NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: Owners on Wednesday began dismantling shops built onto a concrete platform jutting into a canal flowing through the famous tourist village of Khiriwong following a public outcry.

The shop owners will soon face legal action for allegedly encroaching on a public area.

Workers started dismantling the concrete platform built into Klong Tha Dee, a landmark of the village in Lan Saka district, after the Region 4 Marine Office gave them a five-day deadline to rehabilitate the site. Authorities from various agencies on Tuesday drew a line establishing where the bank of the canal is supposed to be.

Owners of about 10 shops constructed the concrete bed that juts as far as four metres into the water, so that tourists could enjoy meals and drinks during their visits to the village. It is unclear when the illegal construction took place. It only came to public attention after a Facebook post on Monday by an anti-corruption association in the province.

Local officials hastily went to the village on Tuesday after the post went viral but did not take action against the alleged encroachers.

One of the shop owners, claimed the concrete structure was built to prevent further erosion of the bank by the rapid currents of the canal, according to Thai PBS.