tarzan
November 25th, 2005, 09:02 PM
Heavy rains strand hundreds at Thai Samui airport
Fri Nov 25, 2005 9:35 AM GMT7
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Torrential rains and tropical storms have closed
traffic at the airport on the southern Thai resort island of Samui,
stranding hundreds of passengers, an airport spokeswoman said on
Friday.
All 38 Bangkok Airways flights between Bangkok and Samui in the Gulf of
Thailand were cancelled on Friday after four flights from Bangkok the
previous night were diverted to Phuket Island, which is on the other
side of the coast in the Andaman Sea.
"We are in commotion now," the spokeswoman told Reuters from her
Bangkok headquarters that faced difficult communications with its Samui
staff because of blackouts in some parts of the island.
Floods on some roads on the island prevented passengers from travelling
to the airport that is littered with fallen coconut trees and rubbish
from the sea, said the spokeswoman, who declined to be identified.
Despite the airport shutdown, ferries still ran between the island and
mainland Surat Thani province where passengers could travel back to
Bangkok and other parts of the country, she said.
The eastern part of the southern Thai peninsula is coming to the end of
its monsoon season.
"It has been raining continuously in the past 30 hours with more than
200 mm (7.9 inches) so far," Samui district chief Thirayuth Eamtrakoon
told Reuters while visiting flood-hit residents.
Bangkok Airways, which also owns and operates the airport, expected to
resume its flights on Saturday if rain stopped on Friday night, the
spokeswoman said.
Torrential rains in the past three days have hit eight southern Thai
provinces, killing three people, including a five-year-old boy, the
government said in a statement.
Fri Nov 25, 2005 9:35 AM GMT7
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Torrential rains and tropical storms have closed
traffic at the airport on the southern Thai resort island of Samui,
stranding hundreds of passengers, an airport spokeswoman said on
Friday.
All 38 Bangkok Airways flights between Bangkok and Samui in the Gulf of
Thailand were cancelled on Friday after four flights from Bangkok the
previous night were diverted to Phuket Island, which is on the other
side of the coast in the Andaman Sea.
"We are in commotion now," the spokeswoman told Reuters from her
Bangkok headquarters that faced difficult communications with its Samui
staff because of blackouts in some parts of the island.
Floods on some roads on the island prevented passengers from travelling
to the airport that is littered with fallen coconut trees and rubbish
from the sea, said the spokeswoman, who declined to be identified.
Despite the airport shutdown, ferries still ran between the island and
mainland Surat Thani province where passengers could travel back to
Bangkok and other parts of the country, she said.
The eastern part of the southern Thai peninsula is coming to the end of
its monsoon season.
"It has been raining continuously in the past 30 hours with more than
200 mm (7.9 inches) so far," Samui district chief Thirayuth Eamtrakoon
told Reuters while visiting flood-hit residents.
Bangkok Airways, which also owns and operates the airport, expected to
resume its flights on Saturday if rain stopped on Friday night, the
spokeswoman said.
Torrential rains in the past three days have hit eight southern Thai
provinces, killing three people, including a five-year-old boy, the
government said in a statement.