Rawai residents battle floods after heavy rains

PHUKET: Rawai residents have gone into recovery mode after heavy rains in the area caused flooding yesterday afternoon.

Inhabitants of the sea gypsy village in Moo 2 helped each other to transport their belongings to higher ground.

“The water is about 20-50cm deep on the roads within a 100 meter radius. A number of vehicles were stranded and at least seven houses were affected,” Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos told the Phuket Gazette.

Dirt, plastic bottles and trash littered the area after rains relentlessly battered it from early morning. A number of motorbikes belonging to nearby residents also stood in several inches of water.

“The situation has improved now since it didn’t rain last night. But it is difficult to find a solution here due to the age-old sea gypsy land controversy. We are still using water pumps to take care of the situation,” the mayor says.

— Winai Sarot