Samut Songkhram braces for floods as Bangkok dries up

Samut Songkhram has declared three districts flood disaster zones and set up 33 temporary evacuation shelters that can accommodate up to 6,140 people, as the province braces for possible flooding following a sharp increase in water discharge from the Mae Klong Dam.

Governor Chayachai Saeng-in said today that water discharge from the dam reached 2,227 cubic metres per second at 7am. Residents in the three districts have been warned four times via cell broadcast to prepare for possible flooding.

The three districts are Muang, Amphawa and Bang Khonthi, covering 27 subdistricts and 204 villages.

Chayachai said residents and shop owners in municipal areas had placed sandbags in front of or around their homes and businesses in preparation for the anticipated flooding.

In Bangkok, meanwhile, floodwater has receded and is drying up in Khlong Chan, Bang Kapi, Lat Phrao and several other areas, with overall conditions steadily improving, Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said today.

Chadchart visited Bang Kapi district and was briefed on the flood situation by district chief Chirasak Hongpaed.

At Khlong Chan housing estate, which has been heavily flooded for several days and prompted Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to visit twice, Chadchart said water levels in some areas had fallen to about one metre below the level of the Saen Saep Canal.

Residents who had parked their cars along roads or on bridges to avoid floodwater have now moved them back into the housing estate. Chadchart said motorists can park their cars free of charge for seven days at NRT parking lots.

Lat Phrao Road has mostly dried up, except for Soi Lat Phrao 191, where officials are accelerating drainage.

The governor said the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, with additional water pumps from the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, was speeding up drainage into Phang Phuay Canal to restore Nawamin Road to normal.

Once the floodwater has receded, the next step will be to repair damaged roads, he said.

The BMA will focus today on Srinagarindra Road, Pattanakarn Road, Saphan Sung and Lat Krabang districts. The first priority is to lower water levels in canals, followed by draining water from roads and communities into the canals, Chadchart said.

People who are still affected by flooding can seek help by calling 1555 or reporting problems through the Traffy Fondue platform.