Fears For Ancient Thai Temples As Floods Recede

[Lite Beer]

Fears for ancient Thai temples as floods recede - Focus

by Kelly Macnamara

AYUTTHAYA, November 20, 2011 (AFP) - The ruined temples of Ayutthaya have survived centuries of tropical heat and rain, but experts fear some have been weakened by Thailand's devastating floods and may be at risk of collapse.

Unusually heavy monsoon rains caused a deluge that swept across much of central and northern Thailand from July, leaving more than 600 people dead and damaging millions of homes and livelihoods.

Ayutthaya, around 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Bangkok, was in one of the worst-hit parts of the country and dramatic aerial images last month showed its temples as islands in a vast lake of floodwater.

The structures spent weeks swamped by the murky waters and now fresh cracks have appeared in some of the pagodas that dominate the historic capital, a major tourist attraction and UNESCO World Heritage site.

As the waters retreat, visitors have been warned not to climb onto the structures in case they collapse.

Chaiyanand Busayarat, director of Ayutthaya Historical Park, estimated at least 650 million baht ($20 million) worth of damage had been done, but said the full consequences of the floods were not yet known.

"The monuments' construction was not designed to carry this much weight (of water). The floods have also softened the ground, making it unstable. Buildings could sink or, in the worst case, they might collapse," he told AFP.

The waters have receded from much of the centre of the city, although some of the many temple compounds dotted around the historical park site are yet to fully dry out.

Erected at the confluence of the Chao Phraya, Pa Sak and Lopburi Rivers, the Ayutthaya monuments have long been susceptible to seasonal flooding.

The old city used to be protected by a network of canals that drained the water away, said a heritage expert for the United Nations cultural body UNESCO, who asked not to be named.

"A lot of those canals have been filled over or have naturally become more shallow over time," she told AFP.

"There is some fear that there might have been some settling of the foundations of the monuments which could lead to monuments becoming unstable," she added, following a UNESCO visit to the area on Thursday.

She said it was still unclear how much damage had been caused by the weeks of flooding.

"It is hard to tell at this time whether that's more than the monuments can withstand or if it is in the range that is tolerable for them."

Ayutthaya, founded around 1350, was one of the capitals of the old kingdom of Siam and at its peak had three palaces and more than 400 temples.

After four centuries as the country's capital, the city fell to Burmese invaders in 1767 and most of it was destroyed.

Many of the remaining ruins have been painstakingly restored.

At the Wat Phra Ram temple site, Chaiyanand indicated a vertical crack in one of the brick structures around two metres (yards) long.

"I think this happened during the flood but I have to say that small pagodas like this are not that scary. The big ones one which weigh many tons are the more concern, and much more scary for me," he said.

Of more immediate concern to many in the city is the need to fully reopen to tourists.

Receding waters have left large quantities of detritus -- everything from plastic bags to shoes to tree branches -- strewn across the monument grounds.

Suneewan Pudson, 65, one of a band of cleaners busily sweeping an area around the reclining Buddha at Wat Lokayasutharam temple, said she and her colleagues were determined to help return the site to its former glory.

The task is a daunting one. Some local people sought refuge around the monument during the floods, leaving piles of rubbish and even an abandoned and rusting three-wheeled tuk tuk taxi.

"I am sad because this is an ancient site which is a tourist spot so we are supposed to protect it. But we did not know that the flood would be this high. It has never been like this before," Suneewan told AFP.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2011-11-20

[slapout]

I would imagine with the length of time the referenced temples have been in place, they have withstood several floods since initial construction. The monies collected/donated in the past, may be a good source of funding for restoration of the cracks, etc.

[noitom]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

[Lifer]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

These kind of negative uneducated comments defy rationale. If it's not money out of your pocket, what do you care who pays for it. The Thai people happen to regard their cultural monuments and heritage along with the rest of the world, especially related to Buddhism, with a high degree of reverence. Don't you think that UNESCO is capable of deciding if they should provide funds or not for this purpose? If it doesn't involve you, why make these kind of comments. It's not amazing Thailand, it's amazing posters.

Edited November 20, 2011 by Lifer

[phaethon]

Why not just double or treble the admission charges for foreign tourists... No, wait...

[Spalpeen]

Why not just double or treble the admission charges for foreign tourists... No, wait...

Why not double or treble the admission charges for Thai tourists?

[haveaniceday]

Or what about tax paying residence.........No wait

[hellodolly]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

These kind of negative uneducated comments defy rationale. If it's not money out of your pocket, what do you care who pays for it. The Thai people happen to regard their cultural monuments and heritage along with the rest of the world, especially related to Buddhism, with a high degree of reverence. Don't you think that UNESCO is capable of deciding if they should provide funds or not for this purpose? If it doesn't involve you, why make these kind of comments. It's not amazing Thailand, it's amazing posters.

I agree with what you say in principal.

But I do feel that all the money that politicians have siphoned into their bank accounts were in part a part of the reason for money not be allocated to keep up the flood controls.

The fat cats should also reach into their bank accounts or closets where one of them supposedly kept 200 million and help out.

[noitom]

This appears to be the setup of a "hustle" UNESCO World Heritage for some money to do the repars and clean up the garbage. According to the artical, the garbage around the temples and sites is extensive and they are filthy as well as soaked. The excuse provided in the newspaper was that the people were unaware of how big the floods would be. Looks like it's up to the fact cat Thais to unzip their purses and put some money in the pot to repair this damage and cleanup this site. Don't keep begging to UNESCO, take ownership of your own self care and then keep it that way.

[pisico]

This appears to be the setup of a "hustle" UNESCO World Heritage for some money to do the repars and clean up the garbage. According to the artical, the garbage around the temples and sites is extensive and they are filthy as well as soaked. The excuse provided in the newspaper was that the people were unaware of how big the floods would be. Looks like it's up to the fact cat Thais to unzip their purses and put some money in the pot to repair this damage and cleanup this site. Don't keep begging to UNESCO, take ownership of your own self care and then keep it that way.

You are right but it will never happen. Thais lack self awareness.

[noitom]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

These kind of negative uneducated comments defy rationale. If it's not money out of your pocket, what do you care who pays for it. The Thai people happen to regard their cultural monuments and heritage along with the rest of the world, especially related to Buddhism, with a high degree of reverence. Don't you think that UNESCO is capable of deciding if they should provide funds or not for this purpose? If it doesn't involve you, why make these kind of comments. It's not amazing Thailand, it's amazing posters.

It is my business pal! As a taxpayer of a very large UNESCO funding country, it's a part of my tax money that goes in to lining the pockets of Thai politicians and corrupt local big men who skim off all these temples. They con these institutions into giving generously and then siphoning off the money and telling the local population to fix it up with clay and sand. These kinds of dinosaur creatures like USAID and UNESCO, the Asian Development Bank, World Bank..etc. are very suspect as to the way they account for and budget their giving , especially to Thailand which is a very opaque operation. When Mr. Obama leaves office in 2013, maybe the US and other European countries going broke will implement many of their much needed cuts. Fat cats in Thailand will have to pay up from now on in order to do some of their own heavy lifting. As Bob Dylan sang "the times they are a changin'."

[elgato]

"As the waters retreat, visitors have been warned not to climb onto the structures in case they collapse."

Huh?

[pisico]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

These kind of negative uneducated comments defy rationale. If it's not money out of your pocket, what do you care who pays for it. The Thai people happen to regard their cultural monuments and heritage along with the rest of the world, especially related to Buddhism, with a high degree of reverence. Don't you think that UNESCO is capable of deciding if they should provide funds or not for this purpose? If it doesn't involve you, why make these kind of comments. It's not amazing Thailand, it's amazing posters.

It is my business pal! As a taxpayer of a very large UNESCO funding country, it's a part of my tax money that goes in to lining the pockets of Thai politicians and corrupt local big men who skim off all these temples. They con these institutions into giving generously and then siphoning off the money and telling the local population to fix it up with clay and sand. These kinds of dinosaur creatures like USAID and UNESCO, the Asian Development Bank, World Bank..etc. are very suspect as to the way they account for and budget their giving , especially to Thailand which is a very opaque operation. When Mr. Obama leaves office in 2013, maybe the US and other European countries going broke will implement many of their much needed cuts. Fat cats in Thailand will have to pay up from now on in order to do some of their own heavy lifting. As Bob Dylan sang "the times they are a changin'."

Indeed!

194 member states in the United Nations.

USA's contribution to UNESCO is in excess of 20% of its annual budget. Use and disbursement of said budget that is never revealed not even after the head of the UN complained about UNESCO's lack of transparency, as he recently did.

Where is that 20% of UNESCO's annual budget coming from? The American taxpayer's pockets.

Any of the Thai apologists can tell us what is Thailand's contribution to UNESCO and how much it gets in return?

Edited November 21, 2011 by pisico

[MaxYakov]

This looks like a preposterous attempt to hustle the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for funds to retore the temples. This is where Thai fat cats need to be kicked in the you know what and start chipping in.

Yeah, sure. May as well launch a 'preposterous attempt to hustle' the Thai fat cats, because UNESCO Finances aren't look that great these days.