BANGKOK, Sept 28 — Thousands sheltered in evacuation centres in the Thai capital today, as parts of it remain flooded after havoc brought by intense weekend rain, while swelling reservoirs in an eastern province triggered orders for more to leave their homes.
Entire neighbourhoods were inundated, and the drainage network swamped after 320mm of rain fell during two or three days last week, or nearly as much as the sprawling low-lying city usually gets in all of September.
"Over 80,000 residents living in flooded areas are unable to leave their homes," Interior Ministry Permanent Secretary Unsit Sampuntharat said in a statement, adding that mobile kitchens and boats are being mobilised in relief efforts.
"The goal is to provide three meals a day to all residents throughout the...flooding period and for at least another seven after waters recede," he said, amid intermittent showers today.
At least eight die, more than 580,000 homes affected
Bangkok is among 41 provinces across Thailand hit by floods since September 16 that killed at least eight people and disrupted more than 580,000 homes.
Rangsit University's Economics Department's Aat Pisanwanich said the floods could cause economic damage of at least ฿11 billion baht (RM1.33 billion) nationwide, with the losses likely to rise unless the situation improves.
"The flooding is expected to shave 0.3 percentage points off this year's gross domestic product growth, reducing growth to 2.1 per cent, and cut third-quarter growth by about 0.5 percentage points to 1.7 per cent," he told Reuters.
Southeast Asia's second-largest economy, which has lagged regional peers since the COVID-19 pandemic, expanded 1.9 per cent year-on-year in the year's second quarter, but that was still down sharply from the previous quarter's growth of 2.8 per cent.
He added that Bangkok and the eastern region are likely to take the brunt of the impact, particularly wholesale and retail businesses, while industry and agriculture will suffer elsewhere.
Floating flood market
Residents waded through waist-deep waters in the capital's hard-hit Bang Kapi neighbourhood to buy essentials from vendors, some of whom set up stalls with floating plastic boxes and drums, three days after incessant rain brought floods.
A city administration official said at least 5,901 people in Bangkok have moved to 234 evacuation centres.
Sitting on a river delta of soft clay just 1.5m above sea level, heavily built-up Bangkok is sinking by several millimetres a year, while its population of more than 8.4 million often battles floods in its six-month-long rainy season.
Further east, in the coastal province of Rayong, which abuts a major industrial belt, authorities ordered evacuations today after floodwaters swelled two reservoirs beyond capacity.
Last year's catastrophic southern floods, triggered by 630mm of rain over three days, killed at least 145, inundated more than 33,000 homes and damaged critical facilities such as schools, hospitals, and highways.
