More heavy rain expected in Northeast, East

With many Central provinces already under water, more heavy rain is expected to hit the Northeast and the East over the weekend.

Nakhon Sawan and Angthong were the latest to be hit by floods, in addition to Ayutthaya in the Central region, as well as Phichit, Sukhothai and Phitsanulok in the lower North. Nine out of Nakhon Sawan's 15 districts have been named disaster zones with 3,000 households are affected.

Angthong's Pa Moke district was hit with flash floods last night following days of heavy downpours with water levels exceeding 1.63 metres, well above the critical level. A total of 750 survival kits from His Majesty were handed to affected residents in five districts deemed disaster zones.

Heavy rain has also been forecast on both the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand sides in the South, while the Royal Irrigation Department expects prolonged floods caused by the swelling of the Chao Phraya River.

According to an official report, 72 people have drowned and 12 provinces remain flooded. The report also warned about the rapid swelling of other key rivers in Central provinces.

Meanwhile, Pol MajGeneral Sommai Kongwisaisuk, a senior commander in Regional Police Bureau 5 whose jurisdiction covers most of the North, said drug trade has become rampant in the region because people are in urgent need for cash to cover repair costs and make up for the loss of their crops.

The National Office of Buddhism said the 500 flooded temples would each be given Bt5,000 for initial repairs and later provided additional funding for renovation.

Meanwhile, a Democrat MP yesterday slammed Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra for not answering parliamentary motions about flooding raised by his party. Instead, Phitsanulok MP Dr Warong Detkitwikrom said the premier came to the Parliament to answer the motion on the same topic raised by her own party.

"She avoided answering the opposition's motion about floods across the country. I raised the motion in the morning and she had Deputy Interior Minister Thanis Thienthong answer on her behalf," he said.

However in the afternoon, she came to the Parliament to answer the motion on the same topic raised by Pheu Thai MP Payab Panket, Warong added.

He compared Yingluck to a Japanese ninja, moving from one place to another without being noticed, adding that she answered questions from a script.

However, House Speaker Somsak Kietsuranond said the prime minister had the right to decide which motion she chose to answer, adding that Yingluck had told the chamber of her visits to the affected areas.

When Payab asked about the government's longterm measures, Yingluck responded by saying that Bt750 million had been allocated to deal with floods in the future. In addition, members of her Cabinet had also visited 44 flooded provinces in the North and Northeast. As for provinces that had not yet been hit by floods, the authorities have been told to be prepared, she said.