Are you prepare to protect your area from the flood?
No one want to face flooding. It is a normally caused by natural that can happened all the time and anywhere. Maybe from heavy rainfall, high tides, storm or thunder from another country, or dam broken. No matter what cause is, it damages in many areas. This year, Thailand has worst affected from flooding not only in countrysides, but also Bangkok Metropolis.
Thailand races to defend Bangkok from floods. (2011, October 11). BBC News. Retrieved october 11, 2011. from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15255038
According to Thailand races to defend Bangkok from floods on BBC News website, At least 270 Thai people have died in floods since July. More than 700,000 homes have been destroyed and many people are homeless. In Ayutthaya province has worst affected areas. North of Thailand where are faraway from flooding are also floods. Moreover, high tides arrived in many areas of Bangkok now. Thai workers are hurry up to build flood walls of sandbags in Bangkok but it has a problem that sandbags are not enough for floods. However, the government is trying to fix a shortage of sandbags. Also, basic foods such as rice, noodle, water and food cans on supermarket shelves are empty now.
I can't remember flooding in 1995. Many people said flooding in 1995 had been worst affected but I heard prediction on news that flooding in this year will have worst affect more than in 1995. One of my friend has traditional house at Ayutthaya province has been damaged now. My father's office at Laoprao is also flood but it is just in front of the door. Although, my house is not risk areas, we prepare for flood by saving food and moving stuffs.
I heard announcement that who have a car can park at Don Muang Airport and they have helping zone at domestic terminal. Who have blackberry, iPhone, facebook, or anything that you can broadcast, please tell this announcement to your friends or people you know. We have to help each other.
"Thais do not leave Thais."
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A timely post, Aom, and well written.
ReplyDeleteBut one sentence did catch my eye: "No one do not want to face flooding" (¶ 2). This is not what you meant to write, but I like it - it reminds me of when I was a child.
About once in 20 - 25 years, there is flooding at my home in Australia that is much more serious than the usual annual flooding, and when I was about 10 years old was one of those years.
In previous years, the floods weren't even always enough to stop school for a day or two. But this year was different. There must have been good warning of the impending disaster because my parents took steps to move our cattle and horses to another property, and made sure that our poultry were out of harms way and well provided with food.
And then all we could do was wait. My father put barricades around the house, hoping that that might be enough, but it wasn't. And when they were breached by the rising water, he raised the fridge and other appliances onto blocks, preparing for the worst in case the water rose high enough to enter our house.
Thankfully, the power supply was OK, and we had plenty of water and food in stock. I didn't realise at the time, but my parents were very worried about what was happening, wondering if they had made the right decision to stay rather than leaving.
Part II follows - there is a limit on the length of comments.
Part II.
ReplyDeleteAnd me?
Well, along with my brothers and sisters, I was excited. It was one thing to live next to a wide and beautiful river. It was quite different to have the water swirling around the front and back doors. And then it did rise up and enter the house: that was another adventure, paddling around in water inside. It never occurred to any of use just how dangerous it might have been, but although there was a real risk, we were probably OK. The phones were still working, we also had radios for communication, and the local council, of which my father was a member, was running boats to check on people and provide emergency help where needed. It was exciting having our guests come by boat rather than car. Our neighbours on higher ground nearby dropped by a couple of times with some fresh milk from their dairy cows. We had hot cocoa and coffee with at our dining room table, with the water eddying around the furniture legs.
I think the water stayed for three or four days before receding, leaving an awful mess to clean up. I did not enjoy the cleaning up! Every floor had to have its covering ripped up, the floor scrubbed and new covers put down. And my mother decided that we would do everything, so we kids were set to scrubbing the walls in preparation for new paint, as well as the floors. And then the mess outside had to be cleaned up as well. It took weeks. In the end, I wasn't sure that missing a couple of weeks of school was really worth all that bother!
My mother was determined that she would not go through that again, so shortly afterwards bought the farm next to ours, which had a hill on it. The hill had never been covered by a flood, but she knocked down the house that was there, built the hill up even more, and then built a new house on it. An expensive solution, but it has certainly worked.
I didn't want to not face being flooded when I was a child, but these days I'm more inclined to my mother's point of view.
I hope that Bangkok does not suffer so horribly as it would if my current home area were flooded.
From this situation, it make me feel very proud that I am Thai because when some Thai people have a problem, we always show kindness and encourage each other. However, my family is still worried about flooding because Pathum Thani can't block the flood. Moreover, my district is still in the area at risk of flooding.
ReplyDeleteThe two schools that my children attend have sent us letters regarding flood in Bangkok. Today we didn't get delivery water that Nestle send every Tuesday. They said that their truck couldn't go and get water from Ayuthaya. I need to go to Top supermarket to get water. They told us maybe they can't send water until the end of this month.
ReplyDeleteThat is still small thing to compare peter's story.
Peter, I mean no one want to face flooding. I fix it now. Thank you for warning me.
ReplyDeleteAom,
ReplyDeleteIt was useful - it prompted me to remember my own story.
In late July, one of my Thai friends suddenly called and asked me about my family's safety in Korea, after reading an article about the flood in Seoul in Thai newspaper. From May to August, it rained continuously in Korea, and some regions including Seoul were flooded by heavy rain.I heard that people who ran small stores were the major victims of the flood. What I am worried about is that the victims here would be people who are not rich like Seoul's case. Today, the Thai friend who asked my family's safety didn't come to AUA because of the flood.I checked she is okay, but because it is still raining around, I am deeply concerned about the flood.
ReplyDeletemy dad's secretary reminded me to keep dry food at home like can food,rice, instant noddle and water. She told me better to prepare before.
ReplyDeleteI went to top supermarket after I finished AUA lesson. No water, rice and noddle to buy. People are scared and they just grabbed everything that they think can keep at home.
I had not been worrying until the last couple of days, and like Sunny, it is the continuing rain that is worrying me. Some of my friends are already suffering the effects of flooding in outer areas of Bangkok, but it isn't serious so far.
ReplyDeleteToday I've had problems with my internet connection. I don't know if they are flood related or not, but it's certainly annoying - I'm dependent on a decent internet connection.
But, personally, I don't have much to worry about, and so far the flooding is nothing compared to what hit Australia, and my family, earlier this year, although my mother was OK in her flood safe home on the hill; nonetheless, I am worried about my Thai friends, whose livelihoods, as Sunny also notes, are more precarious than my own - it wouldn't really hurt me very much to lose a month's teaching income, but that sort of loss would be a serious blow to a lot of ordinary Thai people. I'm sure I'll be OK, that it is unlikely that Silom Road will be allowed to flood, although if letting that happen helped a lot of other people a lot, I wouldn't mind a few days inconvenience. It would certainly be very annoying, but that's all. I could cope with some inconvenience in a good cause.
The daily rain also inconveniences me, but it's not much to complain of when so many people are living on their roofs or have had to abandon their homes.
If you turn on your television, I think,you will see news about flood because it's the most excited news in Thaialnd now.
ReplyDeleteYesterday I listened to a radio about this news, the reporter annouced that the social network is a good way to broadcast and update news timely, however everybady should be sure that is real news or real announcement not a rumour before you announce in the social network.
I agree with her because my close friend send message via WhatApp,iPhone chatting application, that my home is a risk area so I should be careful. After my afternoon class finished, I checked updated news and I found what my close frind told is just a rumour. I know and understand everybody worry about this situation, however we should update this news and be careful rumours
Pui raises an important point, one that is especially important in academic work, but also generally: we should not believe things just because someone says it.
ReplyDeleteIs the source reliable?
Have reliable sources been cited for the information?
Is the information verifiable?
Where did it come from?
Does it make sense with other things we know?
I often get emails forwarded by friends who mean well, but the emails really are garbage - outrageous claims (for example: that Obama is not really an American citizen; that NASA never landed astronauts on the moon; or that aliens have visited the earth in the past) with no solid evidence ever presented to support the claims.
Before taking anything seriously, it's a good idea to be sure that it's more than rumour or sincerely believed fantasy (= delusion).
Again, this is why freedom of speech is so essential in academic work and in a healthy democracy - if opposing opinions cannot be stated, then there can be no check on false information; therefore, beliefs about a censored topic can never be knowledge.