AYUTTHAYA/CHAI NAT - About 700,000 rai of farmland in Auyutthaya province has been proposed for use as <i>kaem ling</i> (monkey-cheek) water retention areas to accommodate the huge volume of northern runoff flowing into the Chao Phraya dam reservoir.
The move follows a warning issued on Thursday by the region12 irrigation office to governors and residents of seven central provinces.
The office said the water level in the Chao Phraya and Noi rivers was rising quickly and it would begin discharging water from the Chao Phraya dam at 900 cubic metres per second. This would cause a rapid rise in the level of the river downstream by maybe 80-120cm.
The warning sparked alarm in riverside communities in Bang Ban, Sena, Phak Hai and Bang Sai districts of Ayutthaya, one of the seven provinces. The other six provinces are Chai Nat, Uthai Thani, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Suphan Buri and Lop Buri.
At least 50 houses along the Noi River in tambon Krathum and tambon Hua Wiang in Sena district have already been inundated by water about 30cm deep.
Deputy Ayutthaya governor Rewat Prasong said on Friday the province would coordinate with the regional irrigation office, proposing ways to handle the flood surge into the Chao Phraya dam reservoir.
Water should be diverted into fields that would be turned into natural monkey-cheek water retention areas, Mr Rewat said.
There were 500,000 rai of paddy fields in the province that had not been planted in crops and which could be used.
There were also many paddy fields that farmers were racing against time to harvest before they were flooded out. If these areas were included, the proposed water retention areas would total about 700,000 rai, the deputy governor said.
Irrigation officials could immediately open canal sluice gates to discharge the flood water into these areas. He believed this was workable. It would ease flooding in riverside communities and store water for use during the dry season.
Ayutthaya governor Prayoon Rattanasenee on Friday warned the public and private sectors, and local residents, to brace for flooding in four districts near the Chao Phraya and Noi rivers as water continued to be released from the Chao Phraya dam.
The affected districts include Bang Ban, Sena, Phak Hai and Bang Sai, where the floodwater level is expected to rise to 50cm over the next day or two, the governor said.
In Chai Nat, Nong Mamong district has been declared a flood disaster area after runoff flooded at lest 25,000 rai of farmland, affecting around 4,000 households.
Chai Nat governor Khanit Iemrahong on Friday declared the district a disaster area so assistance could be urgently sent to those in need.
Downpouring rain has pounded the district since Aug 29, sending runoff from Khao Chong Lom-Khao Khad mountain in Uthai Thani’s Huai Khot district in agricultural areas and houses in nearby tambon Wang Takhian and tambon Nong Mamong. Three other tambons in Nong Mamong district were also hit separately by runoff.
Mr Khanit advised residents to closely monitor the water situation as more flooding was likely to ravage the province. Local authorities have been put on full alert around the clock.
A vast agricultural area in Chai Nat province's Nong Mamong district has been turned into a lake as runoff from nearby areas ravages the district, which has been declared a flood disaster zone. At least 25,000 rai of farmland has been damaged and about 4,000 households affected. (Photo by Chudate Seehawong)