Thailand’s Hat Yai declared a disaster zone after record flooding
BANGKOK – The governor of Thailand’s Songkhla province, which includes the city of Hat Yai, has declared the entire region a disaster zone and ordered the urgent evacuation of residents, as continuous heavy rainfall plunges several districts into a state of crisis.
Governor Ratthasart Chidchoo made the announcement at 10am on Nov 24, declaring a disaster zone across all 16 administrative districts.
The order prioritises the immediate evacuation of vulnerable groups, including children, the elderly and the sick.
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Military, civilian and local government units have been mobilised to expedite relief efforts.
Mr Ratthasart said the worst-hit area so far is in Na Thawi district, where the situation is described as “critical”.
Flood waters have overwhelmed all 10 sub-districts and 92 villages there, directly affecting over 15,000 households, or more than 50,000 people.
Local reports said all primary and secondary roads in the district have been severed, rendering land travel impossible.
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Access to the affected population is now solely dependent on watercraft.
Na Thawi district chief Warintorn Thongkhao confirmed that temporary evacuation centres have been established across all sub-districts. However, the evacuation process is slow due to the challenging terrain.
Speaking at the provincial press office, the district chief issued an urgent appeal for resources.
“Na Thawi is critically short of essential relief equipment, particularly flat-bottom boats required to access highly submerged areas and evacuate large numbers of people,” he stated.
“We also urgently require prepared meals, drinking water, and basic necessities to distribute to the victims who remain stranded.”
This comes as the Royal Irrigation Department said a powerful monsoon trough caused record rainfall of 630mm in three days, triggering severe floods across 10 southern provinces, with Hat Yai experiencing its most severe deluge in three centuries.
It said accumulated 24-hour rainfall in many areas exceeded 300mm to 500mm.
The department said Songkhla province experienced intense rainfall across all districts, with Hat Yai recording its highest rainfall on Nov 21 measuring 335mm, marking the heaviest single-day rainfall in 300 years.
The three-day accumulated rainfall from Nov 19 to 21 reached 630mm, surpassing the historic 2010 Hat Yai flood, which recorded 428mm over the same period.
The department added that flooding in the Hat Yai municipality saw water levels ranging from 0.5m to 2.5m high.
At the same time, Thailand’s meteorological department forecasts persistent heavy rain across Southern Thailand on Nov 24.
It said the south, particularly Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, Krabi, Trang and Satun provinces, will see widespread heavy rain and isolated very heavy downpours.
The weather agency said the conditions are driven by an intense low-pressure cell over the lower Andaman Sea and Malaysia, and reinforced by a strong north-easterly monsoon covering the Gulf of Thailand, the South and the Andaman Sea. /dl
