BANGKOK (Bernama): Floodwaters have begun to recede in parts of Thailand’s capital, Bangkok, as authorities intensify drainage operations and relief efforts in affected communities.
Bangkok Deputy Governor Wisanu Subsompon said the immediate priority, particularly in eastern Bangkok, was to lower water levels in the Saen Saep and Prawet Burirom canals to allow water from secondary canals, roads and residential areas to be pumped into the main drainage system.
"Our core principle is to lower water levels in the primary canals first. We estimate it will take about three days for canal levels to drop sufficiently to effectively drain secondary canals,” he said in a statement on Monday.
Wisanu said conditions were improving along some stretches of the Saen Saep Canal, particularly around upper Ramkhamhaeng, allowing the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to gradually increase pumping from secondary canals.
As floodwaters recede, the BMA is also working with police and district offices to remove abandoned and disabled vehicles from affected roads while urging motorists to move vehicles that remain drivable to help clear major routes.
Meanwhile, the BMA has stepped up relief operations, with Governor Chadchart Sittipunt inspecting a flood relief distribution centre at Vichutit School in Din Daeng on Monday.
The centre can produce about 60,000 cooked meal boxes for each meal, or up to 180,000 a day, for distribution to badly affected areas, including Bang Kapi, Lat Krabang, Sai Mai, Khlong Sam Wa, Min Buri and Prawet.
The BMA earlier said severe flooding since last week had affected about 329,000 families, or some 700,000 people, across Bangkok, with Lat Krabang the hardest-hit district with an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 flood victims. -- Bernama
