A flood-control sandbag embankment collapsed last night, sending a surge of water into more than 500 households in Sapphaya district of Chai Nat province, leaving residents little time to save their belongings.
Aerial footage released on Friday showed extensive flooding in the Wat Maprang and Wat Samo communities in tambon Phonang Dam Ok, downstream of the Chao Phraya Dam in Chai Nat province.
Residents were forced to move valuables, cars, motorcycles, pets and household belongings to higher ground along the Maharat Canal Road after floodwaters surged into the area following the failure of a sandbag embankment late on Thursday night.
Within a single night, floodwater levels rose to between 80 centimetres and 1.6 metres in low-lying areas. Villagers said water levels had risen faster this year than in previous years because the flooding was triggered by a collapse of the embankment, allowing a large volume of water to enter the communities simultaneously.
The overnight timing of the incident left many residents unprepared, resulting in property damage and household items being swept away by the floodwaters.
Local authorities stepped up assistance for affected residents by installing large water tanks at several locations and supplying clean water.
The Royal Irrigation Department (RID) said although water levels upstream have begun to decline, discharges from the Chao Phraya Dam still need to be increased.
Rainfall in upper river basins has caused water levels in the Ping and Nan rivers, which received inflows from the Yom River, to rise before converging into the Chao Phraya River in Nakhon Sawan province and flowing downstream toward the Chao Phraya Dam, said the RID.
While water levels in some upstream areas have started to recede, the large volume of water already flowing downstream would take time to pass through. As a result, lower water levels upstream do not immediately translate into reduced inflows at the Chao Phraya Dam.
The department said it was managing water levels upstream of the dam to help delay runoff while diverting water into irrigation networks on both the eastern and western sides of the river within their operational capacity.