EMERGENCY responders in Hat Yai spent Saturday delivering essential supplies to communities cut off by severe flooding that has devastated southern Thailand, leaving at least 162 people dead across nine provinces. Songkhla has been the hardest hit, accounting for at least 126 of the fatalities.
Reuters reported on Sunday that large swathes of the region remain without electricity, and residents have spent days assessing the damage to their homes and livelihoods following a week of relentless flooding.
The scale of the disaster has shocked authorities and locals alike, with Hat Yai recording 335 millimetres of rainfall over two days on 21 November – reportedly the city’s highest daily rainfall in three centuries.
The speed and intensity of the floodwaters caught many off guard.
Residents say there were no clear warnings from local authorities despite rapidly rising water levels triggered by the torrential rain, leaving many trapped inside their homes.
Waresumsuni, a 26-year-old Hat Yai resident, described the event as one of the worst floods the city has endured.
“From what I know, this is the worst flood in many years. I live in a dormitory and didn’t go out at all. I was trapped for five days. We only ate porridge,” she said.
“There are more than 200 people in the dormitory. Once we were all trapped together, they shared their belongings, gathered food and cooked together.
“Some even swam to look for cooking gas and drinking water to bring back. There are Malaysian students living here as well.”
For business owners, the financial toll is immense. Sasirat, a 45-year-old souvenir shop owner, said water levels in some parts of the city rose to four metres, with some premises submerged up to their ceilings.
“Malaysians also come here during this period. Every shop had already stocked up for New Year sales. The damage is enormous, truly enormous,” she said.
“A small shop like mine has already lost hundreds of thousands of baht. The shop across the road received two million baht in insurance compensation, but the actual damage is far greater.”
As clean-up efforts continue, the scale of destruction has prompted calls for improved flood-preparedness measures, clearer early-warning systems and long-term infrastructure planning to protect southern Thailand from increasingly extreme weather events. - November 30, 2025
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