All 50 Districts In Bangkok To Brace For Flood Tonight

[tropo]

Don't think there is much point following a tide table with the qualifier " NOT FOR NAVIGATION "

Their words at the bottom of the page, written in bold.

Is it from a Mormon organisation ???

Please keep up. I included that chart to show that Bangkok has unusual tides and not the usual 2 highs and lows per day that most people are accustomed to.

Having a qualifier would be prudent in order to eliminate the possibility of someone like you trying to sue them for damages.

Admiralty tide tables lack the qualifier.

They are intended for navigation, like what tide tables and charts are for.........

Do please pay attention.

Do they lack the qualifier? They should stop bing slack then and add it.

Check with your Admiralty tide tables. You'll find the number of tides per day identical. That was the only reason I posted a link to the chart in the first place.

[skippybangkok]

The govt statements further nail credibility. First bangkok can be protected, then it cant, then a statement that 4am today (past) to brace for all 50 districts would be hit. I was in a high rise in the north part of central bkk, and could not spot any flood as far as they eye could see.

...... i really dont know whats to believe anymore.

[philw]

Don't think there is much point following a tide table with the qualifier " NOT FOR NAVIGATION "

Their words at the bottom of the page, written in bold.

Is it from a Mormon organisation ???

Please keep up. I included that chart to show that Bangkok has unusual tides and not the usual 2 highs and lows per day that most people are accustomed to.

Having a qualifier would be prudent in order to eliminate the possibility of someone like you trying to sue them for damages.

Admiralty tide tables lack the qualifier.

They are intended for navigation, like what tide tables and charts are for.........

Do please pay attention.

Do they lack the qualifier? They should stop bing slack then and add it.

Check with your Admiralty tide tables. You'll find the number of tides per day identical. That was the only reason I posted a link to the chart in the first place.

Yes, they do lack the qualifier "Not for navigation ", to answer your first point.

Hope that's not too big a shock for you.

Any chance of an apology from you ???

The sarcastic tone of your response to me really was unwarranted and offensively juvenile.

[tropo]

Any chance of an apology from you ???

The sarcastic tone of your response to me really was unwarranted and offensively juvenile.

I'm really sorry I hurt your feelings, but you should concentrate harder. The purpose of showing a chart was ONLY to show the number of tides per day in Bangkok, not to help you navigate your boat up the river.

Edited October 27, 2011 by tropo

[philw]

Any chance of an apology from you ???

The sarcastic tone of your response to me really was unwarranted and offensively juvenile.

I'm really sorry I hurt your feelings, but you should concentrate harder. The purpose of showing a chart was ONLY to show the number of tides per day in Bangkok, not to help you navigate your boat up the river.

Good enough.

Thank you.

if you ever need a boat up a river, do ask............

[cowslip]

The govt statements further nail credibility. First bangkok can be protected, then it cant, then a statement that 4am today (past) to brace for all 50 districts would be hit. I was in a high rise in the north part of central bkk, and could not spot any flood as far as they eye could see.

...... i really dont know whats to believe anymore.

perhaps you should complain

"Oy! Why's my apartment not flooded, it's a government conspiracy" - it'd be on par with the rest of your thinking on this.....

[paulian]

Even though it has rained almost everyday for about 9 weeks here in Pattaya at least once a day or at times for several days, we have made out pretty well compared to the rest of the country. What's depressing is over the past couple of weeks food prices in the markets like friendship, tops and even Big C have steadily climbed up for many items. Some items 25 -50 % higher and ... yesterday I had a hard time finding water to buy other than the smaller bottles which were priced 50% more than they usually are. Hope this is not a sign of things to come. One of my Thai friends, a City official, was saying he does not think it is a supply problem but more of a greed thing because of the current situation. Which kind of sucks.

[zydeco]

Even though it has rained almost everyday for about 9 weeks here in Pattaya at least once a day or at times for several days, we have made out pretty well compared to the rest of the country. What's depressing is over the past couple of weeks food prices in the markets like friendship, tops and even Big C have steadily climbed up for many items. Some items 25 -50 % higher and ... yesterday I had a hard time finding water to buy other than the smaller bottles which were priced 50% more than they usually are. Hope this is not a sign of things to come. One of my Thai friends, a City official, was saying he does not think it is a supply problem but more of a greed thing because of the current situation. Which kind of sucks.

I hope you bought every bottle of water you could get your hands on, despite the price. You're going to wish you did by tomorrow, otherwise.

[katana]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMp8AnhDF4

Aerial footage showing the extent of the floods, taken on a helicopter flight between BKK and Ayuthaya (then back to BKK again) on 25th Oct 2011.

[mommysboy]

The govt statements further nail credibility. First bangkok can be protected, then it cant, then a statement that 4am today (past) to brace for all 50 districts would be hit. I was in a high rise in the north part of central bkk, and could not spot any flood as far as they eye could see.

...... i really dont know whats to believe anymore.

perhaps you should complain

"Oy! Why's my apartment not flooded, it's a government conspiracy" - it'd be on par with the rest of your thinking on this.....

I think skippy has a point although I'd have phrased it much differently. Every day brings the same unequivocal disaster warning, and headlines and facts get mixed up and repeated ad nauseum, then you look out the window and everything looks ok.

Of course that view would look quite different if you lived in north bangkok, but I do sympathise with the point he is making which should really be entitled, "why is the media so hell bent on making the worst of this"?

[elektrified]

I just heared a rumour - cant verify it is true. All ATMS in Bangkok about to go offline.

Why would they be about to go offline? Is all the power going to go out in all the banks?

I was warned of this a week ago by a friend who is in a top position at a bank. It's something to do with Bank of Thailand's location.

I was told to withdraw money for two weeks and to inform friends and family.

I think they didn't want to make it public because of the fear of panic withdrawals. We can see what happened to water and food supplies. Can you imagine everyone withdrawing HUGE amounts of cash and the effect that would have on the bank's economy?

I think many people must be on to this. I tried to withdraw cash on Wednesday early evening in Chiang Mai at a Tesco Lotus shopping center. Tried Aeon first but there had to have been close to 40 people in the queue. Never seen that many people at one time - ever. Then tried Kasikorn. Both ATM's were out of service and there was a queue lining up outside the door. I overheard a couple of Thais asking what was going on but the bank employees seemed to be very tight lipped which is unusual for Thais.

[philw]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMp8AnhDF4

Aerial footage showing the extent of the floods, taken on a helicopter flight between BKK and Ayuthaya (then back to BKK again) on 25th Oct 2011.

Thanks for posting this, which gives a clear picture of the massive extent of the problem.

[MaxYakov]

The twelve top ways you can tell that your country may be having flooding issues:

12) Building a bamboo raft suddenly seems like a good idea (courtesy Crushdepth)

11) Your dog has started dog paddling and you haven't seen him do that in years

10) Parking on the local Expressway is getting increasingly scarce

9) Your couch just floated out through the front door

8) Water volumes are being stated in scientific notation

7) Mysterious bags on the sidewalk do not contain rice

6) You were almost electrocuted by your ATM

5) The US Marines are importing sandbags (empty) in C-130s

4) The Prime Minister has started a fashion trend by wearing wading boots

3) Local TV programming is showing more water sports shows than usual

2) A foreign water storage management "expert" is kibitzing on ThaiVisa Forums

1) The Minister of Science and Tech is using boats to increase the local river's flow rate

Max Yakov

[cloghead]

I gather from all this chatter that the levels expected at high tide are about 4m above mean sea level including the impact of run off from the North. Bearing in mind that 3.4 m is required to flood the Chao Praya so, we should get approximately 0.6 m flooding here in Soi 65, Sukhumvit.

However, personally, we have suffered worse than this at least weekly all this year as the rains inundated our drains - just partially upgraded. It got to the point even 12 years ago when I described this Soi as Klong 65! I later found it was very difficult for the myriad local inhabitants to discharge sewage through the local 2 x 12" pipes given the main drain was only dia. 8" and, as you would expect, the water ran the other way.

I am pleased to say that we are well beyond employing sandbags now and all serious defenses seem to be based on breeze blocks and heaps of concrete or silicone. Don't forget, sandbags are made of sand, just that, and are about as useful as a one-legged man at an arse-kicking contest .....

Having said that, the very practical advice from the Government to stock up for 6 weeks has led to panic buying and now we face turmoil whenever we try to purchase simple things like bread, soda water or maybe even a little sand for the screed. Sandbags now cost 49 Baht apiece - I wonder what they will be worth once people realise they are a very temporary remedy. Perhaps moldy bread will help solve the immediate problem and whisky sales are bound to improve in future.

Bangkok needs to look very seriously at its drainage infrastructure to check the actual directions and capacities of the system. It is no good looking to Google Earth or a stupid map when the situation is, of course, a local one. We face a Venetian situation here, American incompetence has already been displayed many times and so far only the Dutch seem to have any proper answers. I am quite sure they contributed to the Thames Barrier project, and typically, that has had to be activated at least 12 times in recent years to protect London itself.

dayverne

Would you please explain this statement (highlighted in red) ???

[hhgz]

"The governor made the announcement as he inspected the water level in Chao Phraya River, which he said is likely to be at 2.40 metres above mean sea level."

"Likely"? The governor has no idea how to read a tape measure.

"Mr Sukhumbhand alerted the public that floodwater from the North is also arriving Bangkok Wednesday night, bringing the situation to a critical point."

The CBD is dry...two days after this notification of imminent doom.

[cowslip]

The twelve top ways you can tell that your country may be having flooding issues:

12) Building a bamboo raft suddenly seems like a good idea (courtesy Crushdepth)

11) Your dog has started dog paddling and you haven't seen him do that in years

10) Parking on the local Expressway is getting increasingly scarce

9) Your couch just floated out through the front door

8) Water volumes are being stated in scientific notation

7) Mysterious bags on the sidewalk do not contain rice

6) You were almost electrocuted by your ATM

5) The US Marines are importing sandbags (empty) in C-130s

4) The Prime Minister has started a fashion trend by wearing wading boots

3) Local TV programming is showing more water sports shows than usual

2) A foreign water storage management "expert" is kibitzing on ThaiVisa Forums

1) The Minister of Science and Tech is using boats to increase the local river's flow rate

Max Yakov

humorous & satire is a wonderful thing - the above isn't either.

[MaxYakov]

"The governor made the announcement as he inspected the water level in Chao Phraya River, which he said is likely to be at 2.40 metres above mean sea level."

"Likely"? The governor has no idea how to read a tape measure.

"Mr Sukhumbhand alerted the public that floodwater from the North is also arriving Bangkok Wednesday night, bringing the situation to a critical point."

The CBD is dry...two days after this notification of imminent doom.

Sukhumbhand Paripatra (Thai: สุขุมพันธุ์ บริพัตร; RTGS: Sukhumphan Boriphat) (born September 22, 1952) is a Thai politician and MP belonging to the Democrat Party. Educated at Oxford University in England, he is a former Deputy Foreign Minister of Thailand. On 11 January 2009, he was elected the 15th Governor of Bangkok by a large margin, winning 45% of the votes cast. Sukhumbhand was born in Bangkok to His Highness Prince Sukhumbhinanda and his commoner wife, Mom Dusadee Na Thalang. Prince Sukhumbhinanda was himself a son of His Royal Highness Prince Paripatra Sukhumbhand, the Prince of Nakorn Sawan, the only child of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) with his Queen Consort Sukumalmarsri.

I would avoid insulting his intelligence and exaggerating his quotes if I were you, given his education and, especially, his pedigree.

[cowslip]

Even though it has rained almost everyday for about 9 weeks here in Pattaya at least once a day or at times for several days, we have made out pretty well compared to the rest of the country. What's depressing is over the past couple of weeks food prices in the markets like friendship, tops and even Big C have steadily climbed up for many items. Some items 25 -50 % higher and ... yesterday I had a hard time finding water to buy other than the smaller bottles which were priced 50% more than they usually are. Hope this is not a sign of things to come. One of my Thai friends, a City official, was saying he does not think it is a supply problem but more of a greed thing because of the current situation. Which kind of sucks.

You can't take this flood thing area by area - it is going to affect the whole country directly or indirectly. You can't equate local weather to flooding either - the floods in Bkk come from a river system catchment that starts in the North - local daily rain is almost irrelevant.

Some of the major manufacturing and food processing areas have been put out of action - this will have ramifications wherever you are. Both production AND distribution are affected.

Your "city official" appears to be par for the course in his/her ability to see the whole picture i.e. crap - this has plagued the official responses from the start....that and outright stupidity.

This panic using isn't helping. But Bkk has a population of about 10 million, most of whom are now on holiday and looking to stay somewhere outside the capital - this is bound to have a knock on effect. But it is a case of hugely increased demand (panic buying) and restricted distribution and production.

Pattaya has no large river so serious flooding is unlikely - the town's drainage system is barely capable of handling the seasonal downpours as everyone has experienced flash flooding there at one time or another, but it is unlikely ever to have water standing there for up to a month. ...but if you think it might escape the national knock-on effects you will be very disappointed.

Have you checked out the hotels? - apparently there is already an influx of Thai "tourists" and many are full.

[rubl]

begin removed ...

Have you checked out the hotels? - apparently there is already an influx of Thai "tourists" and many are full.

Be careful, soon the Minister for Tourism will say "Floods don't effect tourism much"

[cowslip]

begin removed ...

Have you checked out the hotels? - apparently there is already an influx of Thai "tourists" and many are full.

Be careful, soon the Minister for Tourism will say "Floods don't effect tourism much"

THere seems to be a plethora of cynical comments on this an other threads by people who wish to imply that they know something about what is going on.

The truth is of course quite the opposite - it is quite obvious that these people know nothing and actually have nothing to say but still think that if they make these posts someone might think they have a clue........never gonna happen.

Edited October 28, 2011 by cowslip

[cowslip]

I gather from all this chatter that the levels expected at high tide are about 4m above mean sea level including the impact of run off from the North. Bearing in mind that 3.4 m is required to flood the Chao Praya so, we should get approximately 0.6 m flooding here in Soi 65, Sukhumvit.

However, personally, we have suffered worse than this at least weekly all this year as the rains inundated our drains - just partially upgraded. It got to the point even 12 years ago when I described this Soi as Klong 65! I later found it was very difficult for the myriad local inhabitants to discharge sewage through the local 2 x 12" pipes given the main drain was only dia. 8" and, as you would expect, the water ran the other way.

I am pleased to say that we are well beyond employing sandbags now and all serious defenses seem to be based on breeze blocks and heaps of concrete or silicone. Don't forget, sandbags are made of sand, just that, and are about as useful as a one-legged man at an arse-kicking contest .....

Having said that, the very practical advice from the Government to stock up for 6 weeks has led to panic buying and now we face turmoil whenever we try to purchase simple things like bread, soda water or maybe even a little sand for the screed. Sandbags now cost 49 Baht apiece - I wonder what they will be worth once people realise they are a very temporary remedy. Perhaps moldy bread will help solve the immediate problem and whisky sales are bound to improve in future.

Bangkok needs to look very seriously at its drainage infrastructure to check the actual directions and capacities of the system. It is no good looking to Google Earth or a stupid map when the situation is, of course, a local one. We face a Venetian situation here, American incompetence has already been displayed many times and so far only the Dutch seem to have any proper answers. I am quite sure they contributed to the Thames Barrier project, and typically, that has had to be activated at least 12 times in recent years to protect London itself.

dayverne

Would you please explain this statement (highlighted in red) ???

"I am pleased to say that we are well beyond employing sandbags now and all serious defenses seem to be based on breeze blocks and heaps of concrete or silicone. Don't forget, sandbags are made of sand, just that, and are about as useful as a one-legged man at an arse-kicking contest ....."

really - see my comment above......

[Crushdepth]

The twelve top ways you can tell that your country may be having flooding issues:

12) Building a bamboo raft suddenly seems like a good idea (courtesy Crushdepth)

11) Your dog has started dog paddling and you haven't seen him do that in years

10) Parking on the local Expressway is getting increasingly scarce

9) Your couch just floated out through the front door

8) Water volumes are being stated in scientific notation

7) Mysterious bags on the sidewalk do not contain rice

6) You were almost electrocuted by your ATM

5) The US Marines are importing sandbags (empty) in C-130s

4) The Prime Minister has started a fashion trend by wearing wading boots

3) Local TV programming is showing more water sports shows than usual

2) A foreign water storage management "expert" is kibitzing on ThaiVisa Forums

1) The Minister of Science and Tech is using boats to increase the local river's flow rate

Max Yakov

humorous & satire is a wonderful thing - the above isn't either.

Get out of bed cranky this morning? The bamboo raft was a serious suggestion, floated by the Science Minister. They are being built even now.

[cowslip]

The twelve top ways you can tell that your country may be having flooding issues:

12) Building a bamboo raft suddenly seems like a good idea (courtesy Crushdepth)

11) Your dog has started dog paddling and you haven't seen him do that in years

10) Parking on the local Expressway is getting increasingly scarce

9) Your couch just floated out through the front door

8) Water volumes are being stated in scientific notation

7) Mysterious bags on the sidewalk do not contain rice

6) You were almost electrocuted by your ATM

5) The US Marines are importing sandbags (empty) in C-130s

4) The Prime Minister has started a fashion trend by wearing wading boots

3) Local TV programming is showing more water sports shows than usual

2) A foreign water storage management "expert" is kibitzing on ThaiVisa Forums

1) The Minister of Science and Tech is using boats to increase the local river's flow rate

Max Yakov

humorous & satire is a wonderful thing - the above isn't either.

Get out of bed cranky this morning? The bamboo raft was a serious suggestion, floated by the Science Minister. They are being built even now.

so what's funny about that?

If it was - and I suspect this to be the case - an attempt at humour - it was pathetic....

There is enormous scope for humour in this situation - just as there is for hardship - but I find the smug glib comments by some of the expats on this and other threads to be both ignorant and distastedul.

Laced with half-baked political conspiracy theories and virtually no understanding of what is really happening their are a lot of monumentally inane comments by people who would be much better holding off 'til they had a properly reasoned comment to make.

[soomak]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMp8AnhDF4

Aerial footage showing the extent of the floods, taken on a helicopter flight between BKK and Ayuthaya (then back to BKK again) on 25th Oct 2011.

Thanks for posting this, which gives a clear picture of the massive extent of the problem.

Yes, first time I've seen how it really looks like.

It's one big swamp stretching for tens of KMs, amazing.

[cowslip]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMp8AnhDF4

Aerial footage showing the extent of the floods, taken on a helicopter flight between BKK and Ayuthaya (then back to BKK again) on 25th Oct 2011.

Thanks for posting this, which gives a clear picture of the massive extent of the problem.

Yes, first time I've seen how it really looks like.

It's one big swamp stretching for tens of KMs, amazing.

what I find amazing is the people seem to have been unaware of Bkk's topography in the first place.........

[MaxYakov]

The twelve top ways you can tell that your country may be having flooding issues:

12) Building a bamboo raft suddenly seems like a good idea (courtesy Crushdepth)

11) Your dog has started dog paddling and you haven't seen him do that in years

10) Parking on the local Expressway is getting increasingly scarce

9) Your couch just floated out through the front door

8) Water volumes are being stated in scientific notation

7) Mysterious bags on the sidewalk do not contain rice

6) You were almost electrocuted by your ATM

5) The US Marines are importing sandbags (empty) in C-130s

4) The Prime Minister has started a fashion trend by wearing wading boots

3) Local TV programming is showing more water sports shows than usual

2) A foreign water storage management "expert" is kibitzing on ThaiVisa Forums

1) The Minister of Science and Tech is using boats to increase the local river's flow rate

Max Yakov

humorous & satire is a wonderful thing - the above isn't either.

An astute observation, since it was intended as neither straight humor nor satire.

It was an amateurish attempt at Black Comedy and, admittedly, the format was not very original.

I have noted some other of your recent astute observations:

cowslip[/b]']

News > Thailand News > Thai Govt Worried About Locals Destroying Flood Barriers

Posted 2011-10-25 13:22:37 Link

as ever on TV I'd get more sense out of a 10 year old than some of the "arguments" or "opinions" posted here.

Most people don't seem to be able to see beyond the end of their nose and have little or no no critical facilities at all.

Thailand News > Thai Govt Worried About Locals Destroying Flood Barriers

Posted 2011-10-25 10:48:43 Link

Snakes crocs and leeches are the LEAST of your problems in that water!

Thailand News > Flood-Hit Thailand Declines Offer Of Help: US Navy

Posted 2011-10-25 08:08:39 Link

Thailand doesn't need major help and being seen to do so would be more than losing face, it would affect the country's international standing - credit, investment the baht etc - they didn't ask for aid at the time of the tsunami and they won't ask now. They have ample capital reserves anyhow.

the only aid they may ask for is in some specialist areas........ engineering, dykes, medical advice.

What would they do with a US ship?

Thailand News > Thai PM Tells Bangkok To Move Belongings To Safety

Posted 2011-10-21 12:57:54 Link

"foreign confidence" - I love those comments.....they sound like people who have read this expression elsewhere on Thai visa or other forums so they've decided to use it on this thread in the hope that they they might sound intelligent too.

Thailand News > Thai PM Tells Bangkok To Move Belongings To Safety

Posted 2011-10-21 12:46:45 Link

I'm getting used to the inane comments on TV but now they are joined by the paranoid!

Thailand News > Crocodile Warning For North Bangkok

Posted 2011-10-18 01:19:46 Link

I think you need to find out a bit more before you blurt out anything else on the subject.

[tropo]

what I find amazing is the people seem to have been unaware of Bkk's topography in the first place.........

Please clarify - People who built the city or forum members?

[cowslip]

what I find amazing is the people seem to have been unaware of Bkk's topography in the first place.........

Please clarify - People who built the city or forum members?

forum members - in particular those who find the topography "amazing"

the people who "built" this city did so because of the topography

Edited October 28, 2011 by cowslip

[tropo]

forum members - in particular those who find the topography "amazing"

I'm one of the forum members who find the topography amazingly flat. Never thought about it until these floods, as I'm sure many people hadn't.

Edited October 28, 2011 by tropo

[cowslip]

QED - I'm convinced you're right

That I find "amazing"....or rather it just confirms my suspicions based on the apparent inadequacy of most posters comprehension of the situation.

Edited October 28, 2011 by cowslip