The flood-ravaged northeastern provinces have been warned to brace for more rain until tomorrow due to a storm system developing over southern China.
While tropical storm Podul has made its way out of the country after drenching several provinces in the North and Northeast since Friday, the Meteorological Department yesterday released a fresh warning about a new storm that is approaching Hainan Island in China.
While the new storm is not headed directly towards Thailand, it will bring about increased rainfall as it nears the kingdom's coastline, the weather agency said.
"The new storm will not directly hit Thailand, but it will affect the monsoon rain," said Chaicharn Sitthiworanant, a weather forecaster at the department. "The Northeast should brace for more rain until tomorrow."
The storm is expected to disrupt some flood relief work in some parts of the Northeast which were hard-hit by Podul.
In response, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered state agencies to provide more relief and compensation to help those hit by the floods.
The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is preparing to hand out compensation to farmers in affected provinces across the country.
DAE director, Samran Sarabhand, said each affected farmer can claim compensation, which will be calculated depending on the type of crops grown and the size of the field.
Farmers who grow rice will be entitled to 1,113 baht of compensation per rai, while those who grow "fruits and farm products" are eligible to receive 1,148 baht per rai. Meanwhile, farmers whose crops fall under the "other" plant category are entitled to claim 1,690 baht per rai in compensation. Each farmer can claim compensation of up to 30 rai.
Podul, which weakened after unleashing downpours on Thailand and left the country on Saturday, flooded 24 provinces since Thursday.