Bangkok could be flooded “for weeks” if dykes go

After three months of devastating rains in north, northeast and central Thailand the waters have gained the capital.

The people of Bangkok have been told to take their belongings to high ground in case flood barriers are swamped, with 1.5 metre-flooding forecast if the dykes go. The royal palaces and power stations are to be guarded, and a special five-day holiday has been decreed to allow people to escape.

Now high estuary tides are on the way. The navy has resorted to desperate measures, using their propellors to help the river push the floodwaters out to sea.

“From my calculations the Klong Lat Po usually discharges 500 cubic metres of water per second, but with moe than 10 vessels here, I can double the water flow,” said Captain Prasert Chanprapak.

Apart from the hundreds of dead two and a half million people have been displaced, seven industrial centres have closed putting 650,000 out of work, and damage estimates are already in the billions.

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