"The best-case scenario, two weeks, or one month at its worst case," Sean Boonprakong told CNN. In all, 255 pumps were being used to drain the water, he said, crediting their work for sparing much of inner Bangkok from the floodwaters.
Though some tourists were trickling in, city life was far from business as usual, he said. Indeed, Bangkok residents have plenty to be anxious about. They are dealing with massive piles of garbage stacking up around the flood-stricken city, prompting worries over tainted water, disease and sanitation.
In a nation that, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, produces 8,000 tons of garbage a day during normal times, Bangkok residents are dealing with massive piles of trash stacking up around the flood-stricken city.
"There might be over 3 million tons of garbage left over in Bangkok after the floods," said Deputy Director General Warasart Apaipong of the Pollution Control Department.
Concerns about disease spreading are also growing. The country's Ministry of Public Heath has distributed 20,700 test kits for leptospirosis, a severe bacterial infection that can affect areas where water has been stagnant for more than three weeks.
Add new comment