6 Chiang Mai Districts Declared Disaster Zones

[JeremyBowskill]

Just been to hospital here in Chiang Mai with my daughter who is sick and its unusually busy, standing room only in fact. I'ts not what I would call cold and I have just spent the last week in the mountains but then i'm English so am probably more used to it than the natives........

[moe666]

I am from Albuquerque NM and it gets cold there in the winter but the coldest month I have ever spent was in Feb. 2010 at a forest monastary outside of mae hong song. I covered myself with 5 blankets and I was still cold. If you donot want to help these people with blankets or other items donot but no need to slag them off without knowledge of the situation.

[robint]

Another great idea from Management

Call it a disaster area and no tourists can visit without invalidating their travel insurance

Do they care?

Do they ****

[uptheos]

I am from Albuquerque NM and it gets cold there in the winter but the coldest month I have ever spent was in Feb. 2010 at a forest monastary outside of mae hong song. I covered myself with 5 blankets and I was still cold. If you donot want to help these people with blankets or other items donot but no need to slag them off without knowledge of the situation.

+1

[moe666]

Don't people keep them from year to year or are there that many new people with no clothes moving to the region every year?

Yes, they wrap them nicely and store them in gaily coloured sturdy cardboard boxes. Then they take the spring clothing out of storage and of course then they put the spring stuff away in sturdy boxes then take out the summer gear. For the rainy season they unpack umbrella's, poncho's, and Timberland weather gear.

heheheh good stuff there uptheos. The gardner at wat tam wua lived in a very small bamboo house maybe two small room in the west the house would have qualified as a closet but in Thailand it housed 4 people.

[moe666]

Another great idea from Management

Call it a disaster area and no tourists can visit without invalidating their travel insurance

Do they care?

Do they ****

Yes about the people who live thru it not the ones travelling by bus on their way to where.

[HaleySabai]

We live 20kms up route 1265 in the Samoeng valley and it hasn't been "cold" yet this year, "cool" yes.

But hay, I am from Canada so its 'summer time' for me!!

[hellodolly]

Maybe it is colder outside of town? IMO it is slightly cool in downtown Chiang Mai compared to the rest of the year, but not at all cold.

I agree but it does depend on how well your insulated. Thais aren't very insulated compared to us fatties

Watch it I resemble that.

But remember most of us come from climates where it does get a lot colder than here.

We have a degree of adaptability to it that the Thai do not have.

[anon467367354]

Time to trot out the age old question.

What happened to the blankets and warm clothing that were distributed last year?

This is a yearly event, supplying blankets and jackets. I've been to the markets in Pai and they sell jackets for 20 baht and they have loads of them. I live with a Thai and she throws stuff out just because it's easier than not. I'm wondering if these people are the same in that in the warm weather it's easier to throw away something they don't need at the moment. "I don't need this jacket, it will never get cold again or if it does, it's too far in the future to worry about it" I wonder if all the jackets and blankets they throw out are in the markets being sold for 20 baht.

[hellodolly]

It is always nice to have a few new blankets however, old ones do wear out.

Sure, wonder how's the quality of the 'disaster' blankets?

People forget that they are living in Thailand and there is different standards here.

Yes by western standards it is not a disaster but by Thai standard it apparently is.

The sooner a person try's to fit in the sooner they can start to enjoy Thailand.

Or if they already enjoy Thailand they can gain a deeper appreciation for it.

I left Canada and the states and have no intention of trying to change Thailand to match them.

I like Thailand to much to do that.

[otherstuff1957]

Remember that when they say 'Chiang Mai', they aren't necessarily referring to the city, but more likely the rest of the province.

Last New Years I camped out at Chiang Dao, up in the mountains next to Doi Luang. I can assure you that the night-time temperatures were quite cold! My wife and I were among the last ones to go to bed and there was only one blanket left for the two of us. Being a Thai blanket, it was lightweight and too short, so I had the choice of my feet freezing or my head freezing!

Edited December 11, 2011 by otherstuff1957

[isanbirder]

Thanks for doing the job.

While I sympathize with those suffering from the cold It's clear that using terms like "disaster" is inappropriate. I thought an earthquake or dam (management) failure had happened.

The only result of this inflation in terminology is just to get the people not paying attention anymore to these news. The same with "hub of this", "excellence center of that"...

Your second paragraph makes the real point. The Disaster Zone is declared by the Thai Government, and it's the Thai Government's definition which counts, not wikipedia's. And if calling it a Disaster Zone makes it easier to access emergency funds when they are certainly needed, why cavil?

I agree that the Thai Government sees superlatives in everything, good or bad, though.

[hellodolly]

Another great idea from Management

Call it a disaster area and no tourists can visit without invalidating their travel insurance

Do they care?

Do they ****

They are more concerned about the lives of people who live in the disaster areas not the gawkers who get together in a mini bus and go to stare at them.

I am quite sure that your concerns were the first thing they thought about and after weeks of mulling it over decided to put the life of a native living in the area ahead of the gawkers who are only there for probably 4 hours max.

[boomerexpat]

This "disaster" seems like a scam. Whether it is due to dumb planning by Thai's (yes in Winter the temp does get a little cooler and that happens every year) or aid agencies justifying their existence, I don't know. Throughout the world people get used to dealing with changes in temp as the seasons change and those changes are not near as severe in Thailand as they are in some other countries.

I am a big believer in helping people, especially after a disaster or in matters of educational aid or dealing with political persecution. However, labeling cool weather a disaster scenario seems to reduce the odds that people will really respond when there is a real disaster.

[geovalin]

Time to trot out the age old question.

What happened to the warm clothing that were distributed last year?

Totally old-fashioned.

[Gers1873]

So six districts up North are to receive Bt1 million t each to buy winter clothing for the affected residents.

Arent most of the people up north Red Shirt supporters.

A cynic, thank goodness I am not one, might wonder

[Gonzo the Face]

So six districts up North are to receive Bt1 million t each to buy winter clothing for the affected residents.

Arent most of the people up north Red Shirt supporters.

A cynic, thank goodness I am not one, might wonder

Haven't you heard

The REDCOATS, are coming, the redcoats are coming....... to cold now in Hot for redshirts

[Gers1873]

So six districts up North are to receive Bt1 million t each to buy winter clothing for the affected residents.

Arent most of the people up north Red Shirt supporters.

A cynic, thank goodness I am not one, might wonder

Haven't you heard

The REDCOATS, are coming, the redcoats are coming....... to cold now in Hot for redshirts

Great news --- BUTLINS in Chang Mai

[bigbamboo]

Current Weather for Hot, Chiang Mai

22°C

Mostly Cloudy

Wind: S at 10 km/h

Humidity: 64%

Forecast:

Sun

27° 16°

Mon

29° 17°

Tue

29° 16°

Wed

30° 15°

(I know, this isn't for up in the hills)

I live in Chiang Mai and it can get cooler higher up but when the temperature drops below 25 you sometimes see the locals wrapping up as if in preparation for a blizzard! Of course over 25 and the air con gets switched full on!

Edited December 11, 2011 by bigbamboo

[jimbeam1]

The disaster zone declaration must contain the reason. "Cold" is qualitative, what is the actual lowest temperature at night in those tambons? Have any people been injured due to the cold spell?

I did read on TV last year that people did infact die because of the cold, up north.

jb1

[joboss]

They sell them go get cash?

Maybe some places, but if you have a personal connection you will know that they really need them and appreciate them much more than cash.

It's a question of getting them direct to the people who need them not pretend do gooder's.

Unfortunately, it's true some do get sold for a pittance in the hot season, in order to buy other things. But this is a hard life and putting stuff away for next year when you need money for something now to survive, but don't need the blanket, takes preference. It's a survive today society, which we are lucky enough not to be part of.

Well said . Some are warm in Laos, I don't think the blankets r wasted.

[svenivan]

Ridiculous. I was up in the northern mountains all week in a small village. It was cold at night, but nothing out of the ordinary for this time of year. I think someone has a very loose understanding of the term disaster. Perhaps they should declare winter instead of disaster, it would be a lot more accurate.

It is always nice to have a few new blankets however, old ones do wear out.

If they release 1 million baht for buying blankets, how much is going to wrong pockets? Is it the normal 30% ?

[elgato]

Time to trot out the age old question.

What happened to the blankets and warm clothing that were distributed last year?

And the year before that and ............

[techboy]

Only in Thailand could 'Hot' possible be declared to 'cold' and qualify for aid

If pettiness is a virtue then you are a patron saint.

[techboy]

It certainly gets cold in the mountains and every year I give extra blankets and clothing to a Lisu village I have strong ties with. This particular village is on the top of Doi Wawi in Chiang Rai province. It's bloody cold! And they can always use extra blankets, but it's far from being a 'disaster area'.

"A disaster area is a region or a locale heavily damaged by either natural hazards, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, technological hazards including nuclear and radiation accidents, or sociological hazards like riots, terrorism or war. The population living there often experiences a loss of energy supply, food, services, and an increasing risk of disease. Declarations of disaster areas open up the affected areas for national or international aid".

http://en.wikipedia....i/Disaster_area

I suggest that you google-up the definition of Wikipedia:"Wikipedia's departure from the expert-driven style of encyclopedia building and the presence of a large body of unacademic content has often been noted."

Try m-w.com

Disaster Area

: an area officially declared to be the scene of an emergency created by a disaster and therefore qualified to receive certain types of governmental aid (as emergency loans and relief supplies).

In any case it is a disgrace that considering the actual situation so many posts are focusing on the moot significance of terminology.

[PoodMaiDai]

Time to trot out the age old question.

What happened to the blankets and warm clothing that were distributed last year?

It seems I read about this issue every year, so I have to agree with you.... what happened to all the donated clothes and blankets years past?

Surely they don't just throw them away when the cold season passes. If so, I have to question if they should get more aid or not. Darwin has a funny way of taking care of those who don't take care of themselves.

That said, perhaps all the "blanket money" from years past never actually made it to buy blankets. Would be tragic if that is the reason.

Also, every year they know it's going to get cold. Why don't they prepare before hand?

It seems Thailand is one "disaster" after another. Always due to being ill prepared.

[hellodolly]

Time to trot out the age old question.

What happened to the blankets and warm clothing that were distributed last year?

It seems I read about this issue every year, so I have to agree with you.... what happened to all the donated clothes and blankets years past?

Surely they don't just throw them away when the cold season passes. If so, I have to question if they should get more aid or not. Darwin has a funny way of taking care of those who don't take care of themselves.

That said, perhaps all the "blanket money" from years past never actually made it to buy blankets. Would be tragic if that is the reason.

Also, every year they know it's going to get cold. Why don't they prepare before hand?

It seems Thailand is one "disaster" after another. Always due to being ill prepared.

The same question ad infinitum no answer. But let us keep asking.

I think you are on to some thing here they should plan ahead like there ancestors before they were civilized and start storing fire wood.

Edited December 11, 2011 by Scott
formatting

[ludditeman]

I think you are on to some thing here they should plan ahead like there ancestors before they were civilized and start storing fire wood.

In the western world, people had to store food and fuel for use in the winter months, those who didn't died, those who did lived and reproduced, hence a culture of forward planning.

In Thailand food grows all year round, it never gets really cold, hardly anyone ever dies due to lack of planning, hence a culture that never included forward planning.

How hard is that to understand?

[tominbkk]

But apparently not, because it seems to disappear every time as soon as the cold spell is over. My guess is that it's sold, because the recipients know that they can beg for warm clothing again once the next cold spell comes around.

What a ridiculous statement!

Most can't think as far as next week, let alone begging next winter.......it's called survival.

It's not a ridiculous statement, it is just what they do...like it or not.

[canuckamuck]

By the negative responses to a fairly insignificant government handout; it seems like some of the posters here are afraid they might have to pay for these blankets themselves.