Sealing Precautions as Flooding Threatens Bangkok

11-03-2011

Major flooding started in Thailand during the monsoon season of 2011, with 307 reported deaths and the amount of land covered by water; it is the worst flood that Thailand has seen in decades. Heavy rain that has been on-going since the start of July is the reason behind the drastic flooding. With all their best efforts, barriers were being implemented to stop the flooding from disrupting the main city of Bangkok, walls of sandbags were being laid down to protect industrial centres from the rising water.

Flood warnings have been issued to Bangkok and residents are being told to get valuables and cars to high ground, travellers in Thailand are being warned to stay as far away from the water as possible, with one of Bangkok’s major airports under threat due to the adverse conditions and the water breeching barriers around it is not looking likely that many will be able to get home. Authorities in the country are trying to drain the water from the central areas to the East and West of Bangkok then out to the sea. Parts of the city are being protected by floodgates and then key areas are reinforced with sandbags, however due to the building up of water some of the floodgates have had to be opened resulting in more people being evacuated and trying to rescue as many belongings as possible. The barriers that are implemented are only temporary, with the amount of water coming down from the North the barriers are not expected to hold it off, only slow down the flow of the water.

The shops have been raided in the Bangkok for food, drinks and medical supplies as the flooding hits the capital, people are stocking up in sheer panic that they do not know when this flood is going to end. The economic damage from the city is massive, Bangkok accounts for 41% of gross domestic profit for the country and with the whole city and surrounding areas being affected it is going to cause major problems for their economic situation. The rice industry in Thailand has been seriously affected as the rice fields are getting drowned underwater and damaged by the intense flooding; Thailand is the worlds biggest rice exporter.

Saphan Taksin Pier is slowly getting submerged by the rising levels of water. When the ferries pass by, wakes in the water can cause it to overflow the barriers and leak through the sandbags. A power station close by to the pier has been sealed with foam sealant to stop water entering places that it shouldn’t, just incase the river breaks. A product like SealGuard II needs to be used in these cases to prevent water from entering places that can be dangerous, water needs to be stopped from flooding into the power station at all costs. SealGuard II is dual component hydrophobic polyurethane with a 1 to 3 second reaction time and is designed to stop extremely fast flowing water in excess of 50 gallons per minute, making this product ideal for intense flooding.