The death toll from floods in Thailand has risen to 22, authorities said on Tuesday, as they rushed to deliver relief to an estimated 370,000 people affected by heavy rainfall and overflowing rivers.
More than 369,000 people in 19 provinces, excluding Bangkok, were affected, the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department reported, with Uttaradit and Ayutthaya among the worst-hit areas.
Authorities said emergency teams were distributing food and supplies and closely monitoring water levels as the monsoon season brings widespread rainfall.
Of the 19 provinces, six were in the North, namely Uttaradit, Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Sukhothai, Phichit and Nakhon Sawan. Flood levels were unchanged in Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Phichit and Nakhon Sawan and were receding in Uttaradit and Sukhothai.
In the Central Plains, inundation occurred in eight provinces: Uthai Thani, Chai Nat, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Suphan Buri, Ayutthaya, Pathum Thani and Nakhon Pathom. Flood levels remained mostly unchanged, except in Pathum Thani and Uthai Thani where water was lower.
Four northeastern provinces – Chaiyaphum, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani and Yasothon – also experienced flooding, with stable flood levels.
The only eastern province affected was Chachoengsao, where flood levels were rising in Bang Nam Prieo district.
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt said on Tuesday that the city would not face severe flooding like in 2011, citing current water flow of the Chao Phraya River.
In 2011, the flow was 3,930 cubic metres per second in Sam Khok district, Pathum Thani, but it was now at 2,421 cubic metres per second, below the 3,600 cubic metres per second capacity that could cause overflow.
Existing embankments along the Chao Phraya River could prevent flooding in Bangkok, and city workers are laying sandbags to protect 320 households in 11 communities without embankments, Mr Chadchart added.
Meteorological Department director-general Sugunyanee Yavinchan said Tropical Storm Matmo became an active low-pressure cell in the upper part of Vietnam at 1am on Tuesday and will cause isolated heavy rains in the North, the Northeast and the East of Thailand.
In Hanoi, torrential rains triggered by Typhoon Matmo flooded parts of the Vietnamese capital, as a run of storms has swept across the country’s northern regions.
According to Vietnam’s weather agency, up to three more storm systems were expected to hit the country before the end of 2025.