Bangkok declares all 50 districts flood disaster areas

This year has been like a more traditional wet season which IMO we haven't seen for many years, starting around Khao Phansa. Hopefully the cool season will also start on time early in October.

2 hours ago, dinsdale said:

Hopefully the cool season will also start on time early in October.

In my experience, the cool (or dryer season) never starts in early October. The wet season is typically supposed to cease at the end of October - that month is usually the worst for persistent rain and flooding (e.g. 2011) in the central plains (Bangkok).

However, during the past 6 - 10 years, the rain has crept well into, and often through, November.

3 hours ago, dinsdale said:

Hopefully the cool season will also start on time early in October.

My experience is also that the cool season begins in November if lucky in the first two weeks. But October seems to be raining as well although not as much as June-Sept, but just less. So I am with ronnie.

They need to bring the boats again.

57 minutes ago, ronnie50 said:

In my experience, the cool (or dryer season) never starts in early October. The wet season is typically supposed to cease at the end of October - that month is usually the worst for persistent rain and flooding (e.g. 2011) in the central plains (Bangkok).

However, during the past 6 - 10 years, the rain has crept well into, and often through, November.

As I said this year is a more traditional wet season which we haven't seen for many years. As for the wettest month it depends where you are but for Bangkok/Issan Sept is traditionally the wettest. As for the cool season, again traditionally, the seasonal change is when the wind changes and comes down from China which is usually around mid-Oct although again hasn't been the case for many years.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by dinsdale

42 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

As I said this year is a more traditional wet season which we haven't seen for many years. As for the wettest month it depends where you are but for Bangkok/Issan Sept is traditionally the wettest. As for the cool season, again traditionally, the seasonal change is when the wind changes and comes down from China which is usually around mid-Oct although again hasn't been the case for many years.

OK then. Mid October. Going once.....

10 minutes ago, VincentRJ said:

I was in Bangkok in 1962, living in a small shack in the suburbs. I recall having to wade through water to reach my home during the monsoon period. It was a fascinating experience as a 20-year-old from the UK.

I've just done an AI search on the history of flooding in Bangkok, and was surprised there were no records of major flooding between 1942 and 1983.

Here's a timeline of Bangkok's modern major flood records:

1942: A massive city-wide flood that submerged the capital for two months.

1983: Severe, prolonged flooding that impacted the capital and 42 provinces.

1995: Widespread fluvial flooding that overwhelmed the Chao Phraya River's banks.

2011: Visited by what is considered one of the worst floods in modern Thai history, causing over 500 deaths and severe economic damage.

2026: Heavy extreme weather events continue to challenge the sinking megacity's infrastructure.

I did further research on this period between 1942 and 1983 when there appeared to be a gap in the disaster history.

The AI explanation is that the 'quiet period' was mainly due to two factors. The construction of Mega-Dams after World War II, and 'Delayed Urban Vulnerability' which allowed allowed Bangkok's vast network of khlongs and natural wetlands to act as a sponge, during the 1950s and 1960s.

However, by the mid-1970s, rapid industrialisation forced the city to pave over these canals to build roads. This structural change, combined with severe land subsidence from groundwater pumping, completely destroyed the city's natural drainage and brought severe flooding right back by 1975.

Sounds about right. I remember swimming along Sukhumvit Road near Asoke in 1983, with snakes, trash and other unmentionable items coming the opposite way on the current. I couldn't avoid them all but anything for a beer.

Paradise found!

25 minutes ago, VincentRJ said:

I was in Bangkok in 1962, living in a small shack in the suburbs. I recall having to wade through water to reach my home during the monsoon period. It was a fascinating experience as a 20-year-old from the UK.

I've just done an AI search on the history of flooding in Bangkok, and was surprised there were no records of major flooding between 1942 and 1983.

Here's a timeline of Bangkok's modern major flood records:

1942: A massive city-wide flood that submerged the capital for two months.

1983: Severe, prolonged flooding that impacted the capital and 42 provinces.

1995: Widespread fluvial flooding that overwhelmed the Chao Phraya River's banks.

2011: Visited by what is considered one of the worst floods in modern Thai history, causing over 500 deaths and severe economic damage.

2026: Heavy extreme weather events continue to challenge the sinking megacity's infrastructure.

I did further research on this period between 1942 and 1983 when there appeared to be a gap in the disaster history.

The AI explanation is that the 'quiet period' was mainly due to two factors. The construction of Mega-Dams after World War II, and 'Delayed Urban Vulnerability' which allowed allowed Bangkok's vast network of khlongs and natural wetlands to act as a sponge, during the 1950s and 1960s.

However, by the mid-1970s, rapid industrialisation forced the city to pave over these canals to build roads. This structural change, combined with severe land subsidence from groundwater pumping, completely destroyed the city's natural drainage and brought severe flooding right back by 1975.

Yes, the last bit was accelerated by the growth of the city and its population.