Officials are still rushing to restore the Mae Sai border community, including houses, shops, and Sai Lom Joy Market, after being submerged in water and mud for 11 days.
It’s already the 11th day that the Mae Sai border community has been hit by heavy flooding and mud. Although officials have mobilized people and machinery to restore the area, it’s really hard work. The current condition of Sai Lom Joy Market, which many people know well, is still littered with damage to nearly 200 shops, covered in mud, and in some places the mud is overhead.
Many shop owners, in addition to having their shops damaged and their property washed away by the water, some are submerged under mud and almost completely bankrupt, but still have to hire workers to dig out the mud from their shops in order to restore them as quickly as possible. This shop, which sells electrical appliances, has hired workers to help dig for 500 baht each, more than ten people a day, for 5 days now. It is expected to take months and they still do no
t know where the money will come from to restore the shop.
Officials mobilized people and machinery, including soldiers, various agencies, and volunteers who are part of the mud rescue team, to scoop up mud at Sai Lom Joy Market for 2 days now. However, the recovery process is slow because of the damage and the large amount of mud that has been piled up for many days, and under the mud there are still many goods and properties. The current from the river that flooded 11 days ago has carried sand into the area behind Sai Lom Joy Market, turning it into a wide sandy beach, showing us the severity of this flood. The same goes for many other communities, such as Koh Sai, Mai Lung Khan, and Koh Sawan communities, which are still full of damage and a huge amount of mud, including Tham Pha Chom Village in Wiang Phang Kham Subdistrict, which is located next to the Sai River, which has been severely damaged. Many houses have been swept away by the current and many houses are still covered by high mud. Villagers are s
till suffering greatly.
Source: Thai News Agency