Heritage sites demand careful drainage
The water around several heritage sites has receded, and now all those ancient structures are being left to dry in their own natural way after being completely inundated for more than a couple of months.
A proper engineering way is to expedite the drainage of underground water by digging a channel around each structure to lower the water table.
For all structures, new and old, the part that is normally under threat of being damaged by flood is the portion between the always-wet foundation and the normally dry, fully exposed top portion. So it is wise to drain the water out of this mid portion as soon as possible to reduce the risk.
Vichit Phanumphai
Bangkok
