The Department of Public Disaster Prevention and Mitigation has issued an urgent warning to the governors of Thailand’s central provinces of Lop Buri, Saraburi, Ayutthaya, Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi to brace for possible flooding of households along the Pasak River.

The department said that the Royal Irrigation Department has found it necessary to protect the Pasak Jolasid reservoir from overflowing by increasing the discharge of excess water to 400 cubic metres/second, after the department had estimated that, from Monday until October 1^st, as much as 515 million cubic metres of water will flow into the reservoir, meaning it will reach its capacity by Friday.

The excess water discharged through the Pasak Jolasid Dam will flow into the Pasak River and flood areas along both banks, especially in areas not protected by embankments or flood walls in the Tha Rua district of Ayutthaya province, which may experience water level increases of 2-2.5 metres.

The department said, however, that areas beyond Wat Sadue, down to the point where the Pasak converges with the Chao Phraya River, will not be affected.

Meanwhile, the Geo-informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) released a satellite image, dated yesterday, which shows more than 128,000 hectares of mostly low-lying farm and river-side land in Phichit, Phitsanuloke, Lop Buri, Chainat, Phetchabun, Suphan Buri, Uthai Thani, Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Saraburi and Ayutthaya under water.

GISTDA said, however, that most of the water is being diverted to water retention areas, or “monkey cheeks”, such as Thung Chiang Rak, Thung Bang Gum, Thung Bang Kung, Thung Bang Ban-Ban Pan, Thung Pa Mok, Thung Pak Hai, Thong Jao Jed, Thung Po Phraya, Thung Phraya Banlue, Thung Rangsit, Thung Thawoong and areas on both sides of Chainat-Paksak canal.

Water from Phetchabun province will flow into the Pasak Jolasid reservoir, as confirmed by the heavy flooding in Chai Badan district of Lop Buri.

GISTDA said that the diversion of excess water into retention areas is a tactic to delay the flow of water before it is released into the Chao Phraya and other natural waterway, which flow into the Gulf of Thailand.