More ‘severe floods’ feared as rivers swell
Northeast, Central Plains still at high risk
Many provinces in the Northeast and the Central Plains are still at risk of severe flooding despite less run-off from major rivers.
In Kalasin, officials and villagers are being forced to stay alert around the clock to prevent strong overflow from the Chi River as its water level in Khlong Chai district comes close to its record high in 2011, when Thailand encountered the great flood.
The water level, recently measured at Wang Yang dam on Chi River in the district, has increased by two centimetres, just 34cm below the 2011 record, officials said yesterday.
The situation is volatile as the water level in the river keeps increasing due mainly to massive run-off from Khon Kaen, located west of Kalasin.
Though the Khon Kaen water management board decided on Tuesday to gradually reduce water discharge from the Ubolratana dam, other provinces, including Maha Sarakham, Kalasin and Roi Et are still facing the threat of overflow from Chi and Phong rivers, which have received water from the reservoir.
Khlong Chai will be the first district in Kalasin to be hit by water from Khon Kaen and Maha Sarakham, Kalasin governor Krason Kongchalat said yesterday, referring to run-off that runs downstream from Khon Kaen to nearby provinces.
The current situation is still “manageable,” but the water level in the Chi River is worrying as it is approaching its peak, he said.
Officials have been ordered to reinforce walls of sandbags in flood-prone areas in order to ensure they can prevent the overflow.
Those in Kamalasai and Rong Kham have also adopted t he same flood prevention method as these districts will be the next to encounter the overflow.
Officials started releasing water from Ubolratana dam at a slower rate from Tuesday after less water flowed into the reservoir. They were gradually decreasing the amount of water discharged by 2 million cubic metres a day from the maximum rate of 54 million cu/m.
The maximum rate was applied as water in the reservoir was almost at the brim. On Oct 18, the dam held nearly 2.9 billion cu/m, or about 120% of its capacity.
With a better situation to the north of the dam, officials are bringing down the discharge rate until it reaches 45 million cu/m. Yet provinces located downstream from the two rivers are struggling to deal with the flood threat.
In the Central Plains, irrigation officials in Chai Nat have maintained the water release rate from the Chao Phraya barrage at 2,700 cu/m per second though the amount of water in a section of Chao Phraya River in Nakhon Sawan, located north of Chai Nat, has started to decrease, according to officials.
With a large amount of water discharged from the barrage, riverside communities located downstream cannot avoid inundation. Among the hardest hit provinces is Chai Nat.
So far, parts of four districts there — Muang, Manorom, Wat Sing and Sapphaya — have flooded, affecting more than 3,000 houses, according to the latest estimate.
In the North, torrential rain in Chiang Mai on Tuesday destroyed a bridge in its San Pa Tong and Mae Wang districts, prompting the Highways Department to race against time to replace it with a temporary Bailey bridge.
They were expecting to complete its installation yesterday evening to help villagers after their main transport link between the two villages — Ban Huai Thong and Ban Sanpu Loei — was cut.
After weeks of floods, the Meteorological Department announced yesterday most parts of the country, except the South, will face less rainfall.