Bangkok paralysed! Thai capital has five hours of torrential rain bringing gridlock misery for the masses

[webfact]

Picture: Thai Rath

 

Five hours of torrential rain in Bangkok and surrounding areas yesterday evening paralysed parts of the city, reported Thai Rath.

 

Starting early evening as rush hour commuters were still trying to get home there was traffic gridlock everywhere.

 

Picture: Thai Rath

 

Especially bad were Pahonyothin Road outbound in the area of the five way Lad Prao junction in the northern part of the Thai capital as the media described the rain as arriving "maa taam nat" - on schedule!

 

Large areas of Chaeng Wattana. Saphan Mai and Victory monument were under so much floodwater that smaller vehicles couldn't move at all.

 

City officials were out to help people try and get home and the military were drafted in in the Ramkhamhaeng area and Chaeng Wattana using large vehicles to ferry people home. 

 

Picture: Thai Rath

 

Even today people are advised to use their route planners carefully to avoid areas where water may still be blocking roads. 

 

This translator who lives in the Ratchayothin area assessed that it was the heaviest storm of the year in terms of quantity of rain and length of downpour accompanied by a dramatic lightning show. 

 

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[Social Media]

 

[sammieuk1]

Driving down a hole would be my biggest concern ????

[AsianAtHeart]

Now, if instead of pumping this runoff all out to sea they made a slurry of it with some trucked-in silt and sand and pumped it all underground, perhaps they could reverse the sinking trend for the city and come out on top.

[RichardColeman]

I'd like to say 'yeah, but it's cleaner now' but with all the junk in their klongs and sewer system it's probably 100% worse now

[Aussieroaming]

Excellent flood mitigation preparations, well done. 5 hours of rain and the city is paralyzed. I live on Paholyothin Rd (for the last 41/2 years) and the rain was persistent but it wasn't torrential. I've seen much heavier rain here in the past. What has changed is that the mobile flood pumps in this area seem to have disappeared in the last couple of years. 

[bristolgeoff]

It is the raining season so all this rain will  have affect on the city

[hotchilli]

20 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

Driving down a hole would be my biggest concern ????

That's why I avoid Bangkok altogether.

[sammieuk1]

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

That's why I avoid Bangkok altogether.

I see a post of a minivan yesterday do just that drive down a hole and the ensuing rescue attempts to save passengers from drowning a klong in the middle of the road by the look of it scary stuff ????