Heavy and very heavy rain will continue to batter southern provinces on Nov 5 as typhoon Damrey has swept across Vietnam and is moving in the direction of the Gulf of Thailand, the meteorological centre for the eastern coast of the South announced on Sunday.
Phayao Muangngam, the director of the centre, said that as the typhoon is arriving, a strong low-pressure area has covered the lower South while the northeast monsoon prevails over the Gulf of Thailand and the South.
As a result, heavy to very heavy rain will continue in some areas of Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat on Sunday.
On Nov 6-8 heavy rain is expected to hit Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chumphon, Surat Thani and Nakhon Si Thammarat. With strong winds, waves in the Gulf of Thailand will be 2-3 metres high. Small boats should stay ashore, said Mr Phayao, and people are advised to keep abreast of conditions with the latest weather forecasts.
Kukiat Wongkrapan, the Phatthalung governor, and Udom Phetkhut, director of the Zone 11 Disaster Prevention and Mitigation in Surat Thani, on Sunday went out on an inspection trip to assess the situation.
Mr Udom said his office has despatched large water pumps to flood-risk areas and is now on full alert for disaster relief operations.
Narong Suthisang, chief of the Phatthalung livestock office, said a plan has been put in place to cope with possible impact on important livestock such as meat cows, dairy cows, buffaloes, pigs and poultry, which are at risk of sickness and death in continuous rain and flooding.