SONGKHLA - The governor of this southern province ordered the total evacuation of Hat Yai district by Monday evening as flood levels continued to rise, boosted by record rainfall.
Governor Rathasat Cherdchu said everyone in all flood-prone areas of Hat Yai must move to shelters at Prince of Songkla University in Hat Yai district, Songkhla Rajabhat University in Muang district or the Second Naval Area Command in Muang district by 4pm on Monday.
More shelters were later opened for evacuees at the Technical Promotion and Support Office and Thaksin University in Muang Songkhla district.
Soldiers joined teams of rescue workers in vehicles and flat-bottomed boats evacuating people - many aged, infirm or ill - from flood-isolated areas.
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said persistent rain and flood water water flowing from Khlong Hoi Khong district was expected to raise flood levels in Hat Yai by up to half a metre by midnight and by 1.25-1.45 metres by 6am on Tuesday.
Flood water at the Hat Yai office of the Provincial Waterworks Authority was three metres deep and had already caused the shutdown of the tap water plant.
The Royal Irrigation Department said the flood waters in Hat Yai were already from 50cm to 2.5m deep. The district also suffered under a record high daily rainfall, according to records dating back three centuries, with 335 millimetres on Friday last week and 630mm from Wednesday to Friday last week.
According to the National Statistical Office about 405,000 people lived in in Hat Yai as of 2023, the latest figures available.
