Bangkok declares all 50 districts disaster zones after heavy rain floods roads and homes

Bangkok declared all 50 of its districts disaster zones on 26 September after heavy rain flooded roads and homes. The declaration lets agencies coordinate their response across the Thai capital, while residents in affected areas face disrupted travel and water entering shops and houses.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said the declaration took effect immediately. Thai PBS World reported that it gives the governor broad powers to direct disaster mitigation under Thailand’s 2007 Public Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Act. The citywide designation sets the scope of the authorities’ response; it does not mean every street is flooded.

Rain fills canals and roads

The Thai government’s Public Relations Department said Governor Chadchart Sittipunt reported nearly 300 millimetres of rain over 48 hours from 24 September. It said major canals filled faster than the city could drain them. AFP separately reported that officials measured more than 300 millimetres in some areas between Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning. The figures cover different locations and periods.

AFP reporters saw people wading or pushing motorcycles through high water in several eastern districts. Parked cars were partly submerged on a major road. As canals filled, water spread into homes, restaurants, shops and alleyways. The government identified places near the Lat Phrao, Prawet and Saen Saep canals as particularly affected.

The government advised residents who could remain at home on Saturday morning to do so. It listed Ramkhamhaeng, New Phetchaburi, Ekkamai, Sena Nikhom 1 and Lat Krabang roads, as well as Vibhavadi Rangsit Road from Chatuchak onward, as routes to avoid. That advice was issued for 26 September; the cited statement does not establish the current condition of each road.

Shelters, pumps and school closures

District offices were setting up temporary shelters in flood-free office buildings and schools, according to the government statement. It said Bangkok Metropolitan Administration staff were stationed at flood-prone sites, and the city’s main drainage systems remained operational. People needing help for bedridden patients were directed to call 1669.

AFP reported that the city’s pumping stations were running at full capacity, moving about 1,200 cubic metres of water per second combined. Chadchart said the problem was that the canals were full. He said authorities were working with nearby provinces to drain water by other routes and reduce the amount flowing into Bangkok.

About 980 people were staying in temporary shelters, AFP reported, while authorities had transferred 36 bedridden people to hospitals. The city had prepared one million sandbags. Chadchart said at least 13 major roads were flooded. Those figures describe the response reported on Saturday, not a final count of people affected or damage caused.

Bangkok authorities said schools would close on Monday, AFP reported, and some officials were asked to work from home. The disruption reached beyond inundated homes: Khem said he did not know how he would get to work on Monday if the water remained high. The reports do not establish when normal travel or classes will resume.

High water remains a concern

On Saturday afternoon, Chadchart said the situation had stabilised. He estimated that draining the floodwater would take two to three days if no more rain fell. That condition matters: the estimate was not a timetable for the city to be clear of water.

By Sunday, the rain had eased, but canal levels remained high, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said in an update reported by the BBC. The governor warned that the flooding was not over. The BBC also reported that Thailand’s meteorological service forecast further heavy rain during the week, although the low-pressure area behind the recent downpours was expected to move toward central Thailand.

September is the peak of Bangkok’s rainy season, AFP reported. The city’s drainage department recorded 487 millimetres of rain from 1 to 25 September, compared with an average of almost 269 millimetres for that period from 1991 to 2020. The city is built on former marshland, rests about 1.5 metres above sea level and relies on a network of canals to move water.

The flooding recalls the much wider Thai floods of 2011, which lasted three months and killed hundreds of people across the country, according to the BBC. That history gives context to residents’ concern, but it is not a measure of this event. The cited reports have not established a final damage total or a confirmed casualty count for the current Bangkok flooding.