Rehearsal of the emergency response plan to cope with ‘La Nina’

Ayutthaya, "Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham" integrates agencies to jointly practice the emergency response plan, ready to cope with "La Nina", prevent flooding in the lower Chao Phraya basin, moving forward to strengthen the civil society network, confident in the unified water management, reducing the impact of flooding to the least. Mr. Phumtham Vejjayachai, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the National Water Resources Committee (NWRC), visited Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province to monitor the readiness of measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024, along with Mr. Chakkraphong Sangmanee, Minister to the Prime Minister's Office, Dr. Surasee Kittimondol, Secretary-General of the Office of National Water Resources (ONWR), Mr. Pairot Petchyuan, Deputy Governor of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, and representatives of relevant agencies. In the morning, they inspected the flood protection wall along the Chao Phraya River at Wat Chaiwatthanaram, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya District. After that, he joine d in listening to the preparation of the emergency response plan at Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate, Bang Pa-in District. In the afternoon, he presided over the opening of the workshop on rehearsing the emergency response plan, establishing a front-line center, and strengthening the civil society network according to the 10 measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024 at the Praewa Meeting Room, 2nd floor, Thai Handicraft Promotion Institute (Public Organization), Bang Sai District, with representatives from 24 government agencies, academics, the River Basin Committee, industrial estate operators, and civil society networks attending, totaling more than 200 people. The Deputy Prime Minister said that according to the ONWR and related agencies' assessment of the weather this year, Thailand is likely to enter the La Nina condition, resulting in increased rainfall, which may cause flooding in many areas. The government has given importance to preventing and solving the flooding problem that may occur. It has set 10 measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024 to be used as tools to cope with the situation, emphasizing the readiness of personnel and various machinery and equipment, including the coordination of government agencies in monitoring and monitoring the water situation, water management, and coordinating assistance to the public in order to prevent and reduce the impact of the flood situation, including being able to provide assistance to the people who are affected in a timely manner. 'Today is a good opportunity to follow the flood response plan exercise. Therefore, I have urged ONWR to act as the central agency to integrate and work with relevant agencies to prepare for flood prevention and resolution this year with unity. In addition, the government has prepared a long-term solution by assigning relevant agencies, especially agencies in the central region, to closely monitor the water situation and resolve the flood problem. All agencies are also instructed to continuously publicize the water situatio n so that the public can access accurate information to plan for preparation in advance. For the period of July 16-17, as it is predicted that there may be a flood problem in the eastern region, ONWR has been assigned to use the disaster response plan exercise format to prepare for the establishment of a front-line center to deal with the situation in Rayong Province or nearby areas. As for projects that received budgets in the past, they are to be expedited to proceed according to the specified plan,' said Mr. Phumtham. In this regard, the results of the implementation of the 10 measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024 in predicting risk areas, ONWR has integrated with relevant agencies to continuously monitor, analyze, and define areas at risk of flooding, landslides, and areas where rain has been absent, which can be used as primary data for managing flood problems according to other measures. As for the measures that have been prepared in advance, the government has accelerated the implementation s ince before the rainy season and will continue to implement until the end of the rainy season, such as reviewing and improving water management criteria in water sources, inspecting and monitoring the safety of water barriers in risk areas, and the results of increasing the efficiency of water drainage in a systematic manner. In addition, the government has also emphasized preparation for the dry season. Therefore, there are measures to urgently develop and store water in all types of water sources to be used as a reserve water source for use in the next dry season. As for strengthening the civil society network and disseminating public relations information, relevant agencies have continuously disseminated public relations to create awareness of water situation information. ONWR has been instructed to continuously monitor, evaluate, and report to the government so that this rainy season can minimize the impact on the people as much as possible. The ONWR Secretary-General revealed that the rehearsal of the e mergency response plan and the establishment of a front-line center before a disaster, as well as strengthening the public sector network today, is in accordance with the 10 measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024, which were approved by the Cabinet in Measure 6: Rehearsal of the emergency response plan, establishment of a front-line center before a disaster and restoration of the situation to normal, Measure 8: Strengthening the public sector network in providing information on the situation, and Measure 9: Creating awareness, water situation information service centers, and public relations. The ONWR, together with more than 24 relevant agencies, academics, river basin committees, industrial estate operators, and public sector networks, organized a workshop to rehearse the emergency response plan, establishment of a front-line center, and strengthening the public sector network, in accordance with the 10 measures to cope with the rainy season in 2024. This year, 5 industrial estates located in Phra N akhon Si Ayutthaya Province were invited: 1. Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate 2. Ban Wa Industrial Estate (Hi-Tech), 3. Nakhon Luang Industrial Estate (Saharattana Nakhon), 4. Rojana Industrial Estate, and 5. Factory Land Wang Noi Industrial Estate also participated. The lower Chao Phraya River Basin is known as the country's "rice bowl" and is an area of ??economic importance, especially in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, an important historical tourist attraction with ancient sites registered as world heritage sites. There are also more than 2,600 industrial factories, 595 of which are located in five industrial estates and more than 2,000 factories are located outside the industrial estates. In addition, the lower Chao Phraya River Basin is a fertile agricultural area with crops grown in irrigation areas covering more than 9.6 million rai, especially rice growing areas covering more than 8 million rai. If flooding occurs, it will have a significant impact and damage. Therefore, planning for water resource management in the Chao Phraya River Basin must be comprehensive and thorough in every aspect. Therefore, rehearsing the emergency response plan before facing the actual situation is very necessary and important. The goal of rehearsing the operation is to be able to monitor, evaluate management results and predict the water situation effectively, as well as to be able to issue warnings accurately and provide assistance to alleviate the impacts in a unified and timely manner. Source: Thai News Agency