Sungai Kolok border reopens

Sungai Kolok border reopens

The Sungai Kolok checkpoint bordering Thailand and Malaysia reopened on Saturday after flooding had forced Malaysian authorities to close their office for two days.

Marine soldiers load food and supplies into a boat to help flood victims in Tak Bai district of Narathiwat on Saturday. (Photo by Wadao Harai)

An official at the Thai immigration office in Sungai Kolok district in Narathiwat province said the Rantau Panjang checkpoint on the Malaysian side had been closed since Thursday.

Rantau Panjang in Kelantan state is opposite Sungai Kolok with the Kolok River separating the two countries.

"The Thai border has never closed but the closure on the Malaysian side effectively ended crossings over the last two days," said the official who requested anonymity.

Sungai Kolok is one of 13 districts in Narathiwat that has been hit hard by heavy rains and flooding. The provincial disaster prevention and mitigation office on Saturday declared the entire province a disaster area.

Conditions were no better in Yala, Pattani and Songkhla provinces. All nine districts in Yala and seven districts in Songkhla were put on the disaster list.

Muang district in Pattani was declared a disaster zone on Saturday after the Pattani River overflowed into the municipality for the first time on Saturday with one child reportedly drowned.

Soldiers, volunteers and officials continued to evacuate people from high-risk areas and supply food and necessities for people compelled to stay home as high water had shut down transport.

The southern weather bureau warned of more downpours at least until Sunday in the four provinces as well as in Phatthalung.

Narathiwat officials on Saturday alerted people living along the Kolok River in Waeng, Sungai Kolok and Tak Bai districts of more overflows.

The water level recorded in Rantau Panjang was 10.27 metres, exceeding the danger level of 9 metres, the News Straits Times Online reported.

The Malaysian border town was one of the most heavily flooded areas in Kelantan and the situation could worsen.

Pasir Mas constituency, which covers Rantau Panjang, recorded the highest number of evacuees in the state, it added.

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