Quick note to point out an important story from Bloomberg today.
The headline is “‘Obsolete’ Thai Weather Radar Blamed for Failure to Predict Rain Severity.”
It begins:
Thailand’s weather service blamed obsolete equipment for failing to predict the severity of rains that killed 307 people, saying authorities ignored upgrade requests that could have mitigated the impact of flooding.
Requests from Thailand’s Meteorological Department for a 4 billion baht ($130 million) overhaul of its radar and modeling systems have gone unheeded since 2009, deputy director-general Somchai Baimoung said. The new equipment would allow the department to more accurately forecast seasonal rains, he said, giving dam operators information needed to adjust water levels.
“If we can get this new system, it can help people,” Somchai said in a phone interview yesterday. “No one expected rainfall would be this much. Right now our system, including hardware and software, is obsolete.”
Worth a read.
A recent BP post on Thailand’s dams is also worth checking out.
(All emphasis mine.)
(Bloomberg story via several folks on Twitter.)