People living near the Phong River have been urged to move their belongings to higher ground as quickly as possible as the Ubolratana dam in Khon Kaen on Friday stepped up water discharges following huge inflows.
A water management panel in Khon Kaen had resolved to increase the dam's discharge from 50 million cubic metres of water daily to 54 million cu/m, after a huge amount of water continued to flow into to the reservoir every day, said Songwut Kitworawut, director of the Nong Wai Operation and Maintenance Project in Khon Kaen.
The dam began discharging water at 54 million cu/m per day around noon on Friday, he said. The increased discharge was necessary as more than 70 million cu/m of water a day flowed into the dam, he noted.
Residents living close to the Phong River in all areas were informed to quickly move their belongings to higher ground, Mr Songwut said.
Villagers were asked to do so quickly because more discharge would lead to a 30-centimetre rise in the water level in the river, which would affect Khon Kaen's Nam Phong district immediately and Muang district by today.
Four tambons in Muang district and a tambon in Nam Phong district have been heavily flooded.
Mr Songwut said all relevant agencies were instructed to put more sandbags to add another 50cm in height at the river bank to fend off the overflow, which is expected to be critical today.
The Phong River however flowed over the sandbags and swamped three villages in tambon Bueng Niam of Muang district, making it impossible for small vehicles to enter or leave.
The runoff also inundated 20,000 rai of rice fields in the villages.
In Phetchabun, overflow from the Pa Sak River engulfed 120 houses in Ban Nong Kan and Ban Pak Huay Dan of tambon Bungkhla of Lom Sak district.
Thousands of rai of farmland was submerged, with some spots immersed in more than one metre of water.
Army officers and local rescue workers came to the area to evacuate children, the elderly and disabled to safe places. More help came to area once the flood started to ease.
Phetchabun governor Phiboon Hatthakitkosol travelled to tambon Tadkloy of Lom Kao district, where floods are easing, and ordered the district chief and local administrative officers to expedite efforts to assist flood-affected residents immediately.
In the northern province of Tak, forest runoff hit Moo 10 of tambon Ruam Thai Pattana in Phop Phra district on Thursday night following heavy downpours and runoff from the mountains.
Locals scrambled to move their belongings to higher ground as flash flooding became fierce.
District chief Apichart Muanmanas said he had instructed local volunteers and authorities to assist the flood-stricken people.
In Phichit, Ecclesiastical provincial governor Phra Ratchasit Vethi has called for assistance since various temples in the province are already submerged as a result of the massive overflows from Yom and Nan rivers.
He said he asked for donations to arrange boats for the monks who are still inside the flooded temples so they would are able to travel and observe religious practices.
He said a plastic boat is priced between 6,000 and 10,000 baht and that he wants to ask people to make donations so these vessels can be provided to the flooded temples.
These boats would also be used for religious ceremonies conducted in the waterways later, the monk noted.
Sitthipoj Kebui