Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has ordered officials to remove thick layers of mud from flooded Chiang Rai as soon as possible, while flood-related garbage and debris is estimated to be about 68,000 tonnes in this northernmost Thai province.
At Wing 6 in Bangkok on Sunday, Ms Paetongtarn saw off air force aircraft that transported supplies from the government and the private sector to help flood victims in Chiang Rai.
She said she had ordered officials to remove the mud in flooded-affected areas of the province as soon as possible, especially mud in drainage systems, before it became dry and hard. The prime minister also said that His Majesty the King had donated 100 sets of high-pressure water cleaners to support the mission.
The prime minister said the government would start to hand out financial aid to flood victims in November, while the Commerce Ministry would stabilise goods prices to protect flood victims.
Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said personnel from the Highways Department, the military, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation and the Department of Corrections – as well as volunteers – were cleaning up Chiang Rai.
68,000 tonnes of garbage
Meanwhile, the armed forces and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment would find land plots covering a total of about 50 rai to dump garbage and debris from flooded areas of Chiang Rai.
Gen Theerayut Jinhiran, commander of the Armed Forces Development Command, said that mud was one to two metres deep in flooded houses in Chiang Rai.
Meanwhile, business tycoon Tan Passakornnatee announced he would rent 30 small backhoes with drivers and 90 six- and 10 10-wheeled trucks for 30 days to support the clean-up of Chiang Rai.
Surin Worakitthamrong, deputy director-general of the Pollution Control Department, said there were about 68,000 tonnes of garbage from flooded areas in Muang and Mae Sai districts of Chiang Rai. Of them, 50,000 tonnes were in Muang district.
He said 9,400 tonnes had been disposed of, leaving about 58,600 tonnes in the two districts.
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation reported on Sunday that flooding remained in eight provinces namely Chiang Rai, Lampang, Tak, Phitsanulok, Nong Khai, Nakhon Phanom, Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani. About 16,960 families were still affected, it said.