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Damaging floods continue
- Published: 29 Sep 2011 at 10.36
- Online news: Easier Stuff
One of the worst flood seasons ever is still wreaking havoc throughout much of the country.
Tourists get wet feet as they watch a royal barge procession rehearsal at the flooded Nagaraphirom public park by the Chao Phraya River in Phra Nakhon district of Bangkok, with the main pagoda of the Temple of Dawn in the background yesterday. PAWATLAOPAISARNTAKSIN
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Damaging floods continue
One of the worst flood seasons ever is still wreaking havoc throughout much of the country.
In the North, heavy rains unleashed a landslide that killed a family of five in Chiang Mai on Tuesday night.
The landslide together with a flash flood hit the Ban Kai Noi hill tribe village in Mae Taeng district, destroying four homes and killing the family.
There are about 60 homes in the village. The landslide cut off power supplies and telephone services and persistent rains have made repairs difficult.
Chiang Mai governor ML Panadda Disakul said that flooding hit Mae Taeng, Fang, San Sai and Muang Chiang Mai districts yesterday.
The Ping River breached its banks and flowed into some commercial areas in the heart of Chiang Mai.
Meanwhile in the upper central region, residents of Lop Buri's Tha Wung district have been told to prepare to evacuate their homes as flood waters continued to surge yesterday.
Officials predicted the situation could be worse than the major flood they suffered 15 years ago.
Narong Klomklao, chief of Bangku tambon administration organisation, said the run-off which hit his community on Sunday left many areas under two metres of water.
In nearby Chai Nat about 300 villagers in Wat Sing district have staged angry protests against local Royal Irrigation Department officials for refusing to open more sluice gates in the district to release floodwater from their communities into the nearby Suphan Buri River.
Wat Sing downtown is home to about 1,500 households. It has been inundated for more than two weeks. Most areas are under 2 metres of water.
A protest leader who asked not to be named said he was disappointed with the RID's decision not to let floodwater into the river.
"During the dry season, the department released water to serve farmers [in Suphan Buri]," he said. "And in the rainy season, they kept water to prevent it from flooding Suphan Buri. So how is this fair to those of us who live upstream?”
Adapted from three stories in today’s Bangkok Post by Cheewin Sattha and Apinya Wipatayotin
royal barge – (in Thailand) a long, elaborately decorated boat used for royal ceremonies on the Chao Phyra River เรือพระราชพิธี
procession – a line of people, vehicles or boats moving in a slow and formal way as part of an event ขบวน(ราช)
rehearsal – a practice for a concert, play, event, etc. before giving a performance การซักซ้อม
pagoda – a Buddhist religious building with several levels เจดีย์, สถูป, พระเจดีย์,
background – the part of a picture, photograph or view behind the main objects, people, etc ฉากหลัง, พื้นหลังภาพ
wreak havoc – to cause something bad to happen in a violent and often uncontrolled way ทำให้เกิด ความเสียหายอย่างรุนแรง, ทำให้เกิดความหายนะ
unleash – to release suddenly a strong, uncontrollable and usually destructive force ปล่อย, ก่อให้เกิดผลรุนแรง
landslide – a mass of rock and earth moving suddenly and quickly down a steep slope แผ่นดินถล่ม
flash flood – a flood that happens suddenly without warning น้ำที่เกิดท่วมในที่ต่ำโดยฉับพลันทันทีและไหลลดลงอย่างรวดเร็ว
persistent – continuing อย่างต่อเนื่อง
repairs – the process of fixing something that is broken or damaged การซ่อมบำรุง
breach – to break through or over something ข้าม, ทำให้แตก
breach its banks (of a river) – to flood; to have water go over the sides ล้นตลิ่ง
flow – (of a liquid) to move continuously in one direction ไหล
commercial – for business purposes เกี่ยวกับการค้า
meanwhile – at the same time ในเวลาเดียวกัน
residents – people who live in a particular area ประชาชนที่อาศัยในท้องที่
evacuate – to cause to leave a place because it is not safe เคลื่อนย้ายออกจาก
surge – a sudden increase in something, in this case, the flow of water การเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างรวดเร็ว
predict – to say that an event or action will happen in the future, especially as a result of knowledge or experience คาดการณ์ว่า พยากรณ์จากสถิติว่า
suffer – to be badly affected by a very difficult or unpleasant situation ประสบความลำบาก
run-off – rain, water or other liquid that runs off land into streams and rivers น้ำหลาก
community – the people living in one particular area ชุมชน
stage – to organise an event or activity จัด
protest – a meeting or rally, sometimes forceful or violent, of people who strongly disagree with something ชุมนุมประท้วง
irrigation – the process of bringing water to land through a system of pipes, ditches, etc. in order to make crops grow ระบบชลประทาน
refuse – to say you will not do something that someone has asked you to do ปฏิเสธ
sluice gate – a gate that can be opened or closed to control the flow water along a passage ประตูน้ำปิดเปิดบังคับการไหลของน้ำในคลอง
release – to allow a substance to flow out from somewhere ปล่อย
household – a group of people, often a family, who live together ครัวเรือน
inundate – to flood; to submerge ท่วม, ทำให้จมลงใต้น้ำ
disappointed – unhappy because someone or something was not as good as you hoped or expected, or because something did not happen ผิดหวัง
upstream –along a river, in the opposite direction to which the river is flowing ต้นน้ำ
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