Legally speaking, who is to blame?

The ongoing flood situation is deemed as having unleashed crisis upon crisis, as the government failed to inform people in time which areas would be inundated. 

People were unable to move their goods on time, in particular, factories where the machines and other equipment could not be saved. Therefore, the government and authorities should bear a certain responsibility.

Vast portions of the Central Plain were inundated by the huge amounts of water released by the major dams.

Earlier, the government had to release water gradually from the dams. However, it failed to do so, and when the volume became too great, it released all the water in one go, causing many provinces to be flooded.

Under the Civil and Commercial Codes, any person negligently and unlawfully injures life, body, health, property or any right of another person, is deemed to commit a wrongful act and is bound to pay compensation. 

The damaged persons can take legal action against the government and the authorities involved. The prescription for the wrongful act is one year from the date which such persons learned of the wrongful act, and the person who did the wrongful act, or within 10 years from the date which the wrongful act occurred.

Such an official's act is deemed as negligence because Smith Dharmasarojana, the former director-general of the Meteorological Department and chairman of the National Disaster Warning Council, has earlier warned that this year there would be a great volume of water, and there were several storms that hit Thailand.

Moreover, under the Act on Liability for Wrongful Act of Officials B.E. 2539 (1996), the government authority which is sued and must be liable for the wrongful act is entitled to claim compensation from officials if the wrongful act is deemed gross negligence, and the officials must be personally liable.

This flooding is derived from gross negligence because the officials did not properly release water from the dams although Mr Smith had warned about the volume of water and storms. 

Thus, the prime minister, the minister involved and the persons having authority to make a decision must be personally liable under this act as well.

In Thailand, the residents who suffered from flooding are entitled to claim damages to repair their houses, and business operators are entitled to claim damages from their loss of business opportunity.

However, such persons cannot claim damages for a relative's death as that is deemed as "indirect damage". The claimants can jointly take legal action against the officials as one case in the Administrative Court.

In countries like the United States, the US administration was sued for floods in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, as it allowed one channel to be built and made the flooding worse. 

In Maryland, the top officials in the US Department of Homeland Security were sued by Maryland residents as their homes were damaged by Hurricane Isabel. 

In Arkansas, the administration was sued because a storm dropped heavy rain and a violent flooding killed 20 people in a campground, as the government should not have allowed the campground to be built in a flood plain, and had failed to give out warnings of the extreme danger of flooding.

If we take into account all the damage and suffering that has arisen, it will be much greater than the compensation which the civil servant can be liable for. 

But at least the Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and civil servants will be made aware that there is a personal liability for them. 

Like in the business sector, there is personal liability as well. If a director of any company engages in any act outside the scope of objectives of the company, the director must be held personally liable.

The aim of the foregoing legislation is to have the persons who make decisions act responsibly, and that the proper protection be arranged and provided for SME businesses, as well as the businesses of locals and foreigners alike in Thailand.

In this terrible situation, unity among government authorities, and accurate information rendered to the public is absolutely required, to minimise all damage, to make sure things return to normal in the capital, and to provide assistance for flood victims. 

In the end, it is necessary for the country to have a new and splendid water management system to prevent any flooding in the future.