Heavy rain and high tides flood Phuket Old Town, governor says conditions may ease after 5 p.m.
Heavy overnight rain of up to 134 mm and high tides flooded parts of Phuket Old Town, with officials pumping at full capacity and the governor saying conditions could begin easing after 5 p.m. if rain stops.
Flooding hit parts of Phuket Old Town after heavy overnight rain and high sea levels slowed drainage, with the provincial governor saying water levels were expected to begin falling after 5 p.m. if no further rain arrives.
Phuket governor Chotinrin Kerdsom visited the flooded area at the Charter Bank intersection on Phang Nga Road and nearby streets in the Old Town area to monitor the situation and direct the response.
According to the province, the heaviest rainfall measured since the previous night reached 134 millimeters, an amount the governor described as very heavy rain across all three districts of Phuket. The flooding was worsened by high tide, which slowed the discharge of water from Bang Yai Canal, the main waterway that collects runoff from several areas before draining into the sea.
With water moving out more slowly, the drainage system overflowed and pushed water onto roads, causing flooding at several points in Phuket City Municipality. Water on the road surface in the Old Town and around the Charter Bank intersection was reported at about 20 centimeters.
Authorities said all pumping stations were operating at full capacity to speed up drainage. Of Phuket City Municipality's five pumping stations, four were functioning normally, while one at Komarapaj remained under continuous drainage operations.
The province also said machinery, pumps and other equipment had been deployed to help affected local authorities. Assistance was sent in the morning to Koh Kaew, Ratsada and the area around the Public Relations Department's radio station in Phuket, which officials described as a water retention area facing drainage problems. The province said it was coordinating with the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization for additional machinery and was ready to send support anywhere in the island's three districts if needed.
The governor said that if rain does not continue and there is no additional period of high tide, water levels should steadily recede after 5 p.m. and the situation should ease. He said the province was continuing to closely monitor weather conditions, water levels and local impacts while coordinating agencies to drain water and assist residents.
Officials are also proceeding under disaster assistance regulations to declare affected areas, allowing relief to be delivered quickly and properly. Phuket City Municipality and the province will coordinate assistance within their authority, while the Phuket disaster prevention and mitigation office will consider compensation and aid eligibility case by case.
Earlier in the day, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation sent a cell broadcast alert warning of flooding in Phuket City Municipality in Muang district. The message said heavy rain and high sea levels had slowed drainage, causing standing water and canal overflow in the municipality and nearby areas. Residents were told to monitor the situation closely, move belongings and vehicles to higher ground, protect valuables and important documents, watch for electrical hazards and take care of vulnerable groups.
The Meteorological Department has also opened a monitoring center for heavy to very heavy rain in Thailand and strong waves in the upper Andaman Sea for July 1-3. It warned that parts of southern and eastern Thailand could see heavy rain, while the upper Andaman Sea could experience waves of 2 to 3 meters, rising above 3 meters in thundershowers.
