Social media surges as flooding hits capital

Among the most shared photos on social media were those that showed students rowing a boat to school, while others wearing swimming suits pretended to dive into floodwaters. 

Those photos, taken at Rajvinit Bangkaew School, were among many depictions of flooding throughout Bangkok that featured prominently on social media, with the terrible traffic also a common theme. 

But soon after the deluge, social media outlets were swamped by the news that Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, as chief of the National Council for Peace and Order, had invoked his powers under the post-coup interim charter’s Article 44 to suspend Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra from duty effective immediately.

The governor was at Hong Kong International Airport waiting for a flight to South Korea when news broke about Prayut’s order, according to a BMA source. 

He was going to Seoul to attend an event to celebrate ties between Bangkok and the South Korean capital.

Many media outlets outlined the “failures” during Sukhumbhand’s time as Bangkok’s governor, drawing comments from across the spectrum of Thai social media.

At the weekend, social media outlets were again awash with similar sentiments about the flooding caused by the heavy rains. Flooding at the Prachaniwet 2 Housing Estate in Nonthaburi province featured prominently.

Earlier in the week, social media outlets were dominated by photos and reports about high-rise buildings in Bangkok that were rocked by the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that hit central Myanmar. 

There were also photographs of pagodas in central Myanmar’s ancient city of Bagan, which was badly damaged by the earthquake. 

There were also photos and reports about the 6-magnitude earthquake that hit central Italy. 

Earlier in the week, social media highlights were the closing ceremony of the Rio Olympics and a meme about Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe morphing into the popular video game character Super Mario.