AFP/VNExpress-Sept 26
Thousands of Bangkok residents awoke in shelters on Sunday after flooding triggered by days of heavy rain in the Thai capital inundated homes and roads, with some starting to dry out their homes and belongings. Nearly 4,900 people have been evacuated to shelters, with around 52,000 households affected by the floods, which prompted a disaster declaration across the capital, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA). More than 330 mm (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of the city between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Thailand is used to wet weather, and September is the peak of the rainy season, but several Bangkok residents said this year seemed worse. Widespread deluges across the Southeast Asian country in 2011 killed more than 500 people and damaged millions of homes. Pedestrians in plastic rain ponchos trudged through murky floodwaters in Bangkok’s east — knee-deep in some areas of a grocery store parking lot — floating their belongings in plastic tubs alongside them, AFP journalists saw. Water levels in Bangkok’s network of canals remained high on Sunday morning, with authorities working to speed up drainage, the BMA said. More rain was forecast throughout Sunday for Bangkok and its surrounding provinces but would begin to taper off on Monday, it said. Scientists warn that the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events will increase as the planet continues to heat up because of fossil fuel emissions. Bangkok was the world’s most-visited city in 2025, with an estimated 30.3 million international arrivals, according to Euromonitor International’s Top 100 City Destinations Index. Some convenience stores had empty shelves over the weekend as residents raced to buy essentials. The prime minister’s office asked the public to avoid panic-buying and warned that price gouging was a criminal offence. Read more at:
