Thai flooding death toll hits 500

7 Nov 2011

Government officials in Thailand say that the death toll from the current flooding crisis passed 500 yesterday. Monsoon rains that lashed the country from late-July onwards have caused extensive flooding that passed down from the north regions and is now slowly engulfing the capital city of Bangkok.

The government statistics show that while most of the flood victims drowned, there have been some people electrocuted by live electricity cables and wires exposed to floodwater. The province of Ayutthaya, just north of Bangkok, has had the most casualties with 20 per cent of the death toll.

Floodwaters closed many of the Ayutthaya plants of global manufacturers and this is expected to create a worldwide shortage of computer hard-disk drives and car parts. The floods are now ebbing south out of Ayutthaya and heading to central Bangkok.

The northern areas of Bangkok are already under water and city governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra has asked residents of 11 city districts to evacuate to safer places. As the request is not compulsory, many people have elected to stay in partially submerged homes and protect them.

Floodwaters have washed past the popular Chatuchak Weekend Market over the past few days. The market was open yesterday, but there were few vendors and almost no shoppers.

The road to the market’s adjacent Mo Chit Skytrain terminus is flooded and access routes to the nearby Mo Chit Bus Station are also partially submerged. The station is the principal arrival and departure point for inter-city buses to the north and northeastern regions of the country.

At Suvarnabhumi Airport, the main international gateway to Thailand, it is business as usual with flights running to schedule. A 3.5 metre flood-defence wall has been constructed around the airport, but the deluges have not come this far anyway.

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