Residents of 11 provinces in the Chao Phraya River basin have been warned to brace for possible river overflows on Sept 5 and 6.
Heavy rain in the northern part of the country has caused a huge volume of water to flow into the reservoir of the Chao Phraya Dam at an increasing rate, said Taweesak Thanadechophol, deputy director-general of the Royal Irrigation Department (RID).
The water station in Nakhon Sawan on Wednesday morning measured the flow in the Chao Phraya at 1,846 cubic metres per second. The flow at the Chao Phraya Dam in Chai Nat was measured at 1,678m³/s.
It is expected that flows into the dam from upstream areas will reach between 2,100 and 2,200 cubic metres per second in the coming days.
The RID has decided to keep the discharge rate at no more than 2,000m³/s under criteria set by the water management committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, said Mr Taweesak.
Such a discharge rate would reduce the impact on community and agricultural areas.
Water will be discharged through the dam at between 1,800 and 2,000m³/s, starting from Sunday, he said. This would cause water levels in downstream areas to rise.
Areas vulnerable to overflows are adjacent to the Phong Pheng canal in Ang Thong province; the Bang Ban canal, Sena and Phak Hai districts in Ayutthaya. Communities in those areas will be affected as water levels are expected to rose by 40 to 50 centimeters from current levels on Monday and Tuesday, Mr Taweesak said.
If the volume of northern runoff increases, the flow into the Chao Phraya dam will be more than 2,000 cubic metres, he added
That would require people to remain alert in 11 provinces: Uthai Thani, Chai Nat, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Suphan Buri, Ayutthaya, Lop Buri, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan and Bangkok.
People living along both sides of the Chao Phraya and Noi rivers have also been told to closely follow the situation.
Gen Prawit on Thursday sought to ease public concern that has been building in recent days that the country could see its worst flooding since the disastrous evcents of 2011.
“I guarantee that this year will not be a repeat of 2011,” he said.