Thailand

Tropical storm Vicente has triggered floods in parts of the North and caused delays and the cancellation of several flights, officials said Tuesday.

The Meteorological Department said Vicente was downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm Tuesday.

The department said the storm is expected to pass over northern Vietnam Wednesday.

Somchai Baimuang, the department's deputy director-general said the effects from Vicente will still be felt over parts of the North, Northeast, East and South until Friday.

People living in low-lying areas near waterways and hillsides should take precautions, he said.

Storm warnings are in effect in Mae Hong Son, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Phayao, Lamphun, Lampang, Phrae, Uttaradit, Sukhothai, Tak, Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Loei, Nongkhai, Bung Kan, Nong Bua Lamphu, Udon Thani, Sakon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Chanthaburi, Trat, Ranong, and Phangnga.

The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said flood surveillance measures were in place in regions expected to be lashed by torrential rain.

Boats and other vital equipment are on standby if the evacuation of residents becomes necessary, said the department.

In Chiang Rai, a landslide caused by a heavy downpour buried a house in Ban Therd Thai village in Mae Fa Luang district yesterday. No one was injured.

In Phayao, more than 2,000 rai of farmland were inundated after the nearby Oy and Kuan rivers burst their banks after hours of heavy rain in Pong district.

The flooding cut the main road linking Don Ngern and Luang villages in tambon Oy. The road was submerged under 50cm of water yesterday.

Authorities fear more rain will cause flooding to spread rapidly as the two overflowing rivers are tributaries of the Yom River.

Vicente, which battered Hong Hong yesterday, forced the cancellations of a number of passenger and cargo flights between Suvarnabhumi and the former British colony.

Two Thai Airways International flights from Hong Kong, one to Suvarnabhumi and the other to Phuket, were delayed by up to two hours as a result of the extreme weather conditions yesterday, according to Samat Phoom-orn, THAI's director for emergency response.

Five Cathay Pacific flights were diverted and forced to make unscheduled landings at Suvarnabhumi after they were informed they could not land in Hong Kong because of the storm.

Bangkok Post
25 July 2012

Photo caption
Graphic provided by the Pacific Disaster Center of Hawaii shows that upper Thailand will be affected by heavy rains from Typhoon Vicente Tuesday through at least Friday.