Bangkok floodwaters recede, but roads and homes stay under water

Floodwaters in Bangkok were slowly receding on Monday after continuous rain over the weekend, though some neighbourhoods and major roads remained under water. Rain continued intermittently, but city officials said conditions had improved enough to speed up drainage efforts.

The weekend flooding affected 3,29,000 households, or about 7,00,000 people, according to the Bangkok Flood Control Centre, Deputy Governor Tavida Kamolvej said. Governor Chadchart Sittipunt declared a flood emergency across all 50 districts on Saturday, while authorities also dealt with disruption at Suvarnabhumi Airport and other knock-on effects across the city. More rain was forecast in much of Thailand, though Bangkok was expected to get less.

City officials said water levels in four main canals had risen too high over the weekend to take in runoff from nearby communities. Although some districts were relatively unaffected, authorities said they were prioritising help for vulnerable residents, including older people and those with disabilities, by delivering supplies or evacuating them. Nearly 7,000 people were staying in shelters, officials said.

Eastern Bangkok was among the worst-hit areas. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul wore white rain boots on Sunday night as he visited a badly flooded housing estate in Bang Kapi district and helped distribute relief supplies. On Monday, water near a train station and shopping mall in Bang Kapi was about knee-deep. Despite intermittent downpours, shoppers moved through the water carrying bags, backpacks and boxes of groceries, while some travelled to and from the station in a small boat provided by the mall.

For 55-year-old maid Naowarat Supanikorn, who lives in a single-storey house with three dogs and six cats, the flooding was more than an inconvenience. She said she realised at about 1.30 am on Saturday that water was entering her home. "I"m worried about my pets," she said. "I had to take my dogs and cats out. I had to leave them with my neighbour. I have taken them back today because they said the sun would come out, but it looks like the rain will come back."

She said floodwater in her neighbourhood had risen above her hips at its highest point before falling to about knee level. She added that a bigger problem was losing her job at a condominium. "My workplace also said if I can"t come to work, they"re happy to take my resignation. So I thought, that"s fine, I"ll quit," she said.

Naowarat said she had bought supplies to make food to sell on the street to earn some income, but business was slow because of the flooding. "It"s stressful. If the bills come, I"d be cooked, because I don't have work now. If I have to pay for water or electricity now it would be bad," she said. "I"m not worried about me but I"m worried about my pets. I"ve lived with them my whole life. They"re my priority. It"s ok if I don't have work and starve myself, but I'd like help for my pets."

The flooding also led to panic buying of food, disruption in supplies of food and other goods, and staffing problems at businesses where employees could not get to work. Suvarnabhumi Airport said baggage from arriving and departing flights was piling up because of "insufficient staffing to support ground handling operations" and problems with some baggage carts. The disruption delayed some departures and meant arriving passengers had to wait longer than usual for their luggage, with baggage from several flights still undelivered, the airport said.

The government declared special holidays on Monday and Tuesday for state offices, and advised state enterprises, financial institutions, private businesses and hospitals to decide whether they needed to remain open. Thailand's meteorological agency forecast heavy to very heavy rain in several parts of the country and warned people, especially in the north, centre and east, to prepare for possible flash floods, river overflows, forest runoff and landslides, particularly near waterways, foothills and low-lying areas. Even as water levels in Bangkok eased on Monday, parts of the capital remained flooded and the wider impact of the rain continued to be felt.

With PTI Inputs

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