Dispatched by the Agriculture Ministry, the helicopter was on a mission to deliver food and relief items to affected residents in Tha Tako district.

It was suspected the helicopter was overloaded with bottled water when it crashed into ten metres of water.

Pilot Lieutenant General Apai Phunuchapai and mechanic Second Lieutenant Narong Phosawat were rushed to separate hospitals.

Apai went into coma late Friday, while Narong was reportedly in a stable condition.

Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary for Public Health Dr Prat Boonyawongvirot, said 560,000 people had fallen ill - 60 per cent suffering from foot, hand, and mouth diseases - as a result of the twomonth floods.

With the growing number of mosquitoes and flies in Angthong and Sing Buri, the ministry dispatched 40 teams of disease control officials to spray the affected areas.

Medical Services Department directorgeneral Dr Chatri Bancheun, said 10 medical teams were ready to assist flood victims upon request and doctors would be sent to Angthong from October 31 to November 2. The department will also send 12,000 tubes of skin medicine to the ministry's floodrelief war room.

Angthong public health chief Thawal Poblarb, said 53,865 flood victims had become sick and many were believed to suffer severe stress but only 1,000 had seen doctors, so psychologists were being sent on boats to checkon people at home.

Angthong Governor Wiboon Sanguanpong said the floods had affected 123,286 people in seven districts, 713 families were forced out of their flooded homes to camp at relatives' homes or in roadside shacks.

Buddhist monks in 160 flooded temples were forced to cook for themselves, mostly instant noodles and canned fish, said Phra Somneuk Sumetho of Wat Channimit. Because of the severe flooding, a recent robepresenting ceremony only yielded Bt50,000 in donation money for flood victims  compared to a previous donation of Bt400,000, he said.

The Angthong Educational Zone Office said 78 schools were submerged and about half would be open on November 13 while the harderhit schools might open on November 20.

In Pathum Thani's Sam Khok district, the Sam Khok police station was under waistdeep water, while Deputy Interior Minister Banyat Jansena provided 2,000 relief bags to floodaffected Sam Khok residents.

The Royal Irrigation Department director general Samart Chokanapitak said the department was speeding up its water release from the western Chao Phya River basin, causing water in the canals of Ayutthaya, Suphan Buri, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi and Nakhon Pathom to rise.

Samart said the water volume in Nakhon Sawan was 4,155 cubic metres per second, 140 cubic metres down from the previous day, while the water passing through Ayutthaya to Bangkok was at 3,471 cubic metres per second, 56 cubic metres down from the day before.