12 die in South Thailand, 7 in Malaysia as both countries face worst ...
Updated
Dec 02, 2024, 03:36 PM
Published
Dec 01, 2024, 08:20 PM
At least 12 people have died and more than 600,000 households have been affected by the worst flooding in southern Thailand in decades, according to a government agency.
The heavy downpours and flash floods that have persisted across the country’s south since Nov 22 have affected about 640,580 households in 10 provinces, causing around 13,000 people to evacuate and seek refuge in the 200 temporary shelters set up as at Dec 1, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said in a statement. Seven provinces in the area are still experiencing floods, it said.
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s administration said it is monitoring the situation “every hour” and on Nov 29 approved a 70 million baht (S$2.74 million) emergency budget to ease the impact of the floods. The government also plans an additional cash handout, debt restructuring and a rice subsidy worth a combined 166 billion baht to help support the nation’s nascent economic recovery.
Ms Paetongtarn on Dec 1 rebutted criticism that she ignored the floods in the southern provinces because her Pheu Thai party’s political base was in the north and north-east of the country, not in the south.
She said she wanted the local agencies to focus on helping flood victims, instead of being distracted to make preparations to welcome and take care of her, Thai media outlet The Nation reported. Also, she had to attend Cabinet meetings in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai that were planned in advance.
She added that she had assigned Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to lead efforts to help flood victims.
In neighbouring Malaysia, floods had affected more than 150,000 people across 10 states as at Dec 1, with north-eastern Kelantan bearing the brunt.
The death toll from the disaster was seven: a one-year-old and two elderly men were reported to have drowned in Kelantan on Nov 30 and Dec 1 respectively, according to the Malay Mail.
The National Disaster Management Agency had reported on Nov 30 that four men had died across Kelantan, Sarawak and Terengganu on Nov 27 and 28.
The number of people displaced surpassed the 118,000 during one of the country’s worst floods in 2014.
Malaysia’s meteorological department warned that heavy rain would continue in Kelantan and adjacent state Terengganu, with thunderstorms in the northern parts of the country on Dec 1.
Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi told Malaysian media at an event on Dec 1 that the situation may worsen because the floods are happening in a period when the tides in the South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca would typically rise to a peak.
“We do not want the death toll to rise, so preparedness and early warnings must be fully followed to prevent loss of life,” he said.
He advised affected residents to follow any advice to evacuate their homes early, with more than 82,000 people mobilised to help flood victims.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim earlier instructed his Cabinet to visit flood-hit areas to provide assistance. He said ministers and their deputies have been prohibited from taking leave as the crisis continues. BLOOMBERG
