Thailand affected by southwest monsoon

BANGKOK, August 14 (TNA) - A strong southwest monsoon is covering Thailand and the Meteorological Department has predicted heavy downpours in many areas. The weather agency issued an updated statement on Wednesday, warning, in particular, people in five provinces, including Ranong, Phang-nga, Rayong, Trat and Chanthaburi, to brace for heavy downpours and subsequent impacts over the next couple of days. Meanwhile, the management of the Khao Soi Dao Wildlife Sanctuary in Chantaburi province in the Thai East has closed the Khao Soi Dao Waterfall, as persistent downpours have posed a risk of flash floods which can be dangerous to tourists. Authorities at the Phanom Dong Rak Wildlife Sanctuary in Si Sa Ket province in the Thai Northeast said they are considering to close the Wang Yai Waterfall there, as its water levels have kept rising and visitors have been, in the meantime, prohibited from swimming in the stream of the waterfall. Floods have not been relieved in many provinces of the Thai North and the Northeast. In the northeastern Sakon Nakhon province, thousands of rai or several square kilometers of paddy fields have been inundated and irrigation officials are reducing the discharge of the Nam Oon Dam to reserve water for the dry season. In the northern Chiang Rai province, main rivers, including the Mekong River, have overflown to nearby communities and cornfields covering an area of more than 1.6 square kilometers in the Jan Jawa and the Tha Khao Pluak localities of Mae Chan district. In Phichit province in the Lower Thai North, strong currents of the Yom River have damaged its bank and a riverside concrete road at a distance of about 500 meters in front of a nursery in the Wang Chik locality. (TNA)