So heres something that will:
1000 boats to push flood waters October 11
1,000 boats to push flood waters October 11
BANGKOK: -- On October 11, a fleet of some 1,000 boats would help push water from the Chao Phraya River into the sea fast, Science and Technology Minister Plodprasop Suraswadi said Saturday.
At the boat project launch held at Nonthaburi's Pakkred Pier with 40 boats attending, Plodprasop said that this voluntary base project would help drain water three times faster, from two knots to six knots, and prevent floodwater from pouring into Bangkok City.
He said the 1,000boat fleet would push water down to the sea on October 11, as to help lower flood in the Chao Phraya Riverside provinces such as Sing Buri, Angthong and Ayutthaya.
-- The Nation 2011-10-08
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Being that I am a foreigner writing in Thailand, I must be careful to observe the laws of lèse majesté, and I have heard rumor that this whole boat idea came from the top, so I will not be posting opinions about the origins of the idea.
You can decide for yourself if putting 1000 boats in the water will increase the river flow.
Of course 1000 boat owners didn't actually think "I'm going to waste a full tank of diesel fuel going absolutely no where" and as you may have guessed the turnout was quite less then what was called for.
But the government did show up with their boats:
A few private boats, water taxi's, and tug boats were spotted here and there, giving it a go to save Bangkok. Here is a video I found on someones Facebook page showing a police boat and a few others pushing away the flood waters. I will just put a link in since the video does not belong to me.
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When I learned of this plan to push the flood waters to the sea, I posted it on one of my favorite forums. Here are the best in response:
"Sounds similar to pushing rope up hill."
"Wouldn't it help if a few thousand people jumped in the river and kicked with their feet?"
"Oh bless their simple minds..."
"No their plan is to create a giant wake and flood Bangkok...thus lowering the river level..genius!!"
"This would be great for an April Fools. Jesus, what morons. I am half expecting a moving dam, with 60ft below the water pushing it downstream."
"Waiting for the aircraft carrier to be brought in. That ought to do the job. Its always used for humanitarian purposes since it has no aircraft."
"60 million Thais should each be sent there with a bucket (I'm sure we can find a willing supplier of buckets at an abhorrently high cost to the government). They can then scoop all the excess water out of the river. Problem solved.
If that fails then maybe Australia can rent out Tidilick the frog."
"Manys the true word said in jest. Apparently great minds have produced the new emergency flood relief bucket which is about to be distributed in flooded areas .
This specially designed bucket feels lighter the further the water has to be carried thus being less thairing to use."
"Also doubles as a reserve parachute, ship anchor and a motorcycle helmet"
"They need the submarines to get under the water and push up on it.
Then the boats on top can move it forward."
"Elephants drink between 100 to 300 liters of water a day depending on the temperature,get enough elephants, problem solved.
Better then the boat idea,oh what fun life when you think like a Thai."
"The next time the world has a major Tsunami we will just line up all the boats and ships on that particular coast and counter act the force."
"
"The Bangkok Governor today received 450 million baht for emergency flood relief.
He said that, within three hours of getting the funds, all ten sand bags had been installed .
He added that there was nothing to worry about because he was off to Hawaii for two weeks."
"So when we get a drought, they could turn the boats around the other way and irrigate the north of Thailand."
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This should have been called "Hoof Hearted on Hydrology!" Anyway, the Governor presided over a "lai nam" ritual, which is a prayer for aid from the water goddess "Ka Kang".
Its very fortunate that they thought of this back up plan to the boat idea. Heres a link to the article if you are interested in the results of the lai nam ritual.
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I just read this and I wanted to put it up just so my friends and family know that I will be safe through these difficult times. Please don't worry about me, I have my Thai flood prevention bucket and I bought water wings for the entire family.
"As fears grow over whether Bangkok will face the same fate as provinces such as Ayutthaya and Nakhon Sawan, King-oua Laohong speaks to Pramote Maiklad, a former irrigation chief, about the crisis."
Pramote: ‘There is nothing to worry about’
