Northern Thailand storm alerts

4 Apr 2011

Following the week of storms that battered southern Thailand last week, the north of the country has been warned that adverse weather is coming. Thai weather forecasters say that stormy weather is heading for the north and northeastern regions of the country.

Thunderstorms and heavy gales are expected to hit the northeastern Isarn region and the northern areas, which Chiang Mai is at the heart of, sometime tomorrow. Forecasters say that the stormy weather will last until Thursday. They say that residents and tourists in these regions should exercise caution when the bad weather hits.

A high pressure ridge moving across the region is the cause of the expected adverse weather. While rain and high winds at this time of the year in northern Thailand are unusual they are not unknown, especially in the light of recent climatic changes.

Week-long storms beginning on 23 March devastated parts of southern Thailand and resulted in a reported loss of 45 lives and affected up to one million people. A mudslide last Wednesday in Krabi killed four, while in Nakorn Si Thammarat Province extensive flooding claimed the lives of 19.

The Thai National Disaster Warning Centre says water levels in the south are still extremely high and there is the possibility of more mudslides, flooding and flashfloods.

The mudslide in Krabi’s Khao Phanom District, and others in Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Sichon District, are alleged to have been exacerbated by illegal logging and clearing of land for rubber or fruit plantations.

Tags: Northern Thailand storm