BANGKOK FLOODING Help Me, I'm Confused

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Posted: 06 Nov 2011 | 12:04 pm

Dazed, confused yet dry in Phuket can perhaps describe how I feel this Sunday

I don't know about anyone else there by the past week has ultimately left me in a state of dizzying up-in-the-airness about the state of Thailand's flooding.

Diligently going to both the Bangkok Post and Nation websites more often than not, the news seems both contradictor and disconnected.

Two stories next to each other either cry out on the pending doom on the central business district about the become a yellow submarine or else those calming stories that the worst is over.

Just a few days ago 15 African deadly green mamba snakes were plying the waterways of the nation's capital posing a grave risk to anyone within biting distance. Now the mambas are gone apparently and the city is facing a beer shortage.

As course this week's Loy Krathong celebration looks to become a marriage of convenience for anyone wishing to launch a kratong while standing in meter deep water.

There are of course all those public and private sector photo opportunities with smiling government leaders or captains of industry standing up to their knees in water - donating bags of rice or drinking water.

Frankly speaking I can't understand is the water coming, going or what? Turning to the Thai language NBT just makes it more confusing, though I do like those logoed sponsored coffee cups and big haired announcers.

Is this the end, the beginning, or what ?At least Phuket remains dry, though these green mambas are going to be keeping me awake at night, don't they swim downstream?

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The bad news is that the various authorities are battling to control the continuing surge of water into Bangkok and things are getting worse. The good news is that the flow of water is beginning to recede in the neighbouring provinces so eventually it will be easier to manage. The bad news is that their is another high tide in 5 days or so. And in all this there are a whole bunch of "experts" telling us what going to happen. The end of the beginning of the end.

Tony Picon, 06 Nov 2011 | 2:08 pm

Welcome to the dazed and confused club. Those of us living in Bangkok are little better off. I live just off Ladprao Road not far from the Bang Su canal. After making it through the king tides at the end of October with no flooding, I thought my place was safe. Then I woke up Saturday (5 Nov.) morning to find Ladprao Road flooded, more or less all the way to Ratchada, with water coming down Ladprao from Pahonyothin. It got worse over night and now the sois around my place that were dry yesterday have a few inches of water in them.
It's hard to say how long the water will stay. I watch the Dept. of Drainage and Sewerage's web site to see what the water level is in the Ladprao canal, and north of me seems stable, so I'm hoping the water won't get much worse and may go down in a few days, but it's hard to say. As you state, there's so much contradictory information being given out by various 'officials' that you can't tell what's really happening.
Despite all the grumbling, I don't really expect anything to change once this is all over.

Michael Holland, 06 Nov 2011 | 12:33 pm