BANGKOK: Heavy rains from Tropical Depression Mulan caused flash flooding on Saturday August 13, with towns on the Thai-Myanmar border submerged after rising waters breached an earthen dam in Shan State in Myanmar, local media reported.
Floodwaters, which had mostly receded on Sunday, inundated more than 2,000 homes in Mae Sai township, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand, as well as the border town of Tachilek, Thailand. Myanmar, local media Thai PBS reported.
A Thai official said an earth dam 37 km north of the border had broken since Friday, causing the waters of the Sai River to rise rapidly and trigger the flood.
“The embankment along the river that kept the water level under control was breached and the water overflowed into the streets and people’s houses,” said Narongphol Kid-arn, the mayor of Mae Sai.
“In some parts the water was at waist and chest level,” he said.
Footage from Thailand’s PBS shows relief workers wading through flooded streets to distribute food to people stranded at their homes in Mae Sai. No casualties were reported.
Separately, Thailand’s National Water Command Center issued a warning on Saturday that heavy rains in Laos could raise the Mekong’s water level by up to 2m between Aug. 14 and 18.