The Chiang Rai Provincial Public Relations Office has issued an urgent announcement for residents of Chiang Rai Municipality to evacuate and move their belongings to higher ground. The Kok River is overflowing and is expected to double in a few hours.
A rescue operation team with flat-bottomed boats went to help at the community of Village 4, Rim Kok Subdistrict, Mueang District, after the Kok River embankment, sending a mass of water flooding the community.
The team used boats to help transport 12 young children and residents safely out of the flood waters.
Meanwhile, the Chiang Rai Provincial Public Relations Office reported the flood situation on the Thai-Myanmar border in Mae Sai District is still critical because the water level has not decreased.
Water has flooded in front of the permanent border checkpoint across the Sai River and in front of Mae Sai Police Station.
In many communities, water flooded homes up to the second floor, causing villagers to notify officials to help evacuate.
In Mae Sai District, the most severely affected areas were Soi 4, Soi 6, and Mueang Daeng Road. The water was high and still flowing fast, making it difficult for rescue workers to reach villagers still stuck in various places.
Today, the Mekong River rose to 8.7 meters, higher than yesterday’s level of only 7 meters, causing the natural flow of water to be slow.
Therefore, it is expected that Mae Sai will remain flooded for at least another 2-3 days.
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Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai and Chiang Khong Experience Extreme Flooding
Geoff Thomas is an award winning journalist known for his sharp insights and no-nonsense reporting style. Over the years he has worked for Reuters and the Canadian Press covering everything from political scandals to human interest stories. He brings a clear and direct approach to his work.
