaks in embankments in various areas is being rectified in an effort to control flood water in the city. A report from the Emergency Operation Center for Flood, Storms, and Landslide on November 6 indicated that 25 provinces were still suffering from the flooding and more than 500 people have died, with two missing persons. More than one million families, comprising over three million people, have been affected. The flooding has damaged 10.9 million rai, or almost 4.4 million acres, of farmland in the country.