Pak Kret homes flooded as high tides breach flood defenses

[webfact]

Pak Kret homes flooded as high tides breach flood defenses

 

Picture: Thairath

 

PAK KRET: -- Dozens of homes were inundated by flood waters of more than half a meter as high tides and high water levels in the Chao Praya river caused misery on Thursday.

 

The homes affected are along the river bank in a 300 meter stretch from Soi Ku to Soi Matichon in the Tha It area, reports Thairath.

 

Local mayor Wichai Bandasak order in heavy equipment to increase the flood defenses but it was too late to save homes in the crowded community from the inundation.

 

Officials in Bangkok have maintained that the city is safe from flooding.

 

Source: Thairath

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2016-10-21

[Rorri]

Bit late for "heavy" machinery, but hey, they knew the river levels are high and high tides are predicted months in advance... local authorities  are tossers, it's  a pity thais don't  understand how bad, stupid and lazy their lying officials are.

[NongKhaiKid]

Just now, Rorri said:

Bit late for "heavy" machinery, but hey, they knew the river levels are high and high tides are predicted months in advance... local authorities  are tossers, it's  a pity thais don't  understand how bad, stupid and lazy their lying officials are.

I'd say very many do know all about their officials but can't o won't do much about it.

[seahorse]

17 minutes ago, webfact said:

Officials in Bangkok have maintained that the city is safe from flooding.

Everybody can relax, then.

[kotsak]

The pinnacle of incompetency.

[robblok]

Bangkok has been relatively safe, friends who live in Rangsit near the area's that were flooded badly in 2011 have not seen 2011 levels or much worse as normally. I was flooded in 2011 and around here (Bang Bua Thong / Bangyai area) no flooding (just the normal yearly flooding of some really low area's). So they were right saying no 2011 repeat. 

 

Still some time to go but in 2011 we were long flooded by now, but yes it incompetence not securing Pak Kret well enough knowing the high tides would come. People do know that Pak Kret is an Island in the river and really flood prone. Fact is you can't protect everything. But knowing that high tide was coming they should at least have pumps ready there. 

 

I wonder how the rest of the country is doing because of the sad news last week we did not hear anything about flooding anymore. 

 

[Crossy]

We're about 20km upstream from Pak Kret on the east bank.

 

The river is currently about .75 - 1m below the 2011 levels, most of the village are using boats, restaurant is flooded and closed.

[Raybangkok]

2 points 

1st where do you pump the water to I am not sure. 

2nd 2011 floods were far more severe because the government put dams along all the drainage points to keep Bangkok dry. It's. dry easy to keep critisising but what about the yearly droughts and floods in the U.K. And now the floods in Hong Kong I think many countries have water problems

[ourmanflint]

I know as a foreigner, that it's normal for countries in monsoon regions to flood annually, so why do they always seem to be so shocked by it? Thailand has to learn to work with nature and not think it can control it. It really can't.

[robblok]

6 hours ago, Crossy said:

We're about 20km upstream from Pak Kret on the east bank.

 

The river is currently about .75 - 1m below the 2011 levels, most of the village are using boats, restaurant is flooded and closed.

Crossy,

 

That is still quite a difference almost 1 meter. I am sure we would flood too if it was 1 meter higher. 

[DipStick]

2 hours ago, Raybangkok said:

2 points 

1st where do you pump the water to I am not sure. 

2nd 2011 floods were far more severe because the government put dams along all the drainage points to keep Bangkok dry. It's. dry easy to keep critisising but what about the yearly droughts and floods in the U.K. And now the floods in Hong Kong I think many countries have water problems

I don't think you can compare Bangkok with Hong Kong, the former is very low lying and some say sinking, next to the river and the sea. Hong Kong is hilly and a well planned city,  Hong Kong, when it gets two Typhoons almost piggy backing each other pouring  millions of gallons on water on to it, yet usually within hours the flooding, if there is any is gone.

 

we, in HK and south China have been inundated by heavy rains for the last five days, and things are fine. If Bangkok had the same amount of rain thrown at it, I think it almost obvious that it would sink and remain under water for a long time.

 

[Wilsonandson]

We're about 20km upstream from Pak Kret on the east bank.
 
The river is currently about .75 - 1m below the 2011 levels, most of the village are using boats, restaurant is flooded and closed.

Can you take some photos and post them please..xxx

[thedemon]

2 hours ago, robblok said:

Crossy,

 

That is still quite a difference almost 1 meter. I am sure we would flood too if it was 1 meter higher. 

 

To put that in perspective, the difference between 2010 and 2011 was less than 50cm and the press doesn't even mention 2010.

 

I'm talking about peak levels. Obviously the river level is subject to the tides in the gulf of Thailand which goes up and down roughly twice a day. So the people in Pak Kret mentioned in the op will be flooded twice a day with one worse than the other. Presently the high tides are coming about mid-morning. It is worth mentioning that when a community is flooded from the river, that is relatively clean water as opposed to the black sludge when flooding occurs away from the river

 

The island (Ko Kret, not Pak Kret) would be practically impossible to protect from routine flooding unless either everything was knocked down and the land filled to be 1-2M higher, or it was surrounded by concrete walls and pump stations. I think the locals there would prefer the flooding every couple of years. It may sound callous but they are used to it.

 

When we read these media reports saying that Bangkok is/isn't at risk of flooding, I think what they really mean is that the river won't breach the flood walls. For those people, like this community in Pak Kret, living outside the flood walls I don't suppose having 30cm water inside your house is really that much better than having 80cm. 

[robblok]

1 hour ago, thedemon said:

 

To put that in perspective, the difference between 2010 and 2011 was less than 50cm and the press doesn't even mention 2010.

 

I'm talking about peak levels. Obviously the river level is subject to the tides in the gulf of Thailand which goes up and down roughly twice a day. So the people in Pak Kret mentioned in the op will be flooded twice a day with one worse than the other. Presently the high tides are coming about mid-morning. It is worth mentioning that when a community is flooded from the river, that is relatively clean water as opposed to the black sludge when flooding occurs away from the river

 

The island (Ko Kret, not Pak Kret) would be practically impossible to protect from routine flooding unless either everything was knocked down and the land filled to be 1-2M higher, or it was surrounded by concrete walls and pump stations. I think the locals there would prefer the flooding every couple of years. It may sound callous but they are used to it.

 

When we read these media reports saying that Bangkok is/isn't at risk of flooding, I think what they really mean is that the river won't breach the flood walls. For those people, like this community in Pak Kret, living outside the flood walls I don't suppose having 30cm water inside your house is really that much better than having 80cm. 

 

Having lived through it for 2 months in 2011 I can say 20-30 cm is manageable if you have 2 floors 80cm would have meant no electricity on the higher floors and we would have evacuated.  Problem was more that there was 70-80 cm in the streets.