Short flood news

Residents of Bangkok's Don Muang, Bang Phlad and Thawi Wattana districts have been called upon to evacuate immediately. [Another report says residents of Bang Phlad should prepare for evacuation.]

• Ninety percent of Don Muang district is under water.
• Seventy percent of Bang Phlad district is under water.
• Two districts, Wang Thong Lang and Lat Phrao, are being closely monitored.
• The residents of 13 districts outside the flood wall of Bangkok must prepare for evacuation. The coming days will be critical with high tide.
• Thawi Wattana district was further flooded on Wednesday with water from Nonthaburi and Pathum Thani. The residents have left.
• Residents along the banks of the Chao Praya River and the Maha Sawat Canal should leave immediately, said the district chief of Thawi Wattana.
• Water that used to be on Vibhavadi Rangsit road is flowing to Lak Si intersection near IT Square department store. The water has a height of 60 cm.
• The highest water level of the Chao Praya River is expected on Saturday at 18 p.m. The water then reaches a height of 30 meters above mean sea level for 2,65 minutes, 15 cm higher than the tidal wall.
• The evacuees in the reception center in the cargo shed of Don Mueang airport are being evacuated. For now, the Flood Relief Operations Command, the command center of the government, is not leaving yet. If necessary, it will move to Supachalasai National Stadium. The Froc staff is currently having great difficulty reaching the Froc.
• HRH King Bhumibol has informed army commander Prayuth Chan-ocha that he does not need any special measures to protect the Chitralada palace. 'The King said floodwater should be allowed to take its course', said the general, who will nevertheless try to protect the grounds and palace from flooding. The palace is uninhabited because the king has been cared for in Siriraj hospital since September 2009.
• The Department of Pollution Control, the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and the Ministry of Defense are tackling water pollution with EM balls and liquid (Effective Microorganism). The method is cheap and has previously been used in East Timor and Sudan, where it proved to be very effective. It treats 2,34 million rai of agricultural land that has been under water for more than 15 days, 260 rai of rubbish dumps and flooded residential areas. On average, 3.000 balls per rai are needed at landfills and 1.000 balls per rai in rice paddies and residential areas.
• Five Nonthaburi villagers have been hospitalized after inhaling methane leaked from a flooded cooking oil factory. The gas is not lethal. One of them, a 7-year-old boy, is on a ventilator.
• Sai Mai district (Bangkok) is facing tough times. The water level in the channel at the Khlong 2 weir is 2,6 meters, 20 cm higher than the maximum height of the weir. Part of a wall with sandbags has been removed to relieve residents who fought against the strong flowing water. All residents of Phahon Yothin Soi 63 had to leave their homes because the water was 1 meter high.
• Water from the Vibhavadi Rangsit road continues to flow onto part of the Don Mueang runway. It comes from the sewage system and reached a height of 20 cm on Wednesday. The aircraft parked there are owned by ภาษาไทย Airways International, but they were no longer used.
• Four locations in Nonthaburi provinces north of Bangkok were flooded when the Chao Praya River burst its banks. Municipal workers are fighting against the clock to raise a rampart at Nonthaburi pier in time to hold back the rising water of the river. If the dike fails, the heart of Nonthaburi will be flooded and from there it will flow into Bangkok.
• In the Somchai Pattana district of Bang Kruai district (Nonthaburi), the water level is 0,5 to 1,3 meters. Some families have been evacuated. Strangers have been spotted passing by houses. The residents have asked the police to protect their property.
• China has donated 112 water filtering machines. They will be placed in evacuation centers and hospitals. This will reduce the drinking water shortage somewhat. The machines can produce 500 liters per hour. Beverage producers are also making a contribution. They have changed their production line to water. According to Prime Minister Yingluck, the tap water is safe, nevertheless consumers can filter and boil the water – just to be on the safe side.
• Prime Minister Yingluck recognizes what every resident of Bangkok has already experienced: there is a shortage of key consumer products. The biggest problem is distribution. Distribution centers and warehouses in Wang Noi (Ayutthaya) are inaccessible. Freight sheds at Don Mueang Airport serve as replacements. Distribution centers have also been opened in Chon Buri and Nakhon Ratchasima to supply Bangkok.
• Eleven temples and schools in Bang Phlad district serve as assembly points when residents are forced to evacuate. From there they go in army vehicles to evacuation centers. The situation in the district is expected to worsen later this week. When the water is too high for the vehicles, the navy deploys boats.
• Until November 5, the Don Muang Elevated Toll Road is free. The toll roads operated by the government have already scrapped the toll.
• With 17 buses, 600 detainees were taken from the Bang Kwang prison in Nonthaburi to the Khao Bin central prison in Ratchaburi. The remaining prisoners are taken to other maximum security prisons, such as Khlong Phai in Saraburi and the Central prison in Phitsanulok. Preparations are underway for the evacuation of 6.500 prisoners from Khlong Prem Prison.
• Hospital Chulalongkorn will only accept urgent patients from today until Monday. Siriraj Hospital has an evacuation plan for critically ill patients in case the site floods. An arrangement has been made with four hospitals for the transfer of patients.
• Small and medium-sized businesses need grants rather than loans, the Japanese embassy says. They are unable to eliminate the cost of the damage. The Japanese private sector has, among other things, called on the government to make the flooded industrial estates water-free as soon as possible, to grant tax exemptions to the affected companies and to grant a subsidy to keep staff employed. Japan has offered assistance in rehabilitating the industrial sites and preventive measures to prevent future disasters.
• After canceling all flights for two days due to the closure of Don Mueang airport, Nok Air will resume its schedule from Suvarnabhumi, still limited today, starting tomorrow with 40 flights a day. Nok Air normally flies to 24 domestic destinations and nine from Suvarnabhumi.
• The budget hotels in Hua Hin and Pattaya are filling up. Bangkok residents are sending children and the elderly to both places as the threat of flooding mounts. Many people from the capital have a second home in Cha-Am and Hua Hin. The hotels do not take advantage of the situation; they offer the rooms at discounted price to help the victims of the floods. The occupancy rate of luxury hotels is stable; some have to deal with cancellations by foreign tourists.