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Thailand

How Dry Is the Thai Drought This Year?

By Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter - July 22, 2019 5:30 pm

NAKHON RATCHASIMA — During past wet seasons, boat restaurants filled with tourists puttered along Bueng Kraton Lake, while holidayers took selfies by the water. But today, the lake has disappeared entirely, dried up by an ongoing drought. The boat restaurants are wedged in dried mud, and the visitors gone.

The 10,000 rai (1,600 hectares) of nearby farms, which depend on the lake for water, are struggling.

“This dry season is especially long. There’s no rain for the crops anymore, and the rice plants are dying where they stand,” Anukul Tongkam, 47, a local farmer said.

Anukul said he recalled Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha’s promise to tackle the drought when he visited Bueng Kraton on Aug. 21, 2018.

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