Bangkok declares flood disaster as torrential rain submerges roads and forces thousands into shelters

A flood disaster was declared across Bangkok on Saturday. All 50 districts became emergency zones. The declaration followed almost 48 hours of relentless rain that left roads submerged across the Thai capital, with authorities warning that the worst may not be over as canal water levels remained dangerously high and more heavy downpours were forecast.

The flooding triggered by days of heavy rain has inundated homes and roads across Thailand’s capital, affecting some 52,000 households and sending nearly 4,900 people to shelters, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. Water levels in the city’s network of canals remained high on Sunday morning, with authorities working to speed up drainage. Continuous downpours hammered several areas of the Thai capital, causing traffic chaos on streets that are already famously congested and leaving many residents struggling to go about their daily lives. Thunderstorms are common in Thailand at this time of year, but the extreme weather of recent days overwhelmed Bangkok’s drainage system and brought much of the city to a standstill. The rains had subsided by Sunday, the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority said, though conditions had not yet returned to normal across the city. The governor said on Saturday that the east of Bangkok had been hardest hit, AFP reported.

Canals at capacity as pumping falls behind

Canal water levels stayed dangerously high on Sunday. Even as the downpours that had battered the city for days finally began to ease, the city’s governor warned that the flooding was not yet over despite the efforts of crews working to pump water out of inundated neighbourhoods. “The rain keeps falling and we are doing our best. We are trying to pump the water out, but the water in canals are full... The risk areas are those who live near canals. Every canal is now filled,” Chadchart Sittipunt told AFP. People across the city were being urged to stay at home, and those living close to the city’s network of canals were advised to move their belongings to upper floors as a precaution against further rising water.

Residents compare flooding to 2011 disaster

Somkid Pheuk-ngam, a 67-year-old who lives near a canal just north of central Bangkok, told AFP that the water kept rising and had reached her waist, making it impossible to leave her home or operate her business. “The water keeps coming in. It’s hard to go out now. It’s like at my waist level now,” she said. “I cannot go anywhere. I have been closing my shop for two days now.” She said the water levels she was seeing in the city appeared to be even worse than in 2011, when Bangkok was impacted by nationwide flooding that killed hundreds across Thailand over the course of three months. So far, no casualties have been reported in Bangkok from this latest flooding.

More rain forecast but relief expected

More than 300mm (12in) of rain fell across Bangkok from Thursday through the weekend, with the weather agency recording more than 330mm (13in) in some areas of the city between Thursday and Sunday. The Thai Meteorological Service forecast more heavy rain through the week, though the area of low pressure causing the downpours of recent days was expected to move toward central Thailand. More rain was forecast throughout Sunday for Bangkok and its surrounding provinces. Some relief was expected. The downpours were forecast to begin tapering off on Monday, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said. Scientists warn that the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events will increase as the planet continues to heat up because of fossil fuel emissions, raising the prospect of more such disasters in the years ahead.