Around 68% of business operators, with a combined commercial value of 100 billion baht in the South, have been affected by floods, according to Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn.
About 43,000 businesses have borne the brunt in varying degrees, she said, quoting a Department of Business Development survey. Those affected include retail and farm businesses, but officials have not yet assessed the total damage from the floods.
Meanwhile, around 641 million baht is needed to repair roads and related transport infrastructure damaged by flooding in the South, according to the Department of Highways (DOH).
352 work plans have been laid out for transport infrastructure repairs, including those for damaged bridges, at a cost of 190 million baht, and roads ruined by landslides, at a cost of 210 million baht.
Due to the floods, the DOH’s earlier plans to invest 3.1 billion baht to reinforce the strength of 120 roads in the region have been suspended.
The repairs of two damaged bridges in Bang Saphan district of Prachuap Khiri Khan were completed at 3am yesterday, allowing motorists to travel to the South or head to Bangkok.
According to the DOH, 19 highways in the South are still impassable to motorists due to the the deluge. Six are in Prachuap Khiri Khan, five in Surat Thani, five in Trang, two in Nakhon Si Thammarat and one in Chumphon.
Also, the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) is increasing efforts to repair flood-damaged rail tracks between Bang Saphan Yai and Cha Muang stations in Prachuap Khiri Khan.
The floodwaters have receded in the affected section after rain stopped on Tuesday and 70 SRT workers were sent to fix the rail tracks.
The route is expected to re-open Thursday and trains should be able to run to Thung Song station in Nakhon Si Thammarat.Work is also underway to repair tracks between Thung Song station and provinces further south and the repair work could take about two weeks.
Inter-provincial buses to and from some of the provinces in the South would leave their terminals earlier than scheduled since it could take extra time as a result of traffic jams caused by floodwaters.
The Hydro and Agro Informatics Institute says heavy rains are expected to hit areas from Prachuap Khiri Khan to Nakhon Si Thammarat again between Sunday and Monday due to low pressure systems. This has prompted state agencies to work in pumping water into the sea more quickly.
The US has donated 3.5 million baht to help with getting vital supplies to flood areas.
(Source: Bangkok Post)