Flood death toll rises to 12 in Thailand

The death toll from the floods in three deep South provinces of Thailand has risen to at least 12, Report informs via The Bangkok Post.

Although floodwater levels in Yala and Narathiwat have begun to recede, the situation in Pattani is still critical.

Thai Public Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew has received a report saying the death toll has reached 12, with eight people dead in Narathiwat, three in Yala and one in Pattani.

Eleven public health service centres in Narathiwat, 12 in Yala and 11 in Pattani have been closed due to the floods. The ministry has provided 4,200 first aid kits to flood victims and opened extra evacuation centres in the three provinces.

The ministry has opened a total of 43 evacuation centres in the three provinces to support nearly 7,000 people.

Meanwhile, the State Railway of Thailand says its southern route to the deep South stops at Yala due to the flood situation in Narathiwat. It offers transit buses to take passengers to the province. In Pattani, the flood situation is still critical, with overflow from the Pattani and Sai Buri rivers inundating Pattani town on Friday.

The water level in the Muang Pattani municipality was rising quickly. Businesses and homes along several roads were inundated. Sixty-six pumps have been installed around the town to quickly drain the water but more water keeps flowing in. Residents in Pattani said floodwater levels were at their highest in about five decades along the Sai Buri River because water was flowing from Narathiwat to the sea through Pattani.

.An announcement warning people against letting their children play in the water to prevent them from being swept away by strong currents has been issued.