Anutin Orders Health Prep for Prolonged Flood Areas
Anutin chaired a national flood‑response meeting, ordering the Ministry of Public Health to stock medicines and prepare medical equipment for long‑flooded areas and to dispatch supplies to army hospitals receiving patients. He warned of heavier rains expected this week, especially in the south, and urged immediate drainage where possible and fast relief payments without waiting for water to recede.
Anutin said the meeting was the sixth; overall many areas are improving, but some provinces such as Prachin Buri, Pathum Thani, and Chachoeng Sao still have standing flood water that remains a problem, requiring evacuation of residents to shelters and moving patients from Chao Phraya Abhai Bubej Hospital, which has been closed. He thanked the army for its support in transferring patients to Camp Jakrapong Hospital, noting that although the transfer was not complete, it allowed continuity of care. He praised the director of Camp Jakrapong Hospital for coordinating with the director of Chao Phraya Abhai Bubej Hospital to set up a field hospital, enabling treatment of flood victims.
Anutin stressed that the most important thing now is medical equipment and medicines. Since Chao Phraya Abhai Bubej Hospital is under the Ministry of Public Health, and patients have been transferred to the army’s Camp Jakrapong Hospital, the Ministry should urgently send additional medicines and medical supplies to the camp to ensure patient care. He said cooperation between the two hospitals should pose no problem for drug and medical supply support, and urged full compliance if requests are made, with Ministry of Public Health representatives carrying out the orders. He also noted that yesterday Pathum Thani province reported shortages of certain medicines and disease‑prevention drugs, and asked the Ministry to deliver these supplies to the area in coordination with provincial health offices, pointing out that the Government Pharmaceutical Organization’s factory is located in Pathum Thani, so medicines such as those for leptospirosis should reach residents who have been standing in flood water for days.
Anutin said forecasts indicate increased rainfall across the country this week, with especially heavy rain in the south, according to the Meteorological Department. This could hinder drainage into the Gulf of Thailand. He urged any area that can still drain water to do so immediately, and called for a unified data set — rainfall forecasts, upstream water volumes, drainage plans, and sea‑level information — to be turned into easy‑to‑understand maps sent to district and community levels. If plans need adjusting or additional pumps, high‑lift vehicles, or support from other provinces are required, they should be reported to the central command.
He concluded by urging special attention to vulnerable groups in at‑risk areas, urging full protection and preparedness.
