Thailand flooding update October 25, 2011: Don Muang airport now affected, and a new “worst case scenario” map

Here’s the latest on the flooding here in Bangkok as of 3:30 p.m. today, October 25, 2011:

Summary

• The domestic airport, Don Muang, has now been hit by flooding, affecting commercial flights. Suvarnabhumi, the international airport, is fine. (See AP story below.)
• The government has declared Oct. 27-31 as a holiday to allow people to cope with floods. (See Reuters story below.)
• A Thai-language “worst case scenario” Bangkok flooding map appeared last night in the Bangkok Post and has been doing the rounds online.

  It seems to indicate that if all flooding defenses fail, floodwaters could reach 20-100 cm (7-49 inches) for parts of of central Bangkok. (See third map below, along with my caveat.)

New maps

Today’s Bangkok Post has a new map today of Bangkok’s affected areas:

The BBC has a map, below, showing affected areas, the predicted flow of water, and flood defenses:

And the map below has been doing the rounds online. It comes from a Bangkok Post item from last night quoting “Dr Seri Suprathit, a water expert who tours affected flood areas every day…”

The Post reports: “In a live TPBS telecast, Dr Seri projected that if all the government’s flood defence walls including those protecting inner Bangkok were breached, Bangkok will surely be innundated as high as chest deep in some areas.”

Here’s a larger version.

Regarding the colors on the map, the Post says: “Yellow 10-20 cm; Brown 21-50 cm; Blue 51-100 cm; Green 1-2 metres.”

If my estimation is right, this could mean floodwaters reaching 20-100 cm (7-49 inches) for parts of central Bangkok.

Caveat: This is, of course, just one expert’s opinion. I would like to see other authorities weigh in on this prediction, as well.

And finally, CNN had a report about Thailand flooding earlier today that featured a satellite image of floodwaters and Bangkok. Here’s a cell phone pic:

News reports

The AP has more info on the flooding at Don Muang airport:

Thailand’s flood crisis deepened Tuesday after floodwaters breached barriers protecting Bangkok’s second airport, effectively forcing a halt to commercial flights there after airlines using it suspended operations.

It was not immediately clear how much water had entered Don Muang airport. But the news was sure to further erode the credibility of a government that has repeatedly sent mixed signals about its ability to defend the heart of an increasingly anxious capital from the worst floods to hit Thailand in nearly 60 years.

Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, the country’s main international gateway, has yet to be affected by flooding and flights there were operating normally. Most of the city has been spared inundation so far.

Reuters says:

Thailand announced a five-day holiday on Tuesday to give people to the chance to escape floods closing in on Bangkok as authorities ordered the immediate evacuation of a housing estate on the outskirts of the city after a protection wall gave way.

The cabinet declared Oct. 27-31 a holiday in Bangkok and 20 other provinces affected by the country’s worst flooding in 50 years as high tides in the Gulf of Thailand this weekend could complicate efforts to divert water away from the low-lying capital.

The WSJ reports on the economic impact:

Bangkok’s city leaders warned that a widening swath of the Thai capital is now under threat from fast-rising flood waters, while the economic impact of the crisis continued to ripple outward after Toyota Motor Co. said it would adjust production at some of its Japan plants because of the shortage of Thai-made parts.

And finally, the AP has a look at urbanization and Bangkok’s watery past — and present — that helps put the recent events in perspective. It starts:

As millions of urbanites living a modern lifestyle fear that torrents of floodwater will rage through Thailand’s capital, some in enclaves of a bygone era watch the rising waters with hardly a worry — they live in old-fashioned houses perched on stilts with boats rather than cars parked outside.

(All emphasis mine.)

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