Heavy Rain Overnight adds to Flooding in South Thailand

Last night, 28th March, once again produced heavy rain and winds which added to the flooding problems in Southern Thailand. This was coupled with power outages in some areas for long periods during the evening and night.

The rains continued into the day on the 29th March and the strong winds caused very high waves at the seashore which added to the flooding problems.

Many roads in our home town were flooded which made them dangerous to drive, as it was not possible to see what was road, river or field in many cases. Driving on some roads was more like riding in a boat on a river.

Many crops have been destroyed, together with many homes and businesses.

Heavy downpours and turbulent seas have caused flash floods in at least six southern provinces, disrupting land, sea and air travel and causing devastating damage to farmland and property in many areas.

Local and foreign high-season tourists were caught off-guard by heavy rainstorms while celebrating their summer holidays in popular southern tourist provinces.

Thousands of tourists were stranded on Koh Samui after bad weather forced the closure of the island’s only airport and the suspension of the ferry service to and from the mainland yesterday.

Waves in the Gulf of Thailand and on the western coast were reported to be as high as 5m, forcing fishermen and tour boat operators to temporarily suspend their services.

At least eight people have died – seven in Nakhon Si Thammarat and one in Phatthalung – while more than 268,000 households have been affected by severe floods covering Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Trang, Surat Thani, Chumphon and Songkhla.

But, ironically, in other parts of the country, 47 provinces, particularly in the north and northeastern regions, have been declared as drought-affected areas with more than seven million people affected.

The amount of rainfall in Nakhon Si Thammarat during the past week was higher than the province’s year-long average of 200mm. In some places of the province, the amount of rain was more than 600mm in five days, which is higher than the average annual rainfall in the central region.

A crocodile was captured by zoo workers yesterday at Suan Somdej Phra Sri Nakharin Park, where Nakhon Si Thammarat municipality’s zoo is located. It was one of 11 crocodiles that escaped the flooded zoo. Zoo staff shot dead one crocodile and caught three others. Seven remain at large. Two bears also escaped.

Here is some video of the storms and floods in Hua Sai, just south of Nakhon Si Thammarat:

Related Articles

• South Thailand Warned of Prolonged Flooding (steveriches.wordpress.com)
• You: Floods hit southern Thailand (earthtimes.org)
• South Thailand sees Severe Flooding Again (steveriches.wordpress.com)
• Wild weather grips the nation (bangkokpost.com)