Thousands of people were overnighted in emergency shelters Sunday following days of torrential rains in Thailand’s capital Bangkok that forced thousands to go without shelter. Residential homes, roads and public gathering places were flooded, with residents from several communities evacuated.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) reports that almost 4,900 people are already at shelters and estimated that some 52,000 households are affected by the floods. Water levels ooze up waterfronts throughout Bangkok and authorities declared a disaster in the city.
Some areas of Bangkok saw over 330 millimetres of rain from Thursday to Sunday, Thailand’s weather agency said. September is typically the wettest month of the year in Thailand, however the residual flooding experienced by several of the residents seemed worse than usual.
In some areas, residents started returning to their homes in some affected neighbourhoods to clear flood water and dry furniture and other household goods. One resident, Kosin, spoke of his family relocating valuables to higher ground when they noticed the water level in the nearby canal was above the height of the canal’s walls. His residence still had power and running water in spite of the flood.
Eastern Bangkok was in disarray because of the floodwaters, too. People were seen walking in muddy water and in places, water was almost knee deep as they carried or floated items using plastic containers.
The flooding has brought back the memories of the devastating floods in Thailand in 2011 that covered vast areas, killing over 500 people and destroying millions of homes.
Rescue and rescue workers are still helping affected residents to cope with the results of the flooding and damage control efforts. In several areas residents have also started to clean their homes as heavy rain and water levels have increased to allow residents to return to their homes.