Bangkok’s Dusit district braces for water from the North, rising tide

Officials of Dusit District Office in Bangkok and members of the Wat Devaraj Kunchon community on Friday laid down sandbags at the community entrance to prepare for a mass of water flowing down from the Northern region as well as the rising sea level at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River.

Officials also built a temporary elevated walking bridge leading to the community entrance to ensure that about 100 households in the community, which is located outside the Chao Phraya River’s flood wall, are not cut off in the event of flash floods. 

A villager said community members have been on high alert after the Chao Phraya Dam announced that it would increase water discharge rate to ease flooding in the North.

The dam over the Chao Phraya River in Chai Nat province announced that it would increase discharge rate from the current 1,498 cubic metres per second to 2,000 cubic metres per second starting on Monday.

With increased water following down from the North, the situation in metropolitan Bangkok could be worsened by heavy rain due to the influence of the Yagi storm, as well as the monthly high tide that is expected to occur between September 9 and 13, the villager said.

A district official said Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt had previously visited several communities outside the flood wall and ordered officials to prepare for rising levels of the Chao Phraya River, including standing by for emergency evacuation.