Mae Sai River Experiences Flooding, Resulting in Inundation of Mae Sai District

In an unexpected turn of events, the Sai River in Chiang Rai province let loose a torrential wave on Tuesday, drowning various communities in its wake, including the bustling Sai Lom Joy market situated in Mae Sai's border district. This deluge can be traced back to the incessant rain battering the region, which pushed an unimaginable volume of water into the already-swollen Sai River.

Witnesses and social media posts painted a grim picture of the situation, depicting Mae Sai town center, Koh Sai, Mai Lung Khon communities, and even Sai Lom Joy market submerged in water. A neighboring town in Myanmar, Tachilek, also experienced similar floodwaters in its Ta Lor market.

Warayut Khomboon, Mae Sai's district chief, ascribed the flood to the heavy downpour in adjacent Myanmar, specifically in the Sai River's source zones. Previously, the Highways Department set up a flood-prevention barrier beside the Thai-Myanmar bridge. However, in an unusual twist, the line's construction required the removal of old walls and sandbags, which inadvertently made way for the floodwaters to overflow onto both sides of the border. This protective line is part of a joint venture with Myanmar to safeguard areas against floods along the border, with plans to dredge around 20 kilometers of the Sai and Ruak rivers.

Here's a snapshot of the aftermath in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai, on that fateful day (Photo: Public Relations Office Region 3, Chiang Mai). Despite these efforts, today's flooding serves as a stark reminder of our ongoing vulnerability to heavy rains, demonstrating our reliance on swift countermeasures to curb damage.

Further Insights:- The floodwaters inundating Mae Sai town and the Sai Lom Joy market were triggered by rainfall of around 69.8 mm pouring down in 24 hours near Ban Jotada (Myanmar).- The joint Thai-Myanmar river bank protection project involves building a protection line near the Thai-Myanmar bridge and dredging roughly 20 km of the Sai and Ruak rivers, aiming to prevent flooding along the border.- Current project work required the removal of walls and sandbags, allowing the floodwaters to break through both sides of the border temporarily.- Following the flooding, authorities utilized Bigbags (large sandbags) and the Military Engineering Department to reinforce weaker segments, addressing flood-prone areas.- Despite these protective measures, communities still face recurring threats from extreme rainfall-induced flooding incidents.

The floodwaters in Mae Sai town and the Sai Lom Joy market were largely caused by a heavy rainfall of around 69.8 mm that occurred near Ban Jotada in Myanmar.
In collaboration with Myanmar, a joint project is underway to build a protection line near the Thai-Myanmar bridge and dredge approximately 20 km of the Sai and Ruak rivers, aiming to prevent future border flooding.
Unfortunately, the ongoing project work necessitated the removal of walls and sandbags along the riverbank, inadvertently facilitating the recent floodwaters to overflow onto both sides of the border temporarily.
In response to the flood-prone areas and weaker segments, authorities promptly utilized Bigbags (large sandbags) and the Military Engineering Department for reinforcement to combat the ongoing threat from extreme rainfall-induced flooding incidents.
The recent flooding serves as a pressing reminder of the susceptibility of communities to heavy rains, emphasizing the need for swift countermeasures to mitigate damage from these recurring climate-change events in both environmental science and general news.