Thousands refuse to leave as floodwaters threaten central Bangkok

Murky floodwater is slowing moving towards the heart of the Thai capital Bangkok as thousands of people ignore orders to evacuate the city.

Relief workers are distributing aid to evacuation centers in central Bangkok, but they say they are struggling to reach residents still refusing to leave their homes.

"I believe thousands of people are in their homes and are still not evacuating," relief co-ordinator Rungsun Munkong told CNN. "(They) possibly will be stranded with little food and water as time goes by."

He says other agencies have attempted to reach people trapped in tower blocks "but the scale is just massive."

"I think it will be difficult down the road to get help to these people," Munkong says, adding, "People need clean water, that's the first important thing. Cooked ready-to-eat food is also quite important, baby milk and so on."

Thailand has been inundated with its worst flood in half a century, affecting at least 25 of the country's 77 provinces.

More than 500 people had been killed in the deluge according to figures released Sunday by the country's interior ministry.

A Thailand Disaster and Mitigation Department report, issued Sunday and reported by MCOT, estimated about 3.1 million people have been affected and 4 million acres of farmland have been damaged. Moreover, the department said two people are believed missing and about 75 highways have closed.

In the provinces of Nakhon Sawan and Ayutthaya, cleanup efforts were under way.

On Sunday, the Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra visited Nonthaburi, near Bangkok. There, the government provided 100 boats to help transport people and disperse relief supplies after requests by local officials, according to MCOT.

Despite public criticism of the government's overall response, Yingluck said she would not shake up her Cabinet -- in the short-term, at least.

She explained that the focus first is to address the situation, with a full evaluation and possible shuffling to be done after the crisis abates, reported MCOT.
I think it will be difficult down the road to get help to these people
Rungsun Munkong, relief co-ordinator

Floods are an annual occurrence in the country but have been particularly acute this year, and some residents and analysts have criticized the government's response.

"Now the government is sending a mixed signal that the situation is fine, but the truth is it the situation far from over," political analyst Supong Limtanakul told CNN. "It is a slow suffocating death of (the) Bangkok business area."

The city's main airport and two large industrial sites are also at risk, Supong said.

Supong said the government did not have enough resources to deal with floodwaters, noting that officials had recently asked the private sector for water pumps to help drain water out of Bangkok.

Paribatra, Bangkok's governor, told MCOT that it may take up to two weeks to drain water out of Bangkok's main roads, and months to drain water from smaller roads.