Flooding spreads in Bangkok

In Thailand, floodwaters from the north are moving toward the heart of the capital Bangkok despite efforts to drain the surge.

Floodwaters that inundated industrial estates in the central Thai city of Ayutthaya continue to flow south after submerging parts of Don Muang Airport in northern Bangkok.

The water was around 10 kilometers from central Bangkok on Tuesday.

A university campus in the area has been entirely flooded, with water as high as 70 centimeters in some places.

Water has been flowing through roads into previously dry areas.

A police officer who'd been directing traffic said the amount of water grew rapidly over 2 hours in the morning.

The government has been trying to divert the water through drainage canals to eastern and western suburbs.

But the efforts have failed to keep up with the surge, and residents are being forced to pile more sandbags in front of their shops and homes.

Tuesday, November 01, 2011 18:57 +0900 (JST)