Thailand Live Wednesday 2 Nov 2011

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2:25pm Water from Klong Prapa overflow Prachachuen Rd. bit.ly/s32xeI ~ @MatichonOnline

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BANGKOK: Siriraj in need of all groups of blood. Contact 3/fl of the 72 yrs building

or call 02 411 2424

/RT @tulsathit RT @TomMvlRiddle

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Urgent need to win foreign insurance firms' confidence: Thirachai

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Flood photos collected from our Facebook connections http://bit.ly/u7PYHZ RT @tulsathit

2:45pm Vibhavadi Rd. today [see photo] http://pic.twitter.com/7pP1QoHO ~ @democratTH

2:47pm Bangchan Industrial Estate can withstand 1m of flood http://fb.me/sZNdWyYv ~ @NationChannel24

2:43pm Water on Vibhavadi from Lak Si junction to DM is about 2m today, polluted & smelly http://pic.twitter.com/UQQeopk3 ~ @democratTH

2:39pm Snake hunter! Mr.Somphop ☎ 0890438445, free service for 24hrs ~ @thaiflood

2:37pm Kaset junction's tunnel not yet flooded but already blocked ~ @thaiflood

2:30pm In front of Kasemrat Hospital, Prachachuen flooded by footpath deep ~ @js100radio

2:29pm Buddhamonthon Sai 4 today [see photo] http://twitpic.com/79phfw ~ @js100radio

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FROC Announcement (2.10 PM) Assures Safety of Research Nuclear Reactor

At 2.10 PM, the Flood Relief Operations Center (FROC) held a press conference to assure the safety from flooding from a research nuclear reactor facility at the Office of Atomic Energy for Peace, located on the flooded Vibhavadi-Rangsit Road.

The reactor is housed on the third storey of a small building which is over 1 meters above the street level. Sandbag barricades and water pumps have been put up and so far the building has not seen flooding yet.

The reactor itself is a pool type reactor that is immersed inside a pool that is 8.7 meters higher from the street level. The pool contains 2.4 cubic meters of water. The walls of the pool is made of concrete that is 1 meter thick on each side so it should easily withstand pressure of 1-2 tons of water.

The reactor has been shut down since late October due to the fact that nuclear isotopes cannot be transported to or from the facility.

Officials assured they are closely monitoring the reactor but they are confident the flood situation will not cause any nuclear material leak.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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Science Ministe: Thonburi districts will see flooding for 15-20 days /w 2.5-3 million CBM of water heading towards west of BKK /TAN

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3:03pm Water level on Vibhavadi Rd. in front of Vibhavadi Hospital is now 80cm ~ @fm91trafficpro

2:54pm Petchkasem Rd at this hour pic.twitter.com/ZERQKPN7 ~ @SpringNews_TV

2:59pm Klong Sam Wa sluice gate 60% fixed without mob today bit.ly/vHuX0L ~ @MatichonOnline

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Foreign Press Reports Flood Management Rift in Thailand

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PM Yingluck Denies Being Indecisive in Solving Flood Crisis

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All afloat on Facebook

Social media, particularly Facebook and Twitter, have played important role during the flood crisis in Thailand. The Nation online has collected photos on the floods posted on Facebook for our readers.

Cover photo by Et Cetera

Photos : Nantaka Prasansang, Pitan Singhasaneh, Aekachai Boonlon, Et Cetara, Gardenia KU Avenue, Busarakum Rungthong, Moo Foo, Angsana Sinarkorn and Goi Na Thalang.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02

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Free Drinking Water Distributed at 11 Locations in Bangkok and Samut Prakarn

Free drinking water to be handed out at 11 locations in Bangkok and nearby areas to help alleviate the current shortage of drinking water at various department and convenient stores.

Director of Groundwater Resources Department Praneet Roibang reveals the department has procured clean drinking water to be distributed for free in 11 districts of Bangkok and nearby areas.

The free drinking water will be available at the following locations:

• Jatujak Park, Jatujak District
  
• Groundwater Resources Dept, Jatujak District
  
• Samakkee Tham Temple in Wangthonglang District
  
• Klongjan Housing Project 4 in Bangkapi District
  
• Prapas Wittaya School in Bung Kum District
  
• Bangkok Planetarium in Klongtoey District
  
• Lad Bua Kao Temple in Saphan Soong
  
• Rajasitharam Technical College in Bangbon
  
• Watchira Thammasathit Temple in Pra Kanong
  
• Poon Charoen Wittiyakom School in Bangplee in Samut Prakarn
  
• Tum Ru Temple in Muang, Samut Prakarn
  

Over 100,000 bottles of drinking water in 5ltr, 10ltr and 20ltr containers, will be handed out. The water is expected to be delivered to all the 11 locations by Friday (Nov 4).

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Waterworks Department is also handing out free drinking water at 16 of its district offices in Bangkok. For more information call 02-503-9776 and 02-503-9818 or visit its website.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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3:24pm Traffic on Petchkasem between Bangkae market & Buddhamonthon S.4 junction blocked due to 60cm of flood~ @fm91trafficpro

3:23pm Female police officers also sent to protect Klong Sam Wa sluice gate http://yfrog.com/nwrholj ~ @Voice_TV

3:18pm Pracha Ruamjai Rd. toward Minburi [see photo] http://yfrog.com/oc57lkkj ~ @fm91trafficpro

3:16pm Small cars should avoid the entrance of Petchkasem Soi 41 http://yfrog.com/h7hbmzubj ~ @fm91trafficpro

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Bank of Thailand reports 482 bank branches closed because of flooding, an increase of 46 branches from yesterday /TANN

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Floods to eat upto Bt25bn in tourism revenue

The Nation

Thailand should lose about Bt15-Bt25 billion in tourism revenue this year as the number of tourists drop in light of floods, according to Kasikorn Research Centre.

The house anticipated that the number of tourists should fall by 350,000-600,000.

The forecast is based on the assumption that Suvarnabhumi Airport, the door to Thailand to 70 per cent of arrivals, can function normally.

Earlier, it expected tourist arrivals to reach 19.29 million, which should generate revenue of Bt730 billion.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02

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Floods Feared to Drive Away Foreign Investors

Some foreign investors have indicated that they might be forced to relocate their manufacturing bases elsewhere due the flooding disaster.

Meanwhile, the World Bank predicts that Thailand may face four times higher risk of flooding over the next 50 years.

According to Bloomberg, a number of businesses and experts concur that the risk of natural disaster in Thailand and the government's unwillingness to initiate disaster prevention measures may damage the country's attractiveness in the eyes of foreign investors.

At the same time, those already in the country may seek to relocate their investments elsewhere.

More than 9 billion cubic meters of floodwater, enough to cover the whole state of Florida, has deluged much of the central region of the country and crippled more than seven major industrial complexes, some of which have been in operation for more than 40 years and are responsible for turning Thailand into a modern industrialized nation.

Hana Microelectronics, one of the firms severely damaged by the flooding disaster, is demanding reassurance from the government that this type of crisis will never happen again, warning that Thailand's credibility among the foreign investors is in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, the World Bank has predicted that Thailand may face four times as much risk of flooding over the next 50 years as Bangkok is merely two meters above sea level.

This may drive foreign investments to other countries.

Professor Plaipol Kumsap of Thammasat University has pointed out the country's main industrial bases are located in Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani provinces and were built back in the 1970s.

Plaipol said that back then, no one thought that the region would be affected by floods.

Many foreign manufacturing bases, particularly those of Japanese firms, moved to Thailand then.

Consequently, Thailand has become the auto industry hub in ASEAN and one of the top three hard disk manufacturing locations in the world.

Moody's, an international credit rating agency, is estimating the flood damage at more than 200 billion baht, or approximately 2 to 3 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

The Thai Chamber of Commerce has calculated the damage at as high as 500 billion baht and stated that it has severely affected foreign investors' confidence.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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Finance Ministry asks BMA to drain canal near Government Complex

Deputy Finance Minister Viroon Tejapaibul Wednesday urged the city administration to drain water in a canal near the Government Complex in Chaeng Wattana.

Viroon had Treasury Department Director-General Naris Chaiyasutr send an urgent letter to the city administration to drain the water in Eduan Canal.

The letter asked the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to lower the level of the canal by 40 centimetres so that it would not overflow to flood the Government Complex.

The Treasury Department also sought help from the Army to build flood embankments to block the flooding of the main road of the complex.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02

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3:42pm Inside Chinnakhet Villa flooded by thigh deep http://pic.twitter.com/ToEaYeIR ~ @js100radio

3:41pm High flood in front of Wat Lad Plakao [see photo] http://twitpic.com/79pyzo ~ @js100radio

3.30pm Water rising up in Soi Suar Yai [see photo] http://yfrog.com/hsl8yoxxj ~ @js100radio

3:38pm Water creeping in front of Saha Union Factory in Bangchan Industrial Estate http://bit.ly/sbwByY ~ @manageronlines

MWA reduces tap water production at Bangkhen by 200,000cub.m. cos water from Prapa canal spilled over bit.ly/w0Uisp ~ @MatichonOnline

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72 highway spots impassable

The Nation

Seventy two spots on 88 flood-hit highways are impassable following floods that severely hit 17 provinces, according to the Highways Department.

Water level on the Wang Noi-Ayutthaya route is 20-70cm as of 7.30am. The road linking Bang Pa-In and Taling Chan still suffers from 30-50cm floods.

Of total 100 spots affected, 28 remain passable, the department said.

For information on highways, contact Call Centre1586 or Tel 02-354-6551.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02

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Most factories in Bangchan Industrial Estate suspend operations

The Nation

Most factories in the Bangchan Industrial Estate in Bangkok's Min Buri district have suspended operations although the estate has not been flooded yet, the director of the estate said Wednesday.

Prapas Klaysri said the factories, which still operating, restricted their operations only to the day shift following a flood threat in the district.

He said there are 93 factories in the industrial estate, which hire about 13,800 workers altogether. The factories have combined investment of Bt19.844 billion.

The factories in the estate include Saha Union, Farmhouse, Honda, Yamyam, and Daily Foods.

Prapas said troops have been deployed to reinforced floodwalls around the industrial estate.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02

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Traffic Control closes 30 routes to due flooding

Update: Nov 2

Road closures:

Source: Traffic Command and Control Center

North-bound routes to avoid:

40-50cm flood water

1. Ngam Wongwan Rd.: inbound and outbound from Pongpetch Intersection - Kaset Intersection

2. Ramindra Rd.: inbound and outbound from Bang Kaen Roundabout - Km 4 (Ramindra Soi 39)

3. Paholyothin Rd.: inbound and outbound from Bang Kaen Rounabout - Kaset Intersection.

Main North-bound routes that are CLOSED:

1. Vibhavadi-Rangsit Rd.:

Inbound: road closed from Anusorn Satharn

Outbound: road closed from uturn bridge at Office of Atoms for Peace

2. Paholyothin Rd.: inbound and outbound from Anusorn Sathrn Intersection - Bang Kaen Roundabout. Bang Kaen underpass is closed.

3. Tollway:

Inbound: closed from Lak Si Intersection

Outbound: Ratchadapisek exit

4. Chaengwattana Road: inbound and outbound, closed frmo Bang Kaen Intersection - Klong Prapa Intersection

North-bound secondary roads that are CLOSED:

1. Local Road (Kampangpetch Road): inbound and outbound, closed from Muang Ake Residence - Tung Song Hong Police Station

2. Song Prapa Road: inbound and outbound, closed from Si Samarn Intersection - Kor Sor Bor Intersection

3. Cherd Wutthakat Rd.: entire road closed

4. Kosum Ruam Jai Rd.: entire road closed

5. Decha Tungka Rd.: entire road closed

6. Wayruwanaram (Pai Kiew Temple) Rd.: entire road closed

7. Chaeng Wattana Soi 14: entire road closed

8. Klong Song Rd.: inbound and outbound, road closed from Palatikarn Intersection - Saphan Poon Intersection

9. Chantarubekka Rd.: inbound and outbound, closed from Kor Por Or Intersection (Royal Thai Naval Academy) - Chantarubeksa Intersection): 85cm flood

10. Watcharaphol Rd.: inbound and outbound, closed from Perm Sin Intersection - Rattanakosin Sompoj School

11. Perm Sin Rd. (linking Paholyothin 54/1 - Sukha Piban 5): entire road closed

East-bound routes to avoid:

30-40cm flood water

1. Suwintawong Rd.: inbound and outbound from Prai Sanee Intersection (Minburi) - Romklao Road.

Main west-bound roads that are CLOSED:

1. Charansanitwongse Rd: inbound and outbound, road closed from Bang Khun Nont Intersection - Rama VII Bridge)

2. Sirindhorn Rd.: inbound and outbound, road closed from Bang Plad Intersection - Siridhorn Elevated Rd.

3. Pinklao Rd.: inbound and outbound, closed from Pinklao Bridge - Baromma Ratchachonnanee Intersection

4. Arun Ammarin Rd.: inbound and outbound, road closed from Arun Amarin Intersection - Siriraj Hospital Intersection

5. Baromma Ratchachonnanee Rd.: inbound and outbound, road closed from Pinklao Bridge - Sirindhorn Elevated Rd. (80-100cm flood)

6. Baromma Ratchachonnanee Parallel Rd.: entire road closed

7. Baromma Ratchachonnanee Rd. in Putthamonthon: inbound and outbound, road closed from Kanchanapisek Elevated Road - Putthamonthon Sai 4

Secondary west-bound roads that are CLOSED:

1. Putthamonthon Sai 3 Rd.: inbound and outbound, entire road closed

2. Uttayan Rd.: inbound and outbound, closed from Uttayan Intersection - Putthamonthon Sai 3 Intersection)

3. Sala Thammasop Rd.: inbound and outbound, entire road closed

4. Putthamonthon Sai 2 Rd.: inbound and outbound, road closed from Baromma Ratchachonnanee Intersection - Tossakan Intersection

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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Army Chief Pledges to Salvage Don Muang Airport

The army chief has indicated that salvaging Don Muang Airport is a priority and asked the protesters at Klong Sam Wa floodgate to think about the greater good.

Army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha said that among the places that must be salvaged once the flooding situation subsides, Don Muang Airport must be made a priority.

Prayuth points out that sandbag flood walls must be built around the airport so the water can be drained out.

The army chief is also pleading with the protesters at Klong Sam Wa floodgate to think about the greater good and not to further damage the country.

Prayuth believes that all government agencies are doing their best in addressing flood relief efforts but the military seems to be taking the central role due to its ready equipment.

When asked whether the emergency rule should be enacted, Prayuth responded that it may lead to more clashes between locals and authorities.

Instead, he said the government should aim to educate the people so they are willing to contribute to the greater good.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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Air Force base on Vibhavadi-Rangsit Rd 100% submerged; 7 aircraft, 100 vehicles, houses of high-ranking Air Force officers all flooded /TANN

Repair on Sam Wa Canal's sluice gate now 70% completed /TANN

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Bangchan Industrial Estate braces for flood after upstream sluice gate damage

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Foreign Experts to Help in Flood Recovery

The government will move ahead with its recovery plan after the floods recede and will invite foreign experts to help lay out a long-term solution, as well as a rehabilitation plan.

It expects that it will be about one more month before three industrial estates in Ayutthaya Province are able to resume production.

Industry Minister Wannarat Channukul said Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has ordered the Industry Ministry to set up a sub-committee to work out plans to restore all flood-affected factories, particularly those operating in the seven industrial estates hardest hit by the inundation in Pathum Thani and Ayutthaya provinces.

Wannarat noted that 350 additional water pumps have been installed at the affected industrial estates to speed up efforts to drain floodwater from their premises.

The efforts are aimed at enabling them to resume operations within 45 days following the action.

In the meantime, Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Kittirat Na Ranong stated that after the floods recede, the recovery plan will first be implemented in Ayutthaya Province.

He will hold a meeting with the Ayutthaya governor, the industry minister and manufacturers in the seven flood-hit industrial estates to discuss the recovery plan.

The rehabilitation efforts at Rojana, Saha Rattananakhon and Hi-Tech industrial estates in Ayutthaya Province should start this week.

Kittirat further said that the government will prioritize the need to improve and develop the country’s water management system and will be inviting experts from various agencies and experienced specialists from abroad to conduct a joint study and long term planning with a goal of achieving a sustainable solution to natural disasters, especially flooding.

The deputy prime minister noted that during the past few weeks, international organizations have offered help to Thailand while foreign ambassadors have questioned the government's plan to prevent a repeat of this type of disaster.

Meanwhile, President of the Federation for Thai Industries, or FTI, Phayungsak Chattsutthipol, said the recovery process at each industrial estate will proceed with a different time frame due to the differences in damage sustained.

He forecast it would take about one month before the industrial estates are able to start normal production again.

-- Tan Network 2011-11-02

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RT @ThanongK: Min Buri, Nong Chok and Lad Krabang are vulnerable to Khlong Sam Wa's water drainage.

BKK governor inspects flooding in Saimai District which is 100% flooded; 550 officers keeping watch of Hok Wa Canal sluice gate /TANN

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AFP: Electrocution warning as Thai flood toll spikes

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SET index closed at 965.8, up 9.21; Bt/USD30.68; GBP48.88; AUD31.77; EUR42.01; CAD30.02; HKD3.94; SGD24.01; JPY39.06

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Five border police wounded in bomb incidents

YALA, Nov 2 – Leaflets promising continued attacks on Thai Buddhists were found at two of five bomb incident locations in this restive southern province.

Two bombs exploded, one seriously wounding a border patrol police officer, part of a 10-man patrol unit being transported in two pickup trucks. Four others were slightly wounded Wednesday morning in the ambush in Yala' province's Bannang Sata district.

The government security personnel were on patrol duty when the bomb exploded.

The seriously wounded officer was evacuated to Songkhlanagarind Hospital for treatment, while four others were only slightly injured and bruised by bomb fragments on their arms and bodies.

Both trucks were seriously damaged.

Another bomb in Bannang Sta exploded about two hours later targetting volunteer rangers who were on foot patrol, but there were no casualties.

Meanwhile, in the nearby province of Narathiwat, remote-controlled bombs were found and defused at three locations by Ra-ngae district police, who believed the bombs were intended for the authorities.

One bomb was hidden at a signboard giving directions to a village. The second was found in a rubber plantation, while the third was a noticed as a suspicious object in another rubber plantation and later determined to be a fake bomb.

The Thai messages referring to the Tak Bai incident seven years ago was found in both rubber plantations. The text read "October Tak Bai. As long as those who ordered the killing of Melayu people are still in power, Thai Buddhists must pay the price for it." (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-11-02

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Kasikorn Research Center: flooding to cut tourist arrivals by 350,000-600,000 and make country lose tourism revenue by Bt15-25 bln /TANN

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Dryness for Rojana in 30 days

The Nation

It should take 10 days to drain water out of Saha Rattana Nakorn Industrial Estate and 30 days at Rojana Industrial Park, according to Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand governor Sutas Patamasiriwat.

Rojana, Saha Rattana Nakorn and Hi-Tech are now the first priority of three power utilities’ joint efforts to resuscitate the seven inundated industrial estates. Over 140 water pumps are mobilised to allow business resumption.

"Resuscitating flood-hit industrial estates will restore investor confidence," he said.

-- The Nation 2011-11-02