Ten communes in Phnom Penh’s Dangkor district have been flooded by the Prek Tnaot River affecting over 3,000 families and now the municipal authorities are providing them with food and other assistance.
Municipal governor Khuong Sreng led a rescue effort to save people from the floodwaters in the district on the evening of October 27.
“Many families have been affected by the floods and our first move will be to find out how many and what they need. Then we will provide that assistance … to help minimise the disruption to people’s lives,” he said.
Sreng urged authorities at all levels to be proactive and get a firm understanding of the situation faced by their people locally.
“For Phnom Penh, we have prepared 1,000 tonnes of rice to be ready in case it is needed to feed our people and preserve their lives because that’s our duty, after all, we are the government,” he said.
On October 27, police officers and soldiers from the military were at the ready with equipment to rescue people under threat by the flooding – but the floods this year are not as bad as they were last year, according to their reports.
An official at the municipal Department of Public Works and Transport said the situation was under control as of October 28 and the floodwaters were now gradually receding.
Vann Bunlieng, chief of the Navy’s general staff, said he was ready to rescue people from flooding not only in the capital but also in a number of other provinces known to be at risk.
“My forces have been preparing to rescue people in Dangkor district since October 25, and we are ready just like we were last year – everything is prepped and ready to go,” he said.
Brigade 911 of the Army Special Forces Command has been working with the local authorities to rescue people in neighbouring Kamboul district who were trapped by the floods.
“From October 25 to 27, a total of 1,068 people were rescued by our teams. We extracted them from the flooded areas and removed them to safety on higher and dryer ground,” said Sou Samnang, deputy commander of the Special Forces.
According to reports from the field by the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, the Prek Tnaot canal carrying heavy water flows from Kampong Speu province was flooded and overtopped, destroying farmer’s fields of crops and inundating their homes.
At least two of the 10 communes have been severely affected with thousands of houses, schools, roads and fields that have been damaged or destroyed by floodwaters.
