Flood waters in Naklua still hadn’t receded long after the rains had
stopped and the sun came out.
Manoon Makpol
Another storm, another flood. This time, however, it took only an hour
before Pattaya’s inadequate infrastructure collapsed, leaving parts of
Naklua underwater for a day and damaging homes in South Pattaya and on
Pratamnak Hill.
The Oct. 7 storm, which saw truly heavy rain hit the area for less than
two hours, still wreaked havoc, as promises by Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome
and city council members to clear blocked drains and canals remain
unfulfilled. Besieged residents have been left hoping the rainy season
will end soon, as city officials appear unable to handle a crisis that
gets worse with each rainfall.
Unlike the all-night Sept. 11 monsoon that so devastated the
Thamsamakkee Temple neighborhood that residents are still dealing with
standing water, the latest thunderstorm did most its damage in the Lan
Pho area where the Naklua canal overflowed, washing waves of water into
people’s living rooms.
Pharmacy owner Umnuay Lumpoon said water started pouring into her Lan
Pho Market-area house around 6 a.m. as waves washed from the Sawang
Boriboon Foundation to Naklua Road. Water levels reached 30 cm., forcing
her to evacuate children and grandchildren.
More than 100 families in the Praisanee and Chong Lom Temple
neighborhoods were also affected with city workers having to bring in
cranes to remove covers to drain pipes to clear the water faster.
Deputy Mayor Wattana Chantanawaranon and Banglamung District Chief
Saeng-Uthai toured the area Oct. 8, again offering words of solace and
promises to repair and upgrade a drainage system hampered by garbage,
illegal construction and under-capacity.
This time officials said they’d prevent a future overflow of the Naklua
drainage canal by building a berm along its edge to block water whose
flow is impeded by blockages downstream.
Residents interviewed have little faith in the repeated promises, noting
Itthiphol and other officials have pledged to remove illegal structures,
send pumps to afflicted areas, build new drainpipes and clean out
sewers. However, few victims have seen any of that materialize.
City Department of Sanitation officials assured victims the water would
recede soon and that the city was working on long-term and short-term
solutions. “We are not sitting idle,” director Virat Jirasriphaithun
said.
Residents in the Soi Diana area - always the hardest hit region in the
central part of the city - might argue otherwise. From The Avenue
galleria to Soi 12, homes and businesses suffered more damage as the
ubiquitous piles of sandbags failed to prevent as much as 50 cm. of
water from deluging bars, convenience stores and homes.
Sukhumvit Road, a site where the mayor last month promised to add more
pumps to prevent future flooding, again became submerged with traffic
backed up for more than four hours.
The flooding extended into Sattahip’s downtown, where residents are
battling their own local politicians to solve long-standing flooding
issues. Sattahip police brought in pumps along the highway’s first five
kilometers to get cars moving again.
More than 20 homes on Soi Lungphot and Soi Yenrudee reported heavy
damage. In South Pattaya, homes along Soi 16, 17 and Soi Yensabai were
also buried in nearly a meter of flood waters.
