BANGKOK, Thailand – Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has ordered a flood-response war room at the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, with agencies meeting every morning at 8am to coordinate the response as flood risks remain high in Bangkok, the Central region and surrounding provinces.
Speaking after a meeting of the National Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Command on September 30, Anutin said all relevant agencies must share information and coordinate water-management operations rather than working separately. He said the immediate priority was to accelerate drainage, but high downstream water levels were making it difficult to release floodwater. Water released from dams and reservoirs could also add to flooding elsewhere if agencies did not coordinate their operations.
“We have to share information and manage the water routes,” Anutin said, stressing the need for close coordination among the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, the Royal Irrigation Department, EGAT, Bangkok authorities and other agencies.
Anutin said his visits to flooded communities were intended to see residents’ conditions firsthand rather than simply distribute relief supplies. He said conditions had improved after earlier visits, when residents reported shortages of food, electricity and water.
The prime minister also addressed criticism of his decision to give cash to flood victims during a visit to Bangkok’s Sai Mai district on September 29. He said the relief bags brought for distribution had run out and that some residents had walked a considerable distance to meet him. Anutin said the money was his own and denied that the payments had a political motive. He said the amount distributed was less than half of his salary as prime minister.
Asked about a question from People’s Party MP Rukchanok “Ice” Srinok concerning whether the money was “clean,” Anutin replied that his money was “definitely clean” and said people should not be used as political hostages during the flood response. He later told reporters not to judge others by their own standards and, when asked whether he was referring to Rukchanok, replied that his parents had taught him well.
The government’s daily 8am meetings are intended to provide a common picture of flood conditions, identify areas requiring additional assistance and allow authorities to make decisions more quickly as the situation develops.
