Khao Yai National Park was yesterday hit with a flash flood a local official described as “the worst of the decade” — trapping hundreds of tourists taking advantage of the government-mandated Mother’s Day holiday and three Thai celebrities at a riverside resort.
At 3pm yesterday, authorities issued an emergency flash flood warning due to unexpectedly severe runoff in Nakhon Nayok province’s Hin Tung and Sarika districts. All trips to the area’s popular Nang Rong and Wang Takhrai waterfalls were suspended while locals and tourists were told to stay on high ground.
Wichai Pornleesaengsuwan, an on-site national park official, explained that the flash flood was caused by heavy rainfall streaming down from the mountains. This, he added via Thairath, was the worst flooding in 10 years.
Authorities also received reports of hundreds of tourists stranded in Sida Resort, one of the biggest resorts in the area. Among the group were luk thung singers Kong Huayrai and Zak Chumpae and comedian Nhong ChaChaCha, who were filming a movie at the national park.
Thirty more tourists were trapped at Maduea Canal, another major tourist attraction in Nakhon Nayok, as water levels were too high for them to drive back out.
Fortunately, as of press time, all have been safely rescued and evacuated, according to Khaosod.
The scenes of flooding — many of which look like something out of a disaster movie — are now going viral on Facebook after swarms of netizens shared videos.
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