Canals full, roads submerged as Bangkok declares flood disaster

Bangkok authorities declared a flood disaster across the Thai capital on Saturday after almost 48 hours of heavy rain left canals full, roads submerged and residents wading through deep water.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt urged people to stay home after almost 300 millimetres (11.8 inches) of rain fell, while Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he was cutting short a trip to London to return.

"The water keeps coming in. It's hard to go out now. It's like at my waist level now," said Somkid Pheuk-ngam, 67, a vendor who lives near a canal just north of central Bangkok.

"I cannot go anywhere. I have been closing my shop for two days now," she told AFP, adding that while she often gets flooded, "I think this time is worse than the 2011 flood."

Widespread deluges across Thailand in 2011 killed more than 500 people and damaged millions of homes.

Chadchart said mid-afternoon on Saturday that the situation had "stabilised", adding: "If more rainwater doesn't fall in the area, it will be solved."

"If the rain stops, it is expected that it will take 2-3 days to drain the floodwater," he said in an update broadcast on social media.

Almost continuous rain since Thursday afternoon has swelled Bangkok's network of canals, sending murky water into surrounding homes, restaurants, shops and alleyways.

Chadchart said at least 13 roads were also flooded, and AFP reporters saw residents in several different neighbourhoods forced to wade through high waters.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) declared a disaster for all the city's 50 districts, a move which gives local organisations special powers to act.

But the governor urged residents not to worry about potential food shortages caused by blocked roads, stressing: "The public don't have to be panicked."

Chadchart revealed that around 980 people were staying in temporary shelters, while authorities had transferred 36 bed-ridden people to hospitals.

"I woke up to go to work and the street in front of my house was flooded," said motorbike rider Samruay Nakkamnueng in the Ari neighbourhood.

"I worried if my motorbike would be able to wade through this much floodwater."

In the On Nut neighbourhood, an AFP reporter saw locals filling sandbags to take home to protect their homes and businesses.

The flooding was worst in the east of the city and along the canals, and Chadchart urged residents to move their belongings to higher ground.

"Our problem is that the canals are full," Chadchart said in his afternoon update.

"We are cooperating with nearby provinces and try to drain water out through other sides, minimising the amount that flows into Bangkok."

Once dubbed the "Venice of the East", the city is built on former marshland and rests about 1.5 metres (five feet) above sea level.

The BMA earlier said the city's pumping stations were operating at full capacity, pumping some 1,200 cubic meters per second combined.

Municipal workers were also busy on Saturday trying to keep the roads clear.

"Our job is to make sure rubbish along the road doesn't block the drains, so the water can drain away quickly," said Kwan Nobnom, one of a group wearing bright orange raincoats.

"We thought this year would be dry, so we didn't expect the flooding to be this bad."

September is the peak of the rainy season in Bangkok but it has been wetter than usual, according to figures from the drainage and sewage department.

The capital recorded 487 mm of rain between September 1 and 25, compared to an average of almost 269 mm for the same period from 1991-2020.

Scientists warn the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events will increase as the planet continues to heat up because of fossil fuel emissions.

The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation warned of low pressure across eastern, northeastern and central Thailand until Sunday.