Wednesday, October 12, 2011

60-Year Floods Hit Thailand

Above is a picture circulating in emails today, alleging to picture an escaped crocodile at the entrance of a Thai house in the flood waters. Today's Bangkok Post reported 100 crocodiles escaping from a flooded wildlife farm. The headlines cooed "100 Escaped Crocodiles 'not fierce.' " Tell that to the guy who lost his arm this year to a croc at Pattaya's Crocodile Farm.

The worst floods since 1949 are wreaking havoc in Thaland with hundreds dead, scores of flooded factories, and thousands of square miles of farms and cities under water.

Our village (photos below) sits on Thailand's longest river, The Chi. It runs 765 kilometers (480 miles) through five provinces and its waters finally empty into the mighty Mekong downriver.
Below are photos taken this afternoon, upon learning that our river has overrun its banks.
















Looking upriver, the metal fence marks the
normal river bank boundary.


Flooded village road closest to the river. Recently-filled sandbags on the left.



Another impassable village road beginning to flood.



Precaution #1: Sand ready for more sand bag filling.


Precaution #2: Longboats ready for quick rescues.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Praying the water will start receding.poor Thailand.

Anonymous said...

Update: Waters are receding and things are looking back to normal in our upcountry town. (We sent it all to Bangkok, apparently.) --JD

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