Thailand's capital, Bangkok, was braced for more flooding on Sunday as water levels rose in some of it's northern suburbs and troops raced to fortify defense walls to protect two key industrial zones. Authorities have taken measures to divert floodwaters flowing from the north away from the city and into the Gulf of Thailand, but the capital was on tenterhooks because of the possibility of heavy rainfall into canals and rivers already full to the brim. Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said authorities were doing everything possible to drive the water out, but were facing a race against time. "Water is coming from different places and headed in the same direction. We're trying to build walls but there will be some impact on Bangkok," Yingluck told reporters, adding that high tide in the Gulf by the end of the week could complicate the situation. Thailand's worst flooding in half a century has affected a third of the country and has been bearing down on Bangkok since early last week.
Thailand's capital, Bangkok, was braced for more flooding on Sunday as water levels rose in some of it's northern suburbs and troops raced to fortify defense walls to protect two key industrial zones.
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Authorities have taken measures to divert floodwaters flowing from the north away from the city and into the Gulf of Thailand, but the capital was on tenterhooks because of the possibility of heavy rainfall into canals and rivers already full to the brim.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said authorities were doing everything possible to drive the water out, but were facing a race against time.
"Water is coming from different places and headed in the same direction. We're trying to build walls but there will be some impact on Bangkok," Yingluck told reporters, adding that high tide in the Gulf by the end of the week could complicate the situation.
Thailand's worst flooding in half a century has affected a third of the country and has been bearing down on Bangkok since early last week.
Twenty-eight of 77 provinces and 2.46 million people are affected, with water covering an area the size of Kuwait. Yingluck said on Saturday it could take as long as six weeks for the water to subside.
Since late July, 356 people have been killed and at least 113,000 moved to more than 1,700 makeshift shelters.
The full force of the flooding has hit central provinces and those on the edge of Bangkok, where water levels have reached as high as three meters, with vehicles completely submerged and some residents believed to be stranded in their homes.
The northern Bangkok districts of Don Muang and Lak Si were inundated on Sunday after spilled out of the Prapa canal. Boats and cars were seen side by side on a main road, with people seen wading through water or boarding trucks for evacuation as water levels were up to two meters in some parts.
Photo shows people being evacuated on a truck from a flooded area in Bangkok October 23, 2011. Credit: REUTERS/Sukree Sukplang
Article continues: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/23/us-thailand-floods-idUSTRE79K2XG20111023
