Northerners warned to brace for more heavy rainfall
Heavy to very heavy rain is expected in the North this week, with the worst affected areas being Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Lampang, Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Song, Phrae, Nan, Phayao, Uttaradit, Phitsanulok, Sukhothai and Tak provinces, the Meteorological Department warned yesterday.
Prachon Prasakul, from the Chiang Mai Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, said the office had trained and sent 600 "Mister Alert" technicians to those areas most at risk from flooding. Mister Alerts will measure the rainfall and warn residents to evacuate the area if rainfall reaches 50mm-100mm, he said, adding that villagers in Chiang Dao, Wiang Haeng and Phrao districts have been warned to be on high alert. Meanwhile, caretaker Deputy Interior Minister Sermsak Pongpanit inspected the flood damage in Sukhothai and Phitsanulok and distributed 1,003 aid kits to the victims in Phitsanulok's Bang Rakam district. In Chiang Rai, Thoeng district chief Nimit Wanchaiyatanawong said the district had installed rainfall-measuring equipment in Baan Sai-kard in Tab Tao sub-district. The village is in a high-risk area where a 500-metre-long crack was found on a mountain slope. The crack was caused by water seeping from the village's water storage tank, and heavy rain could create more cracks in the area, he said. Heavy rain that hit Chaiyaphum province last week caused flooding in many villages located in the Chee River Basin and damaged about 10,000 rice fields. The affected areas included Baan Noan-noi Paengdinthong Moo 13, Baan Nong-noi Moo 4, Baan Tha-sala Moo 6, Baan Noan Chan, Baan Nong-bua and Baan Kud Chanuan-udom. In Angthong province, flooding from the Chao Phya River affected about 100 families in the sub-district of Pongpheng in Pa Moke district and in Champalor sub-district in Muang district. Chatranarong Utsahakul, chief of Angthong's Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, said the flooding was the result of the release of water from the Chao Phya Dam in Chai Nat province. The amount of water released was about 1,766 cubic metres per second, he said. Meanwhile, Bangkok residents have been told to prepare for flooding from October 9 to 11. Bannasopit Mekwichai, the deputy governor of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, said that residents in some areas may face flooding caused by excessive rainfall. The areas at risk include the districts of Prawet, Min Buri, Nong Chok, Klong Sam Wa, Lat Krabang and areas along the banks of the Chao Phya.
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