WEATHER
Lowland floods are likely along the Chao Phraya river downstream from Chai Nat province, including Bangkok, says the Irrigation Department.
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| Teachers at Prachakorn Rangsan school in Bang Ban district of Ayutthaya province carry furniture out of a classroom, which flooded whenthe Chao Phraya river burst its banks early yesterday. SUNTHORN PONGPAO |
Heavy rain in Kamphaeng Phet and Uthai Thani provinces in the upper Chao Phraya basin are increasing the amount of water in the river, it said yesterday.
The river flow through Nakhon Sawan province should rise to 2,000-2,100 cubic metres per second (cu m/s) over the next two days, it predicted.
Combined with water from the Sakae Krang river in Uthai Thani, the flow should climb to 2,450-2,600 cu m/s.
The department has tried to minimise the flow that reaches the Chao Phraya river by diverting water to irrigated areas above the dam. That should cut the flow into the dam to 1,900-2,000 cu m/s.
However, the department warned that despite the diversion, floods were still possible in low-lying areas beside the river in Chai Nat, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Ayutthaya, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Bangkok and Samut Prakan provinces.
Some areas in Bang Ban district of Ayutthaya province flooded yesterday, affecting many banana farms in the district.
Boonchu Khaosa-ard, a 60-year-old banana farmer in Bang Ban, said the district had been flooded regularly in the last three months.
He said irrigation officials failed to warn residents. Had they known, farmers could have moved their banana sprouts in time.
Bang-on Kanprawit, a teacher at Prachakorn Rangsan school in Bang Ban, said that if irrigation officials had told residents of their plan to release water from the Chao Phraya dam, teachers could have moved school items and fur niture to higher ground before it was flooded.
Prathuang Jakthong, an irrigation official in Bang Ban, said heavy rain in the North and the Central Plains forced irrigation workers to discharge large amounts of water from the dam. The discharges would continue for a few days and the threat of flooding should disappear soon, he said.
Agriculture Minister Somsak Prissananantakul said the country's 31 reservoirs were filled to 82% capacity. As of yesterday, they held 55,865 million cubic metres (cu m) of water, while their combined capacity stands at 68,489 million cu m
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