Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

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Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by Gaybutton »

Southern floods spread, Koh Samui, Koh Phangan declared disaster areas

by Terry Fredrickson

6 December, 2016

Southern floods spread, Koh Samui, Koh Phangan declared disaster areas

All train services heading to the lower part of the region are suspended after tracks were damaged by floodwater. Meanwhile, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan have been placed as disaster areas.

Major flooding continued in 12 of the 14 southern provinces on Tuesday, with about 94,000 people severely affected and Trang suffering its worst inundation in 30 years.

Large areas of Chumphon, Krabi, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Narathiwat, Pattani, Phatthalung, Phuket, Satun, Songkhla, Surat Thani, Trang and Yala provinces were under water. Only Ranong and Phangnga remained relatively dry.

Fourth Army chief Piyawat Nakwanich said an estimated 90,440 people were affected in 1,071 villages. "People are in trouble, with many places isolated," he said.

Authorities would be helping the victims until the situation returned to normal, Lt Gen Piyawat said.

Floodwater was receding in Kong Ra, Pa Bon and Tamot districts of Phatthalung, while runoff was still flooding into districts around Songkhla Lake, he said.

In Nakhon Si Thammarat, 252 schools were closed, governor Chamroen Thiphayaphongthada said.

Morning story

Southern floods spread to 12 provinces

Households and businesses in the South have been hit hard by flooding while all train services heading to the lower part of the region are suspended after tracks were damaged by floodwater.

At least 12 provinces in the South have been affected by flooding which began last Thursday. The provinces are Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun, with tens of thousands of residents affected. According to authorities, at least 11 people have been killed in the flooding.

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) announced Monday it has temporarily halted the operation of the new Thaksinarat Special Express Train No. 31/32, running from Bangkok to Hat Yai in Songkhla. The move came after several southern railway tracks subsided when the areas were submerged under floodwater, said SRT governor Wuthichart Kalyanamitra.

Mr Wuthichart said trains on the southern line cannot go beyond Thung Song station and the SRT is providing buses from the station to take passengers to their destinations.

The services affected by the floods include all express and rapid trains from Bangkok to Trang, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Hat Yai, Yala and Sungai Kolok in Narathiwat, as well as all local services from Thung Song.
Koh Samui, Koh Phangan declared disaster areas

Koh Samui and Koh Phangan have been placed on the disaster areas list as heavy rain continues to pound the two resort islands and other areas in Surat Thani and other southern provinces.

The Meteorological Department on Monday warned of severe weather in the region.

Flooding on Koh Samui eased on Sunday but downpours overnight left roads inundated again on Monday.

The situation looks worse due to overflowing Phru Chawaeng, the island's main reservoir, into low-lying communities on the island.

The weather office predicted rain in most areas on Koh Samui until Wednesday.

On Koh Phangan, a road between Ban Tai and Tong Nai Pan, a main route for tourists on the island, was impassable after fallen mountain rocks brought down four electricity poles, causing blackouts in some areas.

Workers from the Provincial Electricity Authority later cleared the blockade and were trying to repair the damaged poles.

Story and photos: http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/adv ... ster-areas
Jun

Re: Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by Jun »

Thanks for the link.
Hopefully I shall be OK taking the train from Surat Thani to Hua Hin in a few days time.
bing

Re: Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by bing »

HI,
I was in Koh Samui in the last week of Nov. and all was fine, but I do understand what a few days of constant rain can do to a road. When I was there, it was warm and sunny.
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Re: Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by Gaybutton »

bing wrote:I was in Koh Samui in the last week of Nov. and all was fine
Apparently you were lucky. The severe problems started after you left.

If any of you are currently in these flood areas, please tell us what you're observing now.
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Re: Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by Gaybutton »

Still flooding in 5 southern provinces

9 Dec 2016

Floodwaters have drained off in all but five of the southern provinces where more than 750,000 residents have been inundated since Dec 1.

Large areas of Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Surat Thani and Trang were still flooded on Friday.

Chatchai Phromlert, director-general of the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, said seven districts of Nakhon Si Thammarat were inundated - Chalerm Prakiat, Cha-uat, Chian Yai, Chulabhorn, Hua Sai, Pak Phanang and Ron Phibun.

In Phatthalung, Bang Kaew, Khao Chaison, Muang, Khuan Khanun, and Pak Phayun districts were still getting runoff from other areas draining into Songkhla Lake.

Four districts of Songkhla lining the lake shared the same fate - Krasae Sin, Ranot, Sathing Phra and Singha Nakhon.

In Surat Thani, Khian Sa, Phraseang and Phunphin districts were also receiving floodwater. In Trang, flooding remained in Kantang, Muang and Sikao districts.

Mr Chatchai said that since Dec 1 there had been floods in 12 provinces that affected 750,281 people in 4,783 villages. Eleven of the provinces were in the South Region. The other, Prachuap Khiri Khan, is immediate to the north.

Floodwater has already receded from Chumphon, Krabi, Narathiwat, Pattani, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Ranong and Yala provinces. Twenty-two people were known to have drowned in the floods in the first eight days this month.

The Meteorological Department reported that the rain was easing off in the South. Local authorities said floodwater that remained in low-lying areas was slowly flowing into the adjacent sea.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general ... -provinces
Jun

Re: Planning a trip to southern Thailand? Read this first

Post by Jun »

Some surface water visible on the train northbound out of Surat Thani. Nor a hint of anything problematic.
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