Roi Et suffering from drought and hot weather

17 districts and three subdistricts of Roi Et province are experiencing severe drought and intense heat. The province has declared those areas as natural disaster areas.

Mr. Damri Wachirodom (ดำริ วชิโรดม), the chief of Roi Et Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, says drought has affected 91,645 households in 1,357 villages in 17 districts and three subdistricts of Roi Et. He says 29,420 rai of farmland in the province are destroyed.

Mr. Damri says his office has prepared 29 trucks carrying a total of 9,789,000 liters of water and 80 water pumps to help the villagers in drought areas. He says weirs are being constructed in three locations and a supporting budget of 1,295,221 baht has been allocated.

Rivers, canals, ponds and many other water sources in Roi Et are drying up, causing troubles to many farmers. Worse off, some of the farmers have to hunt for chameleons for food.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 16 March 2007

Worse off, some of the farmers have to hunt for chameleons for food.

What the...? This is a normal, everyday activity year around. You mean they have no rice left from the harvest only 3 months ago? I don't get the connection, or the uniqueness of the activity.

More than 70% of Si Sa Ket residents suffer from drought

Si Sa Ket Governor Santhad Jatuchai (สันทัด จัตุชัย) says the province has been declared as a disaster zone. More than 70 percent of the residents have been suffering from drought as the province is pleading for more water from other provinces.

1,900 villages are in need of help and 69,000 rai of agricultural areas need to be restored. The cost of damage is estimated at 70 million baht. The province has already distributed more than two million liters of water supply to residents. It has also called for local administration organizations and districts to be prepared for urgent situations around the clock.

The governor says further that the water stored in many reservoirs in the province is still sufficient. The Huoy Sala (ห้วยศาลา) Reservoir now has 78 percent of water, Huoy Tik Chu (ห้วยติ๊กชู) has 92 percent, and Rasi Salai (ราศีไศล) has 57 percent water reserve.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 16 March 2007

TOPTUAN is absolutely correct: chameleons are hunted routinely, regardless of the weather conditions. So is the tookay.

Regarding the drought, why aren't more measures taken to actually catch the rain water that falls during the rainy season? I've been in this country for 21 years, the past 10 years having been spent in Roi-et. I've never experienced so much rainfall in Thailand as I have during the last two years. The el-Nino phenomenon has long been predicted to do a turnaround about this time, making drought conditions inevitable. But of course, heading off the problem with concrete measures would have gone against the crisis-management status quo that rules. Oh, I'm getting cynical now; I'll be quiet.