Inner-city residents get ready as water nears

People living near the Victory Monument have been told to prepare for flooding, which could reach the area in a week.

The atmosphere in the neighbourhood is calm, but if you look around carefully you will see the changes that have occurred as the flood crisis has built.

One local resident captured the change in an account of a friend's new business line.

"Usually, she sells gift items and accessories," Kochaphan Komnanukij, a friend of a woman who sells gift items, accessories and boots at the Center One department store, told The Nation. 

When she heard that the flood waters were heading here, she prepared by wearing boots. 

Her customers asked her about her boots and Magic Pants - plastic trousers that protect your feet and legs up to your waist  so she started selling boots and Magic Pants.

"They sold out very quickly, requiring restocking two times a day; the price will depend on how bad the flooding gets."

Despite the imminent flooding, for vendors on the Rajvithi Hospital side of Victory Monument it's business as usual, with few outward signs of anything out of the ordinary.

"I can't let the news that the floods are coming affect the whole of my business," said Arissara Mapuag, owner of the Budsabong shoe store, who claimed not to be worried about the looming flood.

"I won't allow myself to be brought to a standstill by the flood crisis. It's a natural disaster, so nobody can stop it.

If the floods arrive, I think it'll give me a chance to travel to the Northern region and make merit, which I haven't done it for a long time," she said.

Although there have been transport problems, Arissara said she had been able to adapt.

"The customers are still buying shoes at my shop; there are always people travelling and changing buses here," said the shop owner.

Victory Monument's cluster of noodle shops will be affected.

"Our customers are decreasing in number, of course, but we're still selling noodles," said Nopporn Boonsanong, owner of the Anong noodle shop. 

We have a steady supplier for the ingredients, so we're ready if it floods. We've prepared a plaster floodwall in front of our shop and have raised the electricity lines."

People in many walks of life have been affected by this flood crisis. Kornkwan Vutinuntakasame, a student at Thammasat University, said her life had changed since the flood hit her home around the Ratchayothin area.

"I have had to change my plans, since the next semester has been moved from November to January," she said.

"Right now, the water level is stable around my home but I think if it reaches the level of the electricity system, it's time to evacuate; without electricity it's harder to live," she admitted.

Graeme Turnball, an Australian businessman residing in Thailand, was critical of officials, commenting: "I think now it's a political game. 

They should help people more than this. It's all propaganda out there; they try to get what they want by using the advertising."

Residents of areas near the Victory Monument are a good example of the way human beings can turn a crisis into an opportunity, provided they prepare themselves to face the problems.