Does a map predict how much damage each district in Bangkok will face from floods in September 2024? No, that's not true: It's an old map, likely from the 2011 Thailand floods. Bangkok officials also announced five measures the city is taking to prevent floods this year.
The claim appeared in a video posted on TikTok on August 24, 2024 (archived here), which had the following caption (translated from Thai into English by Lead Stories staff):
Ready to deal with the floods. It's been predicted that the water will reach Bangkok on Sept. 1. Here's a breakdown of floods by districts, according to the 2011 data.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Tue Sep 3 11:25:47 2024 UTC)
The video cited the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration as its source. The map categorizes damages into four categories: no flood, short-term flooding, less than 20 percent damage, more than 20 percent damage, and severe damage. Among the areas with severe damage are Jatuchak, Laksi, and Don Mueang, where a major airport is located.
The BMA refuted the claim on its Facebook page (archived here) on August 27, 2024, stating, as translated by Lead Stories staff, that it's old news and asking people to avoid circulating the map. In the post, officials also said the Chao Phraya River still has enough capacity to handle rainwater coming from Sukhothai, a province in the northern part of Thailand, and it was predicted that the water would arrive on September 2, 2024.
"The water discharge rate that needs to be monitored before reaching Bangkok is 2,500 cubic meters/second, but the latest average flow is still 800 cubic meters/second," officials wrote on August 27, 2024, as translated.
The administration announced five main measures to prevent floods in Bangkok that were in place in a separate Facebook post (archived here) on August 30, 2024, also translated by Lead Stories staff: Elevated dam walls along the Chao Phraya River, closed 60 flood-prone spots, prepared about 200 pumping stations along the Chao Phraya River, cleaned 4,300 kilometers of drainage pipe around the city and prepared 24/7 emergency operation workers.
"With determination and continuous operations, Bangkok is ready to deal with the flooding and rain this year so that all Bangkokians can live their lives safely and happily," the city wrote.
Thailand, especially in its northern region, has been bracing for floods in August, heading into September. According to the Office of National Water Resources' statement on September 3, 2024 (archived here), as translated, there are floods in six provinces currently: Chiang Rai, Sukhothai, Phitsanulok, Loei and Nakhon Phanom. In an agency's separate announcement on September 1, 2024, also translated by Lead Stories staff, listing flood-prone regions between September 3-7, 2024 (archived here), Bangkok is not mentioned.
