Flash flood warning issued

PHUKET: The Meteorological Department (West Coast) today issued a flash flood warning for people living in hillside areas in Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi and Trang due to continuing heavy rains in the region.

The warning also advises against small craft venturing out in the Andaman Sea.

Aroon Kerdsom, who heads the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket) office, said workers had already cleared up debris from a landslide off Soi Veerakij (Nanai Rd, Soi 9).

Access has been restricted to the danger area, where a condemned villa and five-story apartment block appear poised to slide down an exposed hillside, he added.

There was another small landslide last night off Soi Khunying Kanchana, which runs off Soi Paniang in Koh Kaew, he said.

“The slide blocked the road temporarily, but workers have cleared it and it can now be used as normal,” he said.

“I have asked my workers to monitor areas of the island at risk or landslides or flooding and to report any such occurrences to me immediately,” he added.