The Business Of Flooding

[unanimosity]

How many centuries has it been raining and flooding in Thailand? Not sure? Take anything close, pick it up and drop it. The direction it falls is called gravity. Water has mass and weight. It follows the laws of gravity seeking its own level. So even if unsure how long it has been raining and flooding in Thailand, or if unable to learn from previous decades and centuries, gravity identifies the path water will move and flood. This begs the question, why allow the habitation of proven and predictable flood plains?

Monthly and annual flooding is a sure bet. There is no risk involved. It is a 100% likelihood. People that put themselves in harm's way that is guaranteed to occur have their own bases for such decisions, intelligence not being among them. When citizens devoid of common sense demonstrate an inability to learn from annual repetition or to plan for the inevitable, it is time for the government to step in and safeguard the lives of citizens and livestock. An ounce of prevention comes to mind.

The only conceivable reason this doesn't happen is that flooding is big business for those who could mitigate it through law and planning; because they have their fingers on the purse strings and from childhood every citizen knows that a minimum of 30% of allocated funds never make it to those in need, rewarding instead the authorizing parties with kickbacks. Every decision maker with a finger on the purse strings of emergency funds bears responsibility for loss of lives and property and perpetuating misery by not using those funds in advance of flooding to either permanently relocate citizens and livestock to non-threatened areas, or to construct preventative measures that channel and/or contain the flow of surface water.

Rocket science it's not. Any international golf course designer on a regular basis controls the flow of surface water first and directs drainage to evacuate standing water second in order to render the property playable in the shortest time possible because failure to do so equals lost revenues.

Bottom line, if it is too big a job to secure existing flood plains, move people and livestock to safe areas. To do the same thing or nothing at all and expect different results is insanity, or business as usual if different results meant less kickbacks in dispensing funds. (Philosophical wisdom courtesy of Albert Ningbeer.)

[thequietman]

All valid points. Makes total sense. You cant argue with science or common sense........ Or can you ? (TIT)

However the fats cats who hold back the 30 percent you talk about and cause the deaths of it citizens can if they wish, be forgiven almost immediately.

A sizeable contribution to the local Wat and hey presto ! merit making has taken place and all is forgiven.

Don't forget where you are my friend. Money talks and bullshit walks. :jap:

[zzaa09]

Big business? Sure. To be expected - comes with the territory.

A more valuable query might be to examine the severity and heightened levels of flooding of contemporary times.....seasonal heavy rains and high water have been around for centuries, as natural cycles have their way. What wasn't in place 100 [and beyond} years ago was the contemporary infrastructures of cementing and paving over our world - where excess water has little room to move.

Remember, the highly developed klong/canal systems were instigated [decades and decades ago] for reasons two-fold: water run-off and irrigation.

The contemporay engineers are obviously not aware of Thailand's reasonably clay-like loamy soil, nor do they take into account for natural drainage.

I can imagine that the seasonal flooding and drainage were not as severe in 1890, 1920, etc as compared with today - where the insistence that the lands needs to be paved over. Less, to understand that the historically worse flooded regions are natural river basins and most below sea level...

[travelmann]

im sick of people w aving abucket asking for money for the flood victims, if they stopped all their freakin corruption theyd easily have enough money for this

[aussiebebe]

Government official not only pilfer from the aid budget, they have worsened the situation to perpetuate and exacerbate the flooding. Yes, floods have occurred since time immemorial, but the BMA's system of flood control for Bangkok is a rather more recent development. By saving the capital, untold rai of arable land is flooded (you can see people creating road blocks in protest over this) so it's very much a man-made tragedy. A very interesting post from 'unanimosity' - I highly enjoyed reading it.

[afarang]

im sick of people w aving abucket asking for money for the flood victims, if they stopped all their freakin corruption theyd easily have enough money for this

Sorry mate ,not quite. You see to much development was in areas which were not capable of absorbing the water. Take Thonburi ,it is BELOW sea level.What did they do? Developed it. Killed the klongs-filled them all in. Where was the water supposed to go? 1995 ,we were flooded for 4 months. Too much residential and industrial development. It was quite cute, all houses had septic tanks -all overflowed .Our Sois were brimming with used condoms, dead snakes ,rats, cockroaches etc.,etc.,. Tasty ,it was.Especially as we had to walk through it every day ,the kids to go to school, me to go to work. 3 kilometres. We had to tramp. The water was too deep for motor-bike taxis. Elsewhere , it was about de-forestation .Thailand had superb forests .The North NEVER flooded like it does now. Which means Bkk. never flooded.Then they decided ,we don't need trees,so they chopped them all down. Here ,you are right corruption was involved. People were paid off, and massive logging happened. And Bangkok ,and all the Provinces down from the North ,now flood annually. Land slides/slips are now common- killing many people. This year is particularly severe ,as there is a La Nina event ,a very strong one. Think, we still have the NEAP tide to come -another flood event ,around the end of October.

[zzaa09]

im sick of people w aving abucket asking for money for the flood victims, if they stopped all their freakin corruption theyd easily have enough money for this

Sorry mate ,not quite. You see to much development was in areas which were not capable of absorbing the water. Take Thonburi ,it is BELOW sea level.What did they do? Developed it. Killed the klongs-filled them all in. Where was the water supposed to go? 1995 ,we were flooded for 4 months. Too much residential and industrial development. It was quite cute, all houses had septic tanks -all overflowed .Our Sois were brimming with used condoms, dead snakes ,rats, cockroaches etc.,etc.,. Tasty ,it was.Especially as we had to walk through it every day ,the kids to go to school, me to go to work. 3 kilometres. We had to tramp. The water was too deep for motor-bike taxis. Elsewhere , it was about de-forestation .Thailand had superb forests .The North NEVER flooded like it does now. Which means Bkk. never flooded.Then they decided ,we don't need trees,so they chopped them all down. Here ,you are right corruption was involved. People were paid off, and massive logging happened. And Bangkok ,and all the Provinces down from the North ,now flood annually. Land slides/slips are now common- killing many people. This year is particularly severe ,as there is a La Nina event ,a very strong one. Think, we still have the NEAP tide to come -another flood event ,around the end of October.

Nice post, AF.

Yet, no one seems to be getting it.

So much for the idea of borrowed development.

[Heng]

Glad we bought high (elevation wise). You'd be surprised how many folks don't check property elevation or drainage when they buy property.

[moe666]

There seems to be a leming affect, people want to live near water. In the states if you continue to build in a flood plan the government will cut off aid.

[zzaa09]

In the states if you continue to build in a flood plan the government will cut off aid.

So much for that theory.

New Orleans. The most maritime traffic in America.

[ludditeman]

I can imagine that the seasonal flooding and drainage were not as severe in 1890, 1920, etc as compared with today - where the insistence that the lands needs to be paved over. Less, to understand that the historically worse flooded regions are natural river basins and most below sea level...

It's always been exactly the same, why do you think traditional Thai houses are built on stilts?

[Mirth]

Maybe because they don't want animals coming into the house and sharing the bed, which is often the floor. Another reason is , they realise that if they built their house on ground level, when it rains, water tends to run into their house and we are not talking about flood, just normal rain water running along the ground. Lastly, under the house is a good place to be a store where you keep the unwanted or rarely used stuffs and a dam_n cooling place to sleep during the hot seasons.

I can imagine that the seasonal flooding and drainage were not as severe in 1890, 1920, etc as compared with today - where the insistence that the lands needs to be paved over. Less, to understand that the historically worse flooded regions are natural river basins and most below sea level...

It's always been exactly the same, why do you think traditional Thai houses are built on stilts?

[Mirth]

Yups, fully agreed with you. The flood wasn't caused by nature but more man made. True, nature may be showering more water but poor planning led to severe flooding. Not far from where i stay, they choke up a river for whatever reason, no one knows. For the past few months, the water has been filling up and they just increase the banks of the river by a metre or so. So now, the lands next to the river are a meter or so below the banks, imagine when the banks break, you have flood. It's just poor planning and lack of waterways to cater to everything and everyone, plus illogical things being done.

Sorry mate ,not quite. You see to much development was in areas which were not capable of absorbing the water. Take Thonburi ,it is BELOW sea level.What did they do? Developed it. Killed the klongs-filled them all in. Where was the water supposed to go? 1995 ,we were flooded for 4 months. Too much residential and industrial development. It was quite cute, all houses had septic tanks -all overflowed .Our Sois were brimming with used condoms, dead snakes ,rats, cockroaches etc.,etc.,. Tasty ,it was.Especially as we had to walk through it every day ,the kids to go to school, me to go to work. 3 kilometres. We had to tramp. The water was too deep for motor-bike taxis. Elsewhere , it was about de-forestation .Thailand had superb forests .The North NEVER flooded like it does now. Which means Bkk. never flooded.Then they decided ,we don't need trees,so they chopped them all down. Here ,you are right corruption was involved. People were paid off, and massive logging happened. And Bangkok ,and all the Provinces down from the North ,now flood annually. Land slides/slips are now common- killing many people. This year is particularly severe ,as there is a La Nina event ,a very strong one. Think, we still have the NEAP tide to come -another flood event ,around the end of October.