Flood

Severe flooding across southern Thailand has so far claimed 145 lives, with Songkhla province accounting for the majority at 110 fatalities, according to the government’s Emergency Flood Response Operations Centre.
Government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkia said on Friday that in addition to the 110 fatalities in Songkhla, the Ministry of Public Health had confirmed 9 in Nakhon Si Thammarat, 4 in Phatthalung, 2 in Trang, 5 in Satun, 6 in Pattani, 5 in Yala and 4 in Narathiwat.
All fatalities will be classified as flood-related to avoid confusion. Official figures will be consolidated daily, in coordination with police, forensic units and health authorities, Mr Siripong said.
Rescue operations carried out on Thursday were considered highly successful, said the spokesman.
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Of the 1,934 requests for assistance, teams managed to safely evacuate people in 1,734 cases — or 89%. The remaining cases could not be counted as rescues because some people had already left, while others declined relocation as conditions had improved and they no longer wished to move to evacuation centres.
“Some cases were resolved earlier or declined relocation as conditions improved,” said Mr Siripong. (Story continues below)
As of Friday, 14,160 people remained in shelters, which can still accommodate an additional 20,840 evacuees.
Food production for distribution both inside shelters and to those still stranded in flooded areas has reached 92,320 meal sets per day, with production capacity being increased further, said the centre spokesman.
Meanwhile, the search for bodies continues, with confirmed deaths expected to rise further.
Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn, a high-profile former deputy national police chief, is among those who have joined the rescue effort in Hat Yai, the business and commercial hub of the South.
The actual death toll could exceed 200, he said on his Facebook account, adding that he had ordered an additional 200 body bags and cotton shrouds, along with 200 coffins, to support a local volunteer foundation.
“We are preparing for legal procedures and handover to families,” Pol Gen Surachate wrote.
As well, he said, he would set up additional field kitchens.
On Thursday, 3,000 meal boxes were distributed, though some did not reach residents stranded deep inside smaller lanes that were still impassable.
Pol Gen Surachate said two vehicles were being deployed on Friday — one to reach the furthest inner areas and another starting from the main road so that both routes meet in the middle. (Story continues below)
Hat Yai and nearby areas received 630 millimetres of rain over three days last week, with water rolling down surrounding hills to flood densely populated low-lying plains unable to absorb the inflow.
“This relentless influx of water overwhelmed the city’s waterways and drainage systems,” the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) said in a note, adding that the floods swelled quickly.
Now, receding waters have made a muddy mess of the city of low-rise buildings, lively street restaurants and shopping areas favoured by tourists from neighbouring Malaysia.
Lines of cars, parked in a bid to escape floodwaters, stood stalled on a wide street on Friday.
Bright blue drums spilled out of a warehouse in a commercial area, blocking a lane. Elsewhere, people cleared mud and debris from homes that had been inundated.
The floods have damaged more than 33,000 homes in Hat Yai and its surroundings, along with five hospitals, 58 schools and over 700 kilometres of roads, an initial assessment by GISTDA showed.