Bangkok Warned Of Flood Threat As Heavy Rain Predicted

[philw]

Oh dear, it's the rainy season in the tropics and there is going to be knee deep water in parts of Bangkok for a few days, as there has been almost every year since anyone can remember.

Just as there is in Taiwan, Korea, Phils, Japan ( when they are not glowing in the dark ), Vietnam, Burma, 1/2 of China and god knows where else.

oh dear, might rain soon, must have a quick panic.............

All fine, up there in Chiang Mai, I hope

looks like heavy rain in the skies ( possibly something to do with the last couple of tropical depressions in the S.China sea ) and the river looks pretty full to me, but yes, ok at the moment but for sure more water coming.

Thanks for yours and Bucholzes concern

[annabel]

Since TV would not accept my edit I am reposting the whole thing including the EDIT .................Jeeezzz!!

For sure, it isn't only this bunch, but it would be nice to see where even 100mn of the 120bn went. I mean, 100mn for a wall, should build quite a serious wall I presume? 10 walls makes 1bn. Where did the other 119 bn go? Please don't tell me dredging the canals? That involves an excavator on top of a barge. How much can that be? 20k per day?50 days, 1mn. 100 excavators working 50 days permanently, 100 mn. Did they at any point have 100 excavators working full time?

100mn for a wall x 10 = 1bn + 119bn to award the contract to their friends in the first place (split evenly amongst all the players cos after all, everyone's here to be fair).(Sorry . . . my cynical (realistic?) nature is kicking into overdrive recently )

It would be interesting to get a cost on raising every wall around the Chaopraya and every drainage canal through the whole of Bangkok by 1m? 4 bn USD? That buys a lot of concrete, rebar and labour surely.

I don't think there is any sort of accountability /account auditing for the governent departments in Thailand ...?? Are there ...? Does anybody question how budgeted amounts are distributed and spent...?? Is there any kind of balance sheet due / required to be sumitted to any departments / committees...?? Couldn't the famous Ombudsmen be in charge of this ...??/

Of course not and this is what the plan is for 2012/2013 ...

"Govt to seek new committee overseeing water system project bidding."

"BOI moves forward with plans to the development of Thai professionals" ( Yes, Yes I know has nothing to do with the water management thing but thought it was appropriate ...Intoxicated once again as previously accused of and I am yes, guilty !! so bugger off)

The government has set aside 305 billion baht for the construction of sustainable water management projects.

Mr Chatchart stressed that the process to select bid winners for the projects should remain the duty of government officials. He added however that budget disbursement for the construction, which is usually paid by instalments, must be carefully planned and conducted in a transparent manner.

And where will that 305 Billion come from >>>>>???

BANGKOK: -- The Commerce Ministry has promised to pay back the government at least Bt275 billion next year from the budget allocation for financing the rice-pledging scheme, as it is confident sales of 8 million tonnes under government-to-government rice deals can be achieved

BANGKOK: -- The Cabinet yesterday trimmed a budget request for 2013 submitted by the National Health Insurance Office (NHSO) from the Bt157.3 billion sought to Bt109.8 billion, saying that the amount could be increased after parliamentary scrutiny.

So what's the problem...?? ... Easy nah...?? Just shuffle the funds around and around .... So why are you all complaining,,,?? It'll all get sorted out .................................eventually !!!

Edited September 15, 2012 by Scott
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[vijer]

The picture says it all ... a thin 7 cm wall built to hold back all that water. What fool would think that wall would hold back the water once it reached a height of a meter or more. Jeez they have only been dealing with heavy rains and some type of flooding for a few thousand years yet they still haven't learned the first thing about fluid dynamics.

Note to Thai engineers (choking sound) this site will help you determine the potential weight of the water pressing against the wall. You can use this information and tell your boss you thought of it on your own, you can be a real hero. http://simscience.or...ced/forces.html

Edited September 13, 2012 by vijer

[Buchholz]

Oh dear, it's the rainy season in the tropics and there is going to be knee deep water in parts of Bangkok for a few days, as there has been almost every year since anyone can remember.

Just as there is in Taiwan, Korea, Phils, Japan ( when they are not glowing in the dark ), Vietnam, Burma, 1/2 of China and god knows where else.

oh dear, might rain soon, must have a quick panic.............

All fine, up there in Chiang Mai, I hope

looks like heavy rain in the skies ( possibly something to do with the last couple of tropical depressions in the S.China sea ) and the river looks pretty full to me, but yes, ok at the moment but for sure more water coming.

Thanks for yours and Bucholzes concern

You're welcome. Unlike some, I'm concerned about people living in areas other than my own.

.

[philw]

Oh dear, it's the rainy season in the tropics and there is going to be knee deep water in parts of Bangkok for a few days, as there has been almost every year since anyone can remember.

Just as there is in Taiwan, Korea, Phils, Japan ( when they are not glowing in the dark ), Vietnam, Burma, 1/2 of China and god knows where else.

oh dear, might rain soon, must have a quick panic.............

All fine, up there in Chiang Mai, I hope

looks like heavy rain in the skies ( possibly something to do with the last couple of tropical depressions in the S.China sea ) and the river looks pretty full to me, but yes, ok at the moment but for sure more water coming.

Thanks for yours and Bucholzes concern

You're welcome. Unlike some, I'm concerned about people living in areas other than my own.

.

Yes Bucholze, I agree, there are far too many greedy, selfish and unconcerned people out there.

We should all do more.

Now,back on topic, there is currently heavy rain in Chiangmai which does not omen well.

[oldsailor35]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

[robblok]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

YL is fast in trying to rewrite legislation and get her brother back, fast in buying worthless tablets but not so fast when real work has to be done.

Money has been allocated (and stolen) but not much has been done, who is to blame if not YL. They just thought that it would not be bad this year and saw the project as a way to get rich. If they had done it as fast as all the other things then i would feel a lot safer.

I just get angry, because there is a chance i get flooded again. I still think and hope it wont be as bad as last year but you never know. Just looking at how things are handled now shows they are just as stupid as last year.

[Thai at Heart]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

No I blame her for overseeing such effective distribution and implementation of 120nb baht of spending.

[robblok]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

No I blame her for overseeing such effective distribution and implementation of 120nb baht of spending.

Yes that is the whole point, loads of money spend nothing to show for it.

[Baerboxer]

yingluck don't care She is not even in Bangkokthis weekend and she certainly wont be getting wet unless she decides to go swimming in one of the hotels swimming pools,she is coming to visit us down in krabi living it up in one of the biggest 5* hotels down here(sofitel),why I don't know the people down here can't stand her.

I think you are right - She not only doesn't care but believes she can say anyhting and get away with it. From "there won't be any floods", to "maybe" to "we'll do our best". What comes next - "sorry". This lot may be inept, but they certainly know how to line their own pockets and spend other people's money. Floods won't inconnvenience her or her cronies - just more scamming opportunities.

[Baerboxer]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

Yingluck cannot control nature, and nor can anyone else. However, as PM she is in charge of the government and should ensure public money is spent prudently and that effective work is carried out to minimise the damage of future flooding - dredging canals, building and strengthening embankments. She must also make sure that emergency and disaster planning is in place and that the water and irrigation management is professional and efficicent.

Do you believe she has done any of this??? The point is she is to blame for the problems in government. She is PM, the "buck stops here" etc. Of course we all know the reality.

[jbrain]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

I remember that the Netherlands always flooded several dacades ago because the country is situated below sea level.

It is clear they found a workaround for it as it is not flooded anymore these days,neither are their neighbouring country's.

I do not recall the relocated the Netherlands.

[Soutpeel]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

Yingluck cannot control nature, and nor can anyone else. However, as PM she is in charge of the government and should ensure public money is spent prudently and that effective work is carried out to minimise the damage of future flooding - dredging canals, building and strengthening embankments. She must also make sure that emergency and disaster planning is in place and that the water and irrigation management is professional and efficicent.

Do you believe she has done any of this??? The point is she is to blame for the problems in government. She is PM, the "buck stops here" etc. Of course we all know the reality.

I know I am going to get flamed for my next opinion, but I actually feel sorry for her, she is obviously not a politican, and maybe not smart enough to know she is being used by the people with the real power who are in the background which one suspects is even her own brother, so maybe with all this "we will try our best etc" she is being sincere, but very naive as to what is really going on.

If all this blows up in the goverments face the real power brokers have an in built scape goat already...blame her...with all the above being said, she is the standing PM and accountability is with her

Edited September 14, 2012 by Soutpeel

[MaxLee]

Edited September 14, 2012 by MaxLee

[Markaew]

This flooding is becoming an annual event. Why is it when Yingluck becomes PM the floods began?

[MaxLee]

This flooding is becoming an annual event. Why is it when Yingluck becomes PM the floods began?

No matter who becomes the Prime Minister, it will always flood, and politicians don't give a freaking dam_n about it...

[rixalex]

I know I am going to get flamed for my next opinion, but I actually feel sorry for her, she is obviously not a politican, and maybe not smart enough to know she is being used by the people with the real power who are in the background which one suspects is even her own brother, so maybe with all this "we will try our best etc" she is being sincere, but very naive as to what is really going on.

If all this blows up in the goverments face the real power brokers have an in built scape goat already...blame her...with all the above being said, she is the standing PM and accountability is with her

Whilst i understand the guarded sympathies you express for YL, and feel them to a degree too, as it is very obvious this is a job she never strived for or wanted, but was rather coerced into it under a feeling of obligation to her brother, perhaps she has to take some responsibility herself for the position she found herself in. I mean, when her brother told her that he was going to give her an astronomical salary at AIS, the best office in the building and the title of Company President, very obviously not because she was particularly qualified or had earnt this position, but simply because she was his sister, perhaps she might have said, "yeah thanks bro, i really appreciate that, but i wouldn't feel comfortable taking that job ahead of all the other people that have worked in that industry in the company, who are infinitely more qualified than me. You paid for my education, now let me make my own way in the world, and do something i can say i achieved by myself, not something that was simply handed to me".

Of course she never said any of that. She said "thank you very much". And that is what in no small way, put her in the position she finds herself in today.

In short, there are probably more worthy causes deserving of our sympathies i would say.

[ResX]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

Yingluck cannot control nature, and nor can anyone else. However, as PM she is in charge of the government and should ensure public money is spent prudently and that effective work is carried out to minimise the damage of future flooding - dredging canals, building and strengthening embankments. She must also make sure that emergency and disaster planning is in place and that the water and irrigation management is professional and efficicent.

Do you believe she has done any of this??? The point is she is to blame for the problems in government. She is PM, the "buck stops here" etc. Of course we all know the reality.

To certan extent, yes, she can. I don't think THB 350 billion is not sufficient. I think it is pretty too much. There are a few things she could do that I can suggest for free. First thing first. The idea of preparing retention areas for major floods is not a bad idea. Thailand has small problem with those two dams in the north, although there are things that can be improved. I hope I have time to deliberate this in future. But for the moment she has to find mean to store at least 3-4 billion cubic meters of flood waters in the central. Next she has to assign experts in integrated water resouces management. Don't under estimate ability of experts to turn around the end results regarding controlling floods.

Talking about water retention areas, I were her I would have not acquire lands for this purpose. It is good enough to sign agreements with the targeted land owners to use their land when major floods occur. Her goverment shall be willing to pay compensations to land owners every single TBH that they have lost due to inundation of flood waters. Make the terms and conditions of payment luctructive enough so they will except the deal. This approach is cheaper than building up dams, very effective and economic too. The most important thing major floods at most occur not more than 5 times in 50 years. I mean she has to be sure not to pay compensation every year. Otherwise dams are better option.

[rics21]

Decades of mismanagement, can't be resolved within a year or two.

The water management system in Thailand is designed for storage against droughts. No one planned for floods.

Sent from my XT910 using Thaivisa Connect App

[Tatsujin]

The idea of preparing retention areas for major floods is not a bad idea. Thailand has small problem with those two dams in the north, although there are things that can be improved. I hope I have time to deliberate this in future. But for the moment she has to find mean to store at least 3-4 billion cubic meters of flood waters in the central.

They've already done and completed this water retention project . . . the 2 x areas allocated for this are called Ayudyha and Sukhothai . . .

[robblok]

So far so good.. Ayuttaja has not flooded completely and the river can still hold its water. As long as this is the case im pretty sure that most parts of Bangkok stay dry. But it pays to keep the situation in check.

Last year water only moved real slow so there is plenty of time to take precautions.

[Buchholz]

I know I am going to get flamed for my next opinion, but I actually feel sorry for her, she is obviously not a politican, and maybe not smart enough to know she is being used by the people with the real power who are in the background which one suspects is even her own brother, so maybe with all this "we will try our best etc" she is being sincere, but very naive as to what is really going on.

If all this blows up in the goverments face the real power brokers have an in built scape goat already...blame her...with all the above being said, she is the standing PM and accountability is with her

Whilst i understand the guarded sympathies you express for YL, and feel them to a degree too, as it is very obvious this is a job she never strived for or wanted, but was rather coerced into it under a feeling of obligation to her brother, perhaps she has to take some responsibility herself for the position she found herself in. I mean, when her brother told her that he was going to give her an astronomical salary at AIS, the best office in the building and the title of Company President, very obviously not because she was particularly qualified or had earnt this position, but simply because she was his sister, perhaps she might have said, "yeah thanks bro, i really appreciate that, but i wouldn't feel comfortable taking that job ahead of all the other people that have worked in that industry in the company, who are infinitely more qualified than me. You paid for my education, now let me make my own way in the world, and do something i can say i achieved by myself, not something that was simply handed to me".

Of course she never said any of that. She said "thank you very much". And that is what in no small way, put her in the position she finds herself in today.

In short, there are probably more worthy causes deserving of our sympathies i would say.

Particularly those that weren't rewarded for their situation with hundreds of millions of baht. She directly benefitted from the family's corruption and thefts of the country' s resources.

She's neither a child nor mentally incompetent.

[Soutpeel]

I know I am going to get flamed for my next opinion, but I actually feel sorry for her, she is obviously not a politican, and maybe not smart enough to know she is being used by the people with the real power who are in the background which one suspects is even her own brother, so maybe with all this "we will try our best etc" she is being sincere, but very naive as to what is really going on.

If all this blows up in the goverments face the real power brokers have an in built scape goat already...blame her...with all the above being said, she is the standing PM and accountability is with her

Whilst i understand the guarded sympathies you express for YL, and feel them to a degree too, as it is very obvious this is a job she never strived for or wanted, but was rather coerced into it under a feeling of obligation to her brother, perhaps she has to take some responsibility herself for the position she found herself in. I mean, when her brother told her that he was going to give her an astronomical salary at AIS, the best office in the building and the title of Company President, very obviously not because she was particularly qualified or had earnt this position, but simply because she was his sister, perhaps she might have said, "yeah thanks bro, i really appreciate that, but i wouldn't feel comfortable taking that job ahead of all the other people that have worked in that industry in the company, who are infinitely more qualified than me. You paid for my education, now let me make my own way in the world, and do something i can say i achieved by myself, not something that was simply handed to me".

Of course she never said any of that. She said "thank you very much". And that is what in no small way, put her in the position she finds herself in today.

In short, there are probably more worthy causes deserving of our sympathies i would say.

She's neither a child nor mentally incompetent.

Not according to some of TV finest posters who it seems are of the opinion that the Thai nationals generally are both....

[rixalex]

Particularly those that weren't rewarded for their situation with hundreds of millions of baht. She directly benefitted from the family's corruption and thefts of the country' s resources.

She's neither a child nor mentally incompetent.

Some may care to argue that the way these sorts of Sino-Thai families work, family members really have little choice but to carry on age-old traditions such as keeping businesses within the family, but i think in Yingluck and Thaksin case, that argument lacks some strength because this is not a Chinese daughter under the command and obligation of her father/parents dynamic, this is a sister under the command and obligation of a brother. I don't believe brothers generally hold that degree of power over sisters, whereby the sister is obliged to become a part of the brother's business.

Bottom line, she made her own choices, she accepted the untold wealth, glitz and glamour that she was offered for little in return, and now she is being made to do a little pay back.

[siampreggers]

So is there a flood tracking map based website up again?

So we can watch as the water slowly creeps towards, and then into our areas?

[ResX]

Decades of mismanagement, can't be resolved within a year or two.

The water management system in Thailand is designed for storage against droughts. No one planned for floods.

Sent from my XT910 using Thaivisa Connect App

Allocate the areas for water retention, with a bit of good luck, can be done for less than two years. It much depends of geology of the selected sites. I think to build up structures can be completed within at most 2 years. To build up dams will take longer time. At least 4 years. At most 7 years.

[ResX]

The idea of preparing retention areas for major floods is not a bad idea. Thailand has small problem with those two dams in the north, although there are things that can be improved. I hope I have time to deliberate this in future. But for the moment she has to find mean to store at least 3-4 billion cubic meters of flood waters in the central.

They've already done and completed this water retention project . . . the 2 x areas allocated for this are called Ayudyha and Sukhothai . . .

Ohh... No wonder. Too bad. If I were her I should have picked paddy fields instead.

[Mosha]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

No I blame her for overseeing such effective distribution and implementation of 120nb baht of spending.

Yes that is the whole point, loads of money spend nothing to show for it.

I distinctly remember a party to congratulate themselves on a job (not so) well done.

[scotbeve]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

Flooding in BKK has been going on for decades. Bangkok is also sinking / subsiding by 1.2 to 1.7 cm per year......

[rixalex]

To all those stupid enough to blaim Yingluck, it has always been happening and always will until Bangkok is relocated.

Flooding in BKK has been going on for decades. Bangkok is also sinking / subsiding by 1.2 to 1.7 cm per year......

Lots of places used to flood. London used to flood. Just because a place has a history of flooding, doesn't mean you shrug your shoulders and say "well nothing we can do about that, just the way it will always be".