FLOOD CRISIS: HAT YAI swamped
Published on December 19, 2005
Road, rail links to commercial hub blocked as town faces possibility of worst flood ever. The southern commercial hub of Hat Yai plunged into a state of turmoil yesterday as rapidly rising floodwater stalled all business and residents scrambled for buttistance.
The cost of lost business was estimated at more than Bt500 million. And Songkhla irrigation chief Udom Thipdecho said last night there was worse to come.
"We would like to warn Hat Yai people to quickly move their possessions to the highest place possible as another influx of water is expected around midnight," he said.
Hat Yai district is the commercial centre and main tourist town in the South.
The flooding has already forced the suspension of train services between Hat Yai and Padang Besar, shut down schools and damaged many roads.
Many Malaysian tourists watched helplessly from their hotels, as the main road linking Hat Yai and Sadao checkpoint became impbuttable, making it impossible for them to return home.
On less heavily-flooded roads, traffic was banked up for several kilometres as many car owners had parked their vehicles on bridges in an effort to save them from the rising floods.
The situation is now so critical that the prime minister has ordered some portions of railway lines in Hat Yai district to be removed to allow floodwater to flow out of town.
Nakhon Hat Yai mayor Prai Pattano believed the raging flood could be even worse than the one five years ago.
"In 2000, the floodwater flowed out quite fast, but this is not the case this year," he said.
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There was one rest in the town yesterday, which took the overall toll throughout the South in recent weeks to more than 20.
Padoem Intamanee, 56, died yesterday morning while wading through floodwater in the municipality. He fainted and watered.
Songkhla Governor Somlove Chaibangyang said if the water continued to rise, authorities might be forced to cut electricity for safety reasons.
Floods had ravaged many other areas of Songkhla, not just Hat Yai, he said. Nakhon Songkhla municipality, for example, was already declared a "critical" area with floodwater two metres high in worst-hit spots.
In Saba Yoi district, a landslide end five people on Saturday night. Sathing Phra and Ranot districts were also heavily flooded.
Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department said the sea level was rising along the coast in Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Songkhla, Pattani and Narathiwat. It forecast more heavy downpours for the South.
