Floodings hit Phang Nga and Surat Thani

Tham Nam Phud Tambon Administration Organisation president Don Pattanapichai and mitigation officials waded through onemetredeep floodwater to help evacuate 300 residents to a shelter near the City Hall after some villagers were already moved there on Monday night.

Days of continuous rainfall and forest runoffs from Nang Hong, Kratha Kwam and Toy mountain ranges caused Klong Phang Nga to inundate people's homes. Officials are still assessing the damage.

Resident Siwa Intharak, 39, said he had never seen such flooding in 10 years of living in Tham Nam Phud but he was able to move belongings to higher ground in time as the water slowly rose.

About 2,000 households in Phang Nga's Muang, Takua Pa, Khura Buri, Thai Muang and Kapong districts were affected by flooding while landslides also blocked many roads.

In Takua Pa, three schools were closed as a precaution while 800 families - about 2,000 people - were moved to tents on high ground in Tambon Khok Kian. District chief Phuwanart Ekkarat said this was the worst flood in 10 years and the situation was so worrying that the province had to update situation reports every hour.

Phang Nga Governor Winai Buapradit said officials sent initial aid to affected residents. Phang Nga Red Cross Society president Ratree Buapradit said her office sent 500 relief bags to each floodhit district.

In Surat Thani, a flash flood from the Khao Sok National Park hit six nearby villages in Phanom district at 5am yesterday, inundating 500 homes and damaging a bridge to the park.

Ninety students from Phanom Suksa School who had planned to camp in the national park for three days were reported safe and left for home yesterday morning.

The 86th to 87th kilometre stretch of Phang NgaSurat Thani Road became impassable due to 50cmdeep water, while a landslide blocked the 104th to 105th kilometre stretch and forced vehicles to use only one lane.

Surat Thani Governor Niwat Sawaskaew and officials distributed supplies to flood victims and gave them moral support.

At 4am yesterday, the Meteorological Department issued a warning of flash floods for Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Trang as the strong monsoon continued to unleash heavy rain. It urged residents to remain on alert.

The department said the southwest monsoon over the Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand would continue to unleash heavy rain in many parts of the country, especially the seven southern coastal provinces.

It said 80 per cent of the area on the western coast would be hit by rain compared with 60 per cent on the eastern coast, while 60 per cent of Bangkok could expect rain.