Thousands Seek Shelter as Tropical Storm Edges Closer to Southern Thailand
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A strengthening tropical storm is edging closer to southern Thailand, prompting thousands of people to seek shelter inland, suspending ferry services and closing a major airport.
Tropical storm Pabuk is forecast to make landfall on Friday evening in Nakhon Si Thammarat and bring torrential downpours and strong winds to more than a dozen other provinces in the south, home to one of the world's biggest natural rubber plantations and several islands popular with domestic and foreign tourists.
In Nakhon Si Thammarat, the airport was closed and authorities made rounds on Friday morning urging people to leave before roads are blocked, while in the Gulf of Thailand the winds accompanying the potentially damaging storm churned up high waves and gusts.
"The strong winds are forecast with waves up to three to five meters high in the Gulf and two to three meters high in the Andaman Sea. All ships (should) keep ashore," the Thai Meteorological Department said in a statement early on Friday, adding that the storm had maximum winds of 80 kilometers per hour, Al Jazeera reported
Officials expect the conditions to persist into Saturday.
Over the past few days, 6,176 people have been evacuated to shelters from Nakhon Si Thammarat as well as the provinces of Pattani, Songkhla and Yala, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation has said.
