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All of Ayutthaya province declared disaster area
With the flood situation on the Central Plain continuing to worsen, authorities have set evacuation plans for residents in Ayutthaya and Phichit provinces, and all 16 districts of Ayutthaya have been declared disaster zones.
Several riverside communities were under more than two metres of water yesterday as the Lop Buri River surged. Many roads were rendered impassable and some temples and hospitals were evacuated.
Ayutthaya governor Witthaya Piewpong called an urgent meeting of the 16 district chiefs to find ways to deal with yet more run-off which is set to flow into the province from the North.
Municipalities, local bodies, kamnan and village heads have been told to find safe locations where residents can be evacuated to immediately.
Flooding started in Ayutthaya on Sept 4 and has affected more than 224,000 residents. Run-off from the North is raising levels of the Chao Phraya, Pasak, Lop Buri and Noi rivers.
Supparirk Klankla, chief of the Sam Ruen tambon administration organisation, said the Ban Pho sluice gates in tambon Ban Wa in Bang Pa-in district are near their bursting point. More than 50,000 rai of farmland and three industrial estates in Bang Pa-in, Uthai, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya and Wang Noi districts will be inundated if water overflows the gates.
In Kamphaeng Phet, provincial governor Wanchai Suthin has ordered Muang, Kosamphinakhon, Khanu Woralaksaburi and Khlong Khlung districts to alert residents to prepare to secure their belongings and livestock, as the upstream Bhumibol dam in Tak province will release 40 million cubic metres of run-off a day from the North.
In Uthai Thani, Information and Communication Technology Minister Anudith Nakornthap, along with provincial governor Wanchai Osukhonthip, inspected the flood situation in the province before updating Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra in a video conference.
Gp Capt Anudith said the province was hit by severe floods on Aug 29 particularly in low-lying areas adjacent to the Chao Phraya and Sakae Krang rivers in Muang district. The flooding in these areas is expected to continue for two months, he said.
Ms Yingluck said yesterday morning on her first weekly 30-minute radio talk show that the flooding situation in many provinces has reached a critical level.
She said the government would continue working to help the people in flooded areas, with full cooperation from all state agencies, including the police and armed forces.
The government has raised its emergency budget for each provincial governor from 50 million baht to 100 million baht, she added.
Meanwhile, the situation in Chiang Mai has almost returned to normal after flood water receded.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Preecha Rengsomboonsuk said during his visit to the province that more than 300 officials had been mobilised to clean up the city area and to inspect damages.
The level of the Ping River had already receded below the critical point, he said.
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