The Navy has deployed 30 water-pushing boats at two locations in Nakhon Nayok province to accelerate floodwater drainage in an effort to ease flooding in affected areas.
The Navy began operating 20 boats at Yothaka Bridge in Ongkharak district at 8am on Wednesday to increase water flow and improve drainage in the district.
Another 10 boats are operating at Nuclear Bridge, bringing the total number of Navy water-pushing boats in operation to 30.
The boats will operate from 8am to 8pm daily from Wednesday until the flood situation improves.
Navy Chief of Staff Adm Thadawut Thatpitakkul said the Navy was ready to deploy water-pushing boats to support drainage operations in flood-affected areas.
He said the Navy had more than 100 such boats, with 43 allocated to Bangkok and Nakhon Nayok, 10 prepared for the South and another 46 ready for deployment to other areas as needed.
Adm Thadawut said the Navy also had sufficient personnel, with manpower being coordinated from various units to assist people affected by flooding.
Meanwhile, Family Transport (2002) Co Ltd, the operator of passenger boats on Bangkok’s San Saeb canal, has deployed 26 boats to help accelerate water flow into the city’s drainage system.
Chaovalit Methayaprapas, owner of Family Transport (2002), said 21 of the boats were operating on the San Saeb canal, while three had been added to operations along the Prawet canal.
The boats are being used particularly near the Rama IX-Ramkhamhaeng drainage tunnel, which carries water towards the Chao Phraya River.
The tunnel has a diameter of about five metres and can drain around 200,000 cubic metres of water per day.
Chaovalit said the boats could not drain all the water on their own, but were helping increase the speed at which water flows into the drainage tunnel.
The operation has so far lowered the canal’s water level by about 30 centimetres.
The boats will continue operating to further reduce the water level and allow pumping and drainage systems to work more efficiently.
Family Transport has suspended its passenger boat service on the San Saeb canal because of the high water level.
Chaovalit said services could resume within 48 hours if the water level falls to a safe level, although no official reopening date has been set.
The company will continue monitoring the situation and urged passengers to check official announcements before travelling.
