Imagine strolling through the bustling streets of Muang district, only to find yourself knee-deep in water where the pavement once was. This was the surreal scene in Pattani on Thursday, captured in frames that tell tales of resilience amid nature’s fury. A spectacle that could only be described as a liquid invasion, as viewers witnessed the power of Mother Nature through the lens of the Pattani Public Relations Office’s vigilant cameras.
In the grip of an aquatic siege, southern Thailand’s Narathiwat, Pattani, and Yala provinces were engaged in a watery standoff, with Pattani experiencing the brunt of this deluge. The waters, rising with ambition, charted their determined course to the sea, navigating through Pattani’s thoroughfares as per the insights of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.
The flood’s embrace was far-reaching, with a staggering 93,220 families in 25 districts across the border provinces finding their lives capsized by the torrential embrace. Yet, in the midst of these trying tides, Chaiwat Junthirapong, director-general at the helm of disaster management, reported a silver lining: water levels were beginning their gradual descent.
Within the heart of Pattani, water was the uninvited guest in 10 of its 14 districts, while Narathiwat saw all its 13 districts surrender to aquatic dominance. Yala fought valiantly, with Muang and Raman districts emerging as waterlogged warriors among its eight districts.
Veteran locals, their eyes wide with reminiscence, recounted that it had been nearly half a century since the Sai Buri River had risen with such fervor in Pattani. The river, no longer a silent stream, roared with the voices of the downpours from Narathiwat as it surged towards the sea.
In the localities of Tabing, Lahan, and Pasaeyawo, the floodwater donned a deep blue, its levels reaching 2 to 3 meters in Sai Buri district. Meanwhile, Muang district witnessed an aquatic spectacle, as the Pattani River, swollen from the influx from Yala, stretched its watery limbs across the land, leaving the central business area submerged nearly two meters underwater.
The week prior was an overture to the monsoon’s symphony, with the skies weeping unceasingly, inundating Narathiwat, Pattani, Satun, Songkhla, and Yala, altering the lives of 102,070 families. Narratives of loss and endurance emerged from Narathiwat, where the floods claimed seven souls and left one in the despairing shadows of the missing.
Yet, in the fabric of this calamity, there lies a testament to the human spirit’s buoyancy and a community’s will to navigate the murky waters of adversity. While the earth beneath has temporarily succumbed to the floods, the spirit of these provinces remains unsinkable, charting a course toward recovery and resilience.
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