Thread: Sukhothai residents brace for flooding as embankment collapses

Officials and labourers in Mueang district of Sukhothai province have been working frantically to close two gaping holes in an earth embankment, which collapsed under the pressure of strong currents in the Yom River, as runoffs from upstream Phrae flow through the province.


Overflows from river gushed into Nai Muang sub-district in Sawankhalok district through the 20-metre holes in the embankment yesterday. About 130 households are flooded.


Emergency workers rushed to the area to evacuate bed-ridden patients from their houses and to help move their belongings to high ground.


Water is also leaking through other parts of the earthen embankment, which is weakening and may soon collapse, said a local official, adding that repairing the embankment, for the time being, is too risky for both the men and machinery.


A village headman in Nai Muang sub-district said the level of the water in the Yom River is approaching that of 2011, when Sukhothai was hit by heavy flooding.


Governor Suchart Teekhasuk has instructed all authorities to monitor the rising water level closely.


Meanwhile, the Royal Irrigation Department plans to gradually increase the amount of water being discharged through the Chao Phraya dam in Chainat province, from the current rate of 649 cubic metres/second to 700-900 cubic metres/second, in line with the amount of water in upstream areas and rainfall.


The department also warned people living downstream of the dam, in areas not protected by floodwall, to prepare for possible flooding, as the water level is expected to rise by between 40 and 80cm.


The Department of Public Disaster Prevention and Mitigation reported today that 22 people have died in recent days and over 21,000 households in 37 districts of Chiang Rai, Phayao, Nan, Phrae, Phetchabun and Nakhon Si Thammarat are flooded.


Meanwhile, the Thai National Water Resources Office has sent an urgent note to the Mekong River Commission Secretariat seeking coordination with China and Laos by slowing and managing the discharge of excess water from the Mekong River through their dams in the two countries.

Sukhothai residents brace for flooding as embankment collaps

I just drove through Sukothai yesterday. Few rivers were pretty high. Didn't hit any rain.

Workers reinforcing embankment as large volume water flows into Sukhothai

Workers have been placing additional sandbags on a damaged embankment, after strong currents in the swollen Yom River breached it in several places, inundating at least two communities in Pak Kwae sub-district in the Mueang district today.


The depth of the floodwater in the Wang Hin and Wat Ratchathani communities is about 20cm.


Somsak Wechasuwan, the vice mayor of Mueang district, said that he has ordered larger sandbags, hoping that they will withstand the water pressure. He added, however, that he does not know how long the sandbags will last, because runoffs from Phrae province are still flowing through Sukhothai.


He said officials have been put on standby around the clock and are taking turns to monitor the water situation on hourly basis.


In Wang Chin district of Phrae province, the provincial electricity authority has cut the electricity supply to several areas as a safety precaution and residents have built sandbag walls to prevent water from getting into their houses.


For those whose houses are already flooded, district officials have set up relief centres in several villages, to provide food and drinking water.

Workers reinforcing embankment as large volume water flows i

Lot more to come and despite local expertise pushing water uphill with boats etc, it's all heading for Bangkok, Mae nam Ping, Nan and all the tributaries.

Yom River bursts banks to flood village

The swollen Yom River washed out a section of a road that serves as a flood levee in Sukhothai’s Muang district and quickly inundated a large area of one tambon early on Sunday.


Officials said the strong current of the Yom River, which became bloated because of run-off floodwaters from Phrae, also burst its banks to flood many parts of three other districts that the river runs through: Khalok, Sri Samrong, Muang and Kong Krailat districts.


Nussara Boonphol, chief of Tambon Yang Sai, said the strong tide washed out a 50-metre section of an earth road along the river in Ban Wang Pho in her tambon at about 5am.

The water then gushed in to flood 120 houses in the village and spread out to flood some 100 rai of rice fields in the tambon, Nussara added.


Sukhothai Governor Suchart Tikasakul rushed to the spot to oversee efforts to fix the levee and to set up a flood operation centre in the village.


Officials were mobilised from several agencies and were backed up by troops. But at the press time, had not been able to fix the 50-metre collapsed levee.


Troops helped the local officials to build makeshift levees with sandbags to try to protect the village from more floodwaters.

Officials also set up levees to prevent the inner part of Muang district, which is the economic zone at the downtown area, from being flooded.


Veera Buachan, Sukhothai chief agriculture officer, said some farmers had already harvested their rice crops but there were some 200 rai of rice fields where the harvest had not been done. Veera said officials would survey the damage and compensate rice farmers accordingly.


On Sunday morning, the water level on the Yom River in front of the Sukhothai governor’s residence was 7.63 metres with water flowing at the rate of 469.6 cubic metres per second. Officials would continue to monitor the water levels in the four districts as the deluge from Phrae arrived.

Yom River bursts banks to flood village