Devastating Floods in Thailand: A Once in 300 Years Deluge

Fri Dec 05 2025 15:41:40 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Thailand faces catastrophic flooding after record rainfall leaves 33 dead and thousands stranded. Relief efforts are underway as neighboring countries are also grappling with severe weather.

Record-breaking rains have caused severe flooding across Thailand, impacting ten provinces and leaving 33 dead. The southern city of Hat Yai recorded its heaviest rainfall in 300 years, prompting military intervention for relief efforts. Similar flooding has affected neighboring Vietnam and Malaysia, calling for urgent humanitarian response.

Parts of Thailand are battling record floods, which have killed at least 33 people and prompted authorities to deploy military ships and helicopters to support relief efforts.

The deluge has hit ten provinces across the country's south over the past week, with the city of Hat Yai, a business hub bordering Malaysia, recording its heaviest rainfall in 300 years - 335mm in a single day.

Photos show vehicles and houses submerged in the city, while desperate residents await rescue on their rooftops.

Relentless rains have also ravaged neighbouring countries. In Vietnam, the death toll has risen to 98 in a week, while in Malaysia, more than 19,000 people have been forced from their homes.

In Indonesia, at least 19 people have been killed and seven others remain buried under landslides in North Sumatra, according to the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency.

More than two million people in Thailand have been affected by the floods, but just 13,000 have been moved to shelters. The majority remain cut off, unable to receive help.

The Thai military is putting effort into managing the crisis, preparing to dispatch an aircraft carrier and a flotilla of 14 boats loaded with relief supplies, along with field kitchens that can deliver 3,000 meals a day.

Medical teams on board the aircraft carrier will convert it into a 'floating hospital' if necessary.

Boats, high-clearance trucks, and jet skis have also been deployed to evacuate residents, according to the governor of Songkhla province.

The cabinet recently declared Songkhla a disaster zone to free up emergency funds for relief.

However, many remain stranded; a volunteer rescue group reported being inundated with requests for help, citing people trapped and in urgent need of evacuation.

Social media has seen urgent calls for assistance from those affected, as individuals plead for help to rescue trapped loved ones and provide basic necessities such as food and water.

The situation has heightened the urgency for regional cooperation in disaster response, with Malaysia also mobilizing resources to assist the affected population.

As seasonal rains continue, concerns mount over the overall impact this natural disaster will have on the region's recovery and infrastructure.