BANGKOK, Nov. 27, 2019 (Xinhua) – At least one million homes were damaged in Thailand due to ongoing floods on Thursday, with at least 53 people killed in different areas of the country and more than three million people affected, especially in nine southern provinces where water levels have not yet decreased.
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) noted today that the total number of deaths recorded over the past 24 hours rose from 18 to 25 in the south of the country, where bad weather continues, while waters began to recede in 11 central and northern provinces of the country, where authorities recorded 28 deaths.
According to data released on Thursday, posted on Facebook, nearly three million people were affected by severe weather in the southern provinces of Nakhon Si Thammarat, Trang, Phattalong, Ston, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, and in the Surat Thani tourist region, which includes the islands of Koh Tao and Koh Samui.
It is estimated that about 100,000 homes were exposed to flooding in the north-central region and that nearly 250,000 people were affected by rainfall in recent days.
Only in Songkhla, a province bordering Malaysia where a state of emergency has been declared, are authorities planning to implement an investment plan worth about $1.6 billion to boost recovery, especially in the city of Hat Yai.
In this city, an important commercial center in the south of the country, heavy rainfall has been recorded over the past 300 years, according to DPMD data.
Images released by government agencies on Thursday show that many roads and neighborhoods have been flooded, with people waiting for help on rooftops or walking in water up to their necks, while rescuers distribute food and medicine on boats and helicopters.
The Meteorological Department expected continued rainfall today in several southern governorates, and warned sailors of the need to move with caution or avoid sailing in the event of thunderstorms.
Southeast Asia is experiencing a particularly harsh season of tropical storms and typhoons this year, with hundreds of thousands of people evacuated in many countries.
The Vietnamese authorities announced the death of 90 people today, Saturday, as a result of floods and landslides caused by torrential rains, while Malaysia evacuated more than 11,000 people due to the floods.
In November of this year, Typhoon Kalmigi killed six people in central Vietnam after hitting the Philippines, leaving 250 people dead and more than 111 missing.