Bangkok floods leave thousands displaced as residents criticise warnings

Flooding after several days of heavy rain has affected about 52,000 households in Bangkok and forced nearly 4,900 people into shelters, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. More than 330 millimetres of rain fell in some parts of the Thai capital between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Floodwaters inundated roads, markets and homes, with some residents wading through knee-deep water to buy food and other essentials.

Several residents said warnings came after flooding had already begun. Office worker Bandit Pankan said he received an SMS alert from the disaster agency after water had entered his home. Other residents reported shortages in shops and long queues as people sought groceries.

The prime minister’s office urged the public not to panic-buy and warned that price gouging was a criminal offence. Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said roads remained flooded and canal levels were high, while authorities were working to accelerate drainage. Hundreds of schools were due to close on Monday.

At one temporary shelter, about 1,000 people had been evacuated, with residents sleeping on cots, benches and classroom floors. Some brought their dogs with them. A resident beside the Premprachakorn canal said his house had been underwater for about 30 hours and that the water was higher than during the 2011 flood.

Another resident said she had slept on a table for two days while trying to salvage belongings. Flooding was reported in 25 provinces, and more than 10,000 soldiers were deployed nationwide for relief work, according to the defence ministry. Rain was expected to continue through Sunday before easing on Monday, the metropolitan administration said.