SAKON NAKHON, Thailand (CCTV) — Floodwaters have yet to recede in Thailand’s Sakon Nakhon province which was swept across by the worst floods in the northeastern province for two decades on July 27, with houses, farmlands and roads still being submerged.
In the worst-hit districts of Sakon Nakhon, water from a flood-swollen river continue to overflow, and a number of levees on the river have been washed away. Houses in the low-lying areas are largely submerged in floodwater with only their rooftop visible.
A primary school in an affected village remains closed for more than 10 days as it takes longer time for the faculty to completely drain away the floodwaters accumulated in the school’s playground.
The floods have also caused a huge damage to local sticky rice plantations, which are facing no harvest which is supposed to come in October.
In addition, the floods have also severely disrupted local traffic. A bridge in a road section of Thailand’s No.22 Expressway, the main passage connecting Sakon Nakhon and the surrounding regions, collapsed in the floods. Local authorities had to build a makeshift bridge on which automobiles need to pass slowly.
“On July 28, the flood hit the bridge suddenly and it couldn’t bear the lash from torrential water and was torn down at dusk,” said Danupol, an engineer of Sakon Nakhon Traffic Bureau.
Danupol added that two more bridges were also damaged in the floods, and it is estimated that it will take at least five months to have all the damaged bridges repaired.
As the floodwaters drenching the province’s airport have receded, airline services have been resumed in the province.
Although floodwaters are receding in much of Sakon Nakhon, water levels on the province’s main rivers remain to be high.
According to the local weather forecast, thunderstorms will hit the province again in the coming days and flood warnings are unlikely to be lifted.
