Floodwaters in Bangkok began receding Monday after heavy weekend rain, but several neighbourhoods and roads remained inundated. About 7 lakh people were affected, while shelters housed nearly 7,000 residents. Airport baggage disruptions and supply-chain problems added to the disruption
Published Date – 28 September 2026, 05:06 PM
Bangkok: Floodwaters in Thailand’s capital were slowly receding on Monday after continuous rainfall over the weekend, although some neighbourhoods and major roads remained inundated.
Rain continued intermittently, but Bangkok city officials said conditions had improved enough to accelerate drainage efforts. Water levels in four main canals had risen too high over the weekend to take in runoff from surrounding communities.
More rain was forecast across much of Thailand, although Bangkok was expected to receive less.
About 7 lakh residents affected
The weekend flooding affected 3.29 lakh households, or about 7 lakh people, the Bangkok Flood Control Centre reported, according to Deputy Gov. Tavida Kamolvej.
Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt declared a flood emergency on Saturday across all 50 city districts, although some were relatively unscathed. He said authorities were prioritising assistance for vulnerable residents, including older people and those with disabilities, by delivering supplies or evacuating them. City officials said nearly 7,000 people were staying in shelters.
Neighbourhoods in eastern Bangkok were hit hardest. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul donned white rain boots on Sunday night to inspect a heavily flooded housing estate in Bang Kapi district and help distribute relief supplies.
Water was about knee-deep on Monday near a train station and shopping mall in Bang Kapi. Despite intermittent downpours, shoppers waded through the water carrying bags, backpacks and boxes of groceries. Some travelled to and from the station in a small boat provided by the mall.
For Naowarat Supanikorn, a 55-year-old maid who shares a single-storey house with three dogs and six cats, the flooding was more than an inconvenience.
She said she realised at about 1:30 am on Saturday that water was seeping into her home.
‘I’m worried about my pets’
“I had to take my dogs and cats out,” she said. “I had to leave them with my neighbour. I have taken them back today because they said the sun would come out, but it looks like the rain will come back.”
She said the flooding in her neighbourhood reached above her hips at its highest and had since dropped to about knee level. She said the bigger problem was that she had lost her job working at a condominium.
“My workplace also said if I can’t come to work, they’re happy to take my resignation. So I thought, that’s fine, I’ll quit.”
To try to generate some income, she bought supplies to make food that she could sell on the street, but business was slow in the flooded conditions.
“It’s stressful. If the bills come, I’d be cooked, because I don’t have work now. If I have to pay for water or electricity now it would be bad,” she said. “I’m not worried about me but I’m worried about my pets. I’ve lived with them my whole life. They’re my priority. It’s OK if I don’t have work and starve myself, but I’d like help for my pets.”
The flooding also had knock-on effects, including panic buying of food, disrupted supply chains for food and other items, and staffing problems at various enterprises whose employees were unable to get to their jobs.
Bangkok’s main airport impacted
Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport said baggage from arriving and departing flights was piling up because of “insufficient staffing to support ground handling operations” and problems with some baggage carts.
The disruptions delayed some departures and forced arriving passengers to wait longer than usual for their luggage, with baggage from several flights still undelivered, the airport said.
The government declared special holidays on Monday and Tuesday for state offices. It advised state enterprises, financial institutions, private businesses and hospitals to determine whether they needed to remain open.
Thailand’s meteorological agency forecast heavy to very heavy rain across several parts of the country. It warned residents, particularly in northern, central and eastern regions, to prepare for possible flash floods, river overflows, forest runoff and landslides, especially near waterways, foothills and low-lying areas.