Time to join the Bangkok flood exodus

Posted by Sukhumwit Steve on October 27th, 2011 filed in travel tip

As flood waters from Northern Thailand threaten to inundate Bangkok, I decide it is probably a smart move to join city residents in a general exodus. Any lingering doubts that the Thai capital might possibly escape the flooding that has been the only subject of conversation over the past two weeks were dispelled when city governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra issued a request for residents living in Thawi Wattana, Bang Phlad and Don Muang districts to get out while they can.

The Thai government has declared an impromptu holiday that began yesterday and continues until Monday in Bangkok and 20 other provinces hit by the flood waters. It seems like the whole of the city’s population is heading out of the city as Mor Chit bus station, my gateway to the north and Chiang Mai, has massive queues for tickets to all destinations.

Although Don Muang Airport has already closed, its runway is submerged under several inches of water, the main airport at Suvarnabhumi is operating as normal. Flights to domestic locations are running at full capacity. Bangkok is expected to flood at the weekend when floodwaters meet high tides coming up from the Gulf of Thailand. Shops are short of basic necessities such as rice and bottled water as those residents planning to sit the floods out have bought and stashed them at their homes.