Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont inspects flood mitigation efforts in Muang Angthong’s tambon Tha Id where residents are piling up more sandbags to keep flood water out.

Interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont yesterday inspected flood problems in the Central provinces of Angthong and Sing Buri, pledging to provide immediate relief to flood victims.

On a helicopter flight with Supreme Commander General Boonsrang Niumpradit and senior Disaster Prevention and Mitigation officials, Surayud also stopped to give morale support and relief bags to affected people in several locations.

When asked about his Cabinet line-up, Surayud said he would like to tackle the most urgent issue first - the serious widespread flooding - as he was concerned that water levels might rise in the next seven days.

But he stressed the new Cabinet would be unveiled no later than next week.

General Boonsrang said the armed forces would give full support and send additional medical teams to help affected villagers. He said he was confident the Army could reach areas made inaccessible by flood to help villagers.

The rising Chao Phya and Noi Rivers have flooded Angthong's Chaiyo, Muang Angthong, Pa Moke, Wiset Chai Chan and Sawaengha districts, affecting about 10,000 people. Sing Buri's Muang, In Buri and Phrom Buri districts were flooded, affecting 30,000 residents and damaging 20,000 rai of farmland.

Royal Irrigation Department director-general Samart Chokanapitak yesterday warned residents of low-lying areas along the Chao Phya River in the central region to brace for more flooding. Officials were ordered to strengthen flood barriers as water levels would not recede until the end of this month due to seasonal high tides.

The residents of hardest-hit Phichit province would also have to suffer flood-related problems through November, Samart said.

The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said 36 provinces were now affected by flooding, 20 provinces remain submerged, 1.3 million people were affected, 22 have been killed and about 1.4 million rai of farmland has been damaged.

The overall damage was estimated at Bt189 million, the department said.

Officials would closely monitor Ayutthaya's Ban Ban district and Bangkok's eastern area - covering Lat Krabang, Min Buri, Bang Kapi, Prawet, Nong Chok and Suan Luang districts - as they would face more flooding on October 10 due to high sea tides and potentially heavy rainfall.

A three-metre long crocodile escaped from Phichit's Pho Thale district yesterday morning and evaded efforts by residents to shoot it, prompting local authorities to issue an alert. Earlier, villager Boonmee Booncha, 49, was found drowned.

In Ayutthaya, the rising water forced mahouts to relocate all the elephants in the ancient royal elephant corral to higher ground after barriers failed to withstand the strong currents.

In Nakhon Ratchasima, three days of heavy rains caused a 15-tonne boulder and other rocks to block a railway stretch between kilometres 202 and 206 in Sikhiu district at 3am yesterday, paralysing traffic for six hours before officials dynamited the landslide to clear a path.

The Lam Chiang Krai reservoir in Dan Khun Thot district overflowed on Tuesday night and submerged 200 houses, rice fields and the Sikhiu-Chaiyaphum road under 80-centimetres of water. Officials said the area would be back to normal in two to three days.

In Lampang's Thoen district, the body of local administration member Som Khamwong, 56, was recovered from the fast flowing Wang River after he disappeared on Sunday following a trip to inspect flooded rice fields.