The Mae Sai district of the northern province of Chiang Rai, on the border with Myanmar, is experiencing severe flooding after the Sai River burst its banks.
Two days of torrential rain from tropical storm Yagi caused the river to burst its banks, flooding a number of villages yesterday morning, September 10, according to a Nation Thailand report.
Affected villages include Ban Tham Pha Jom, Ban Koh Sai, Ban Mo Lung Chon, Ban Pham Kwai, and Ban Muang Daeng. The river also flooded the Sai Lom Joy Market, with water more than a metre high in some areas.
Local officials had earlier warned residents of the risks, advising them to move their belongings to a higher floor. The local electricity provider also cut the power supply to mitigate the risk of fatal short circuits.
Officials from Mae Sai Municipality also constructed emergency flood levees along the banks of the Sai River in an attempt to control the flooding, which local residents have described as the worst they’ve seen since severe flooding struck the area in 2022.
The storm has now been downgraded to a tropical depression over Vietnam, also affecting the north of Thailand and parts of the northeast.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
