More than a million threatened by Mekong floods

Vietnamese shopkeepers pack sandbags as flood waters continue to rise along the Mekong Delta

September 18, 2000
Web posted at: 7:07 PM HKT (1107 GMT)

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Reuters) -- More than a million people along the swollen Mekong River were under threat on Monday from relentlessly rising flood waters that have ruined crops, destroyed homes and claimed scores of lives.

Central Thailand became the latest region endangered by the deluge, with the country's Meteorological Department warning that flood waters from the north and northeast could flow down to central plains. Several Thai dams were near their bursting point.

"We would ask residents who live in the central region to be cautious and prepare for possible floods in some areas in coming days," the Thai Meteorological Department said in a statement.

	MESSAGE BOARD
Nature's wrath

In Cambodia, hit by some of the worst flooding in memory, the immediate threat to Phnom Penh seemed to be waning but the situation remained dire for around 680,000 affected people throughout the country, with homes flooded and crops destroyed.

In Vietnam's Mekong Delta, the death toll from the flooding reached at least 25, with up to 400,000 people needing evacuation from the rising waters, the International Red Cross said.

"We've got alarm bells ringing," International Red Cross chief delegate John Geoghegan said in Vietnam.

"We're looking at alarms here, alarms in Cambodia and alarms in Laos. The scale of this is really hitting the records. It looks like we would have to increase our appeal again."

He said local authorities had told the Red Cross a further 55,000 families, or 300,000-400,000 people, were threatened in the Delta and needed evacuation from flooded homes.

"I reckon it's increasing as we talk," he said, adding that 120,000-140,000 had been evacuated since late last month.

But Geoghegan said latest data on flood water levels in northern Cambodia showed they had started receding by two to four cm since Sunday, but this change would not be reflected downstream in the the Delta for up to a week.

"What happened five to seven days ago in Cambodia is what's happing today in the Delta," he said.

Cambodian officials said they were optimistic Phnom Penh would escape flooding, with water levels near the capital receding.

"The worst is over," Cambodian Red Cross First Vice President Ouk Damry told Reuters.

But although water levels receded over the weekend, Cambodia still faces more than a month of rains before the dry season begins in November.

"The water has flooded my house...I have gotten no supplies. I need supplies," said Khimm Phan, a 70-year-old villager living near the Vietnam border.

Khei Chanton, living in a makeshift house near the Vietnam border, said she was forced to flee her home two weeks ago.

"My house is flooded and I moved two weeks ago. The water is still high and I am so afraid," she said.

The floods have destroyed nearly 100,000 hectares (250,000 acres) of rice -- Cambodia's top commodity -- and tens of thousands of hectares of other major crops such as maize and sesame, said Chek Nann, chief of the agriculture ministry's statistics office.

The National Committee on Disaster Management has estimated damage to crops, livestock and homes at $50 million but would not calculate damage to infrastructure until waters recede completely, said Secretary-General Peou Samy.

Peou Samy said the official death toll since the floods began in July had risen to 109, as eastern Kompong Cham province officials reported an additional 12 deaths over the weekend.

In Thailand, the flooding has killed at least 28 people.

The country's National Rescue Centre said damage from flooding in the country's north and northeast totalled around one billion baht ($23.7 million) so far.

But water levels at several dams had reached dangerous levels, officials at the Irrigation Department said.

The water levels at Lam Nam Oun dam in Sakornnakorn province reached 109 percent of safe capacity, the highest level in 12 years, one official said. "If the water exceeded 150 percent, the dam could burst," he told Reuters.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Weather for Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Taming Southeast Asia's Mekong River: A Recipe for Development or Disaster?

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.