Deputy Minister of Interior predicts that if there is no more rain, Mae Sai District will return to normal in 4-5 days.

Deputy Minister of Interior reveals that the flood situation in Mae Sai area is entering the cleaning and restoration process. It is expected that if there is no more rain, the situation will return to normal within 4-5 days. He emphasized close monitoring of weather conditions and increased efficiency in warning of disasters in a timely manner. At 10:00 a.m., Mr. Suttipong Juljarern, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, revealed the monitoring of the flood situation in Mae Sai District, Chiang Rai Province, that at present, the water overflowing from the river that flooded the road in front of the Mae Sai Customs Checkpoint has completely dried up. When checking the alleys along the Mae Sai River, it was found that the water level has dropped about 1 meter lower than before, close to returning to normal, allowing the army to help evacuate people trapped in houses more easily. Mr. Suttiphong said that the Naval Special Warfare Command, the Royal Thai Navy's SEAL unit, arrived in Mae Sai distric t yesterday (September 11, 2014) at 9:00 p.m. and performed their duty to help people trapped in their residences until morning. Today, since morning, soldiers have been operating to help people. The Commander of the Royal Thai Armed Forces has ordered the personnel of the Army Development Command to spread out to every point to help transport bedridden patients and the elderly who cannot walk on their own, and coordinated with rescue vehicles to take them to Mae Sai Hospital for initial health checks. In addition, members of the Mae Sai District Volunteer Defense Corps 5 went to help dredge canals to drain water, while soldiers, local government officials, police officers, volunteers, and all sectors worked together to manage food, boxed meals, and drinking water to distribute more widely. However, even though Mae Sai District is now entering the recovery period, all sectors are still warning to closely monitor and follow the weather conditions from the meteorological department. The administrative sector, together with Mae Sai Subdistrict Municipality, should create awareness and understanding for the public and business operators to be ready to move their belongings to higher ground, and increase the efficiency of disaster warnings for the public to move and evacuate in a timely manner, especially for people living along the river. If the rain exceeds 100 millimeters, when it reaches about 50 millimeters, immediately notify them. If there is no more rain, the Mae Sai area will return to normal within 4-5 days. At 2:00 p.m., Ms. Paethongtarn Shinawatra, Prime Minister, called a meeting of relevant agencies to acknowledge the flood situation in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces and listen to suggestions from various sectors. She and the Chiang Rai governor will join the meeting via video conference. Source: Thai News Agency