Risk Of Landslides In Thailand's South

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'Run, everybody, run'

By Montien Intaket

The Nation

Villagers recount a narrow escape when non-stop rains trigger a landslide in South

Kanlaya Mamhad, a resident of Nakhon Si Thammarat's Sichon district, is certain she would have been killed in a landslide if she had not woken up in time on Thursday morning.

"I heard something hurtling toward my home and told my husband to go out and check," she recounted.

Her husband returned shouting for everyone to get out of bed and run for their lives.

"It's a huge shock. I was born here, and have lived here for a long time, but I've never seen anything so frightening before," Kanlaya said.

Runoff from the mountains swept through her hometown, Moo 6, in tambon Thung Sai, with dangerous debris like rocks and trees swirling around. "The vision of me being killed by a falling tree still haunts me," Kanlaya said with fear in her eyes.

Another survivor, Laddawan Puangpai, is equally shaken. "I feel insecure and the rain just won't stop," she lamented. "I am not peaceful even though I have been given shelter in a temple."

A local temple has provided shelter to people whose homes have been destroyed by the landslide.

To many locals, the disaster was almost too much to bear. Yet, a community leader said it was fortunate that the recent landslide did not kill anyone in Moo 6.

The risk of landslides usually increases during the rainy season in mountainous areas, and floods have ravaged many provinces since last month.

According to the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, inundation has wreaked havoc in up to 39 provinces and the death toll has already risen to 110. There are nearly 30,000 people suffering from floodrelated stress and anxiety, with 394 of them needing close monitoring.

Deputy Public Health Minister Pansiri Kulanartsiri yesterday said that about 8 per cent or 29,662 of the flood victims had to be treated for stress.

"Of them, 394 are struggling with severe depression," she said, adding that medical workers had already counselled these patients and would closely monitor them for the next six weeks.

Other common illnesses suffered by the victims include athlete's foot, the common cold and stomach upsets.

At press time, certain areas in 19 provinces were still flooded and 1.69 million people were still suffering from the aftermath.

-- The Nation 2010-11-06

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Another mudslide hits the province

By The Nation

10 seconds of nature's fury washes away toddler twins on Thursday

The province of Nakhon Si Thammarat has not pulled out of the flood crisis yet, with two more people drowning and water levels remaining unchanged coupled with the risk of falling rocks.

A second wave of mudslide run briefly through an area in Khanom district damaging a number of homes and farmland, forcing villagers to move away to a safe area.

Rocks are falling sporadically from Khao Luang mountain ridge on residential areas in tambon Thung Sai in Si Chon district, while those fleeing away from the first mudslide on Thursday, which is now spreading to cover a total of around 100 rai from the original area of 60 rai, have been restricted to return to their homes.

A shrimp farmer and a boy drowned yesterday in Si Chon district: the first victim Somchai Janmanee was inspecting his shrimp farms in a boat which was tipped over by strong currents, after eightyearold Jakkaphong saeKhor was swept away by flash flood.

In neighbouring Songkhla, a family has still traumatised by the deaths of three members, two of whom are toddler twin brothers Phiphatphong and Phiphatrong, in mudslide casualties emerging anew. Two other people who were neighbours of the three were also killed in the incident, which a survivor said occurred in just 10 seconds.

"The parents of the boys are still devastated by what happened, which also killed their maternal grandmother," said Jaras Jomsuriya. Phirun, the father, said he was himself wounded and felt useless for being unable to save the three, except for grabbing a teenage niece from being crushed by the mudslide. "It was so quick, in only 10 seconds, everything was gone," he said.

A weather report warned against everthreatening risk of flash floods in coastal areas in three districts in Songkhla, Ranote, Sathing Phra and Bang Klam which are lowlying and under full influence from storms that bring heavy rain in the next few days.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the money to be spent in relief funds and postflooding restoration would not be from the central budget alone, but also from budgets already allocated to ministries under the ThaiKhemKhaeng scheme.

He said around Bt6 billion out of last year's central budget of Bt30 billion was spent, and Bt20 billion from this year's full amount at Bt47 billion was spent, so the remaining Bt27 billion should not be enough for enomous damage.

Asked about how the money from other sources or other financial means would be used to mobilise more money, he said the Finance Ministry would work out certain measures, possibly including issuing a special bond and loans from foreign sources.

Asked about the total relief funds could exceed Bt50 billion, he said the damage estimate alone now reached Bt20 billion. "What's more interesting is that the public sector would give their hands over the issue," he said, without giving details.

The Transport Ministry is asking for Bt100 million in budget for road repairs, after approving an initial Bt3 billion for repair works.

-- The Nation 2010-11-06