ID :
339947
Wed, 09/03/2014 - 12:22
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Inundations remain in many Thai areas, preparations begin for next seasonal drought

LAMPANG, THAILAND, September 3 (TNA) - Flooding has remained in many areas in the Thai North and Northeast, while authorities concerned have prepared measures to cope with next seasonal drought. In the northern Lampang Province, updated reports on Wednesday said runoffs from the Khun Mae Sui-Mae Khom Mountain had flooded four villages in Ban Kha Sub-district, causing more than 200 houses to have been about one meter under water, while people in Muang and Muang Pan Districts were warned of possible floods as the Mae Tui River could overflow again. In Nakhon Sawan Province in the Lower Thai North, runoffs from mountains in upstream Phetchabun Province had flooded about 1.6 square kilometers of paddy fields in the Nakhom locality of Phaisali District and floodwater had cut dirt roads linking Nakhom and Wang Namlad Sub-districts. In Phichit Province, also in the Lower Thai North, persistent downpours on the Phetchabun Mountain Range had caused runoffs that damaged roads and bridges in Ban Wang Mong of Wang Sai Phun Sub-district. In the northeastern Chaiyaphum Province, runoffs from the Phang Hoei Mountain Range and water from a broken local reservoir had flooded temples, schools and houses in four villages and more than eight square kilometers of paddy fields in Khok Sa-ard and Nong Bua Rahew Sub-districts of Ban Khwao District, prompting authorities to tell locals to move to high grounds, while a runoff from the Phu Lankha Mountain Range damaged streets in Muang District. The Royal Irrigation Department, under the Thai Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, has, on the other hand, prepared water management plans to prevent a shortage of water supply in the next seasonal drought, while advising the public to start saving their water consumption early, as the Sirikit Dam, a major dam in Uttaradit Province in the Lower Thai North, currently holds 4.5 billion cubic meters of water, but only 1.66 billion cubic meters of water or 25 per cent, is usable to save the water in the dam for public consumption during the upcoming drought in the next dry season. Dr. Suthep Lertsrimongkol, Director of Sirikit Dam, told reporters, meanwhile, that the dam can hold another 5 billion cubic meters of water to reach its maximum capacity and officials are storing more water as much as possible during the ongoing raining season. (TNA)

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