Representational image of man standing on top of a skyscraper view of the Bangkok city skyline.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Thailand may have to consider relocating its capital Bangkok because of rising sea levels, a senior official in the country’s climate change office said on May 15.

Projections consistently show that low-lying Bangkok risks being inundated by the ocean before the end of the century.

Pavich Kesavawong, Deputy Director-general of the Government’s department of climate change and environment, warned that the city might not be able to adapt with the world on its current warming pathway.

“I think we are beyond the 1.5 (C) already,” he said, referring to the increase in global temperatures from pre-industrial levels.

“I imagine Bangkok will be under water already, if we stay in our (current) circumstance.”

Bangkok’s city Government is exploring measures that include building dikes, along the lines of those used in the Netherlands, he said.

But “we have been thinking about moving”, Mr. Pavich said, noting that the discussions were still hypothetical and the issue was “very complex”.

“Personally I think it’s a good choice, so we can separate the capital, the Government areas, and business areas,” he said.

“Bangkok (would) still be the Government capital, but move the business.”

While a move is still a long way from being adopted as policy, it would not be unprecedented in the region.

Indonesia will inaugurate this year its new capital Nusantara, which will replace sinking and polluted Jakarta as the country’s political centre.

Bangkok:

Thai authorities issued an extreme heat warning for Bangkok on Wednesday, urging people to stay indoors for their own safety as temperatures soared.

The mercury was forecast to hit 39C in the sprawling Thai capital, while the heat index rose above 52C, classed as “extremely dangerous” by city authorities.

The heat index is a measure of what the temperature feels like, taking humidity, wind speed and other factors into account.

“Warning: the heat index today is ‘extremely dangerous’. Please avoid activities outdoors,” the Bangkok City Authority’s environment department wrote in a Facebook post.

“The heat index is classed as extremely dangerous when it goes above 52 degrees Celsius.”

April is typically the hottest and most humid time of the year in Thailand, but conditions this year have been exacerbated by the El Nino weather pattern.

The kingdom has sweltered through a heatwave this week, with a temperature of 44.2C recorded in the northern province of Lampang on Monday — just shy of the all-time national record of 44.6C.

But for many who make their living on the streets of the city, staying indoors is not an option.

“I feel like almost fainting when I work outdoors these days but I don’t have any choice, do I?” motorcycle taxi driver Boonsri Waenkaew told AFP.

Food hawker Buppha Nakhin, grilling meatballs at a street stall in downtown Bangkok, said she tried to stay in the shade.

“It’s very hot. The hot weather this year is the most extreme,” she told AFP.

“Sometimes I feel dizzy but (did) not faint yet.”

The hot weather is expected to continue in the coming days, and the government has urged people to stay hydrated, apply sunscreen and exercise indoors to avoid heatstroke.

Global temperatures hit record highs last year, and the United Nations weather and climate agency said Tuesday that Asia was warming at a particularly rapid pace.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

A Canadian tourist in Thailand died on Wednesday after falling from a moving train en route to “Death Island”. According to The Independent, 24-year-old Ryan Joseph Ralph was travelling with his British girlfriend Shona Morgan, 22, when he fell from the overnight locomotive from Bangkok on March 20. Ms Morgan had flown to Thailand to be with his boyfriend, who had been travelling in the country for just over a month, to celebrate his birthday. The couple were trying to reach Koh Tao island in the south of Thailand when the tragedy struck. 

A couple of hours into the journey, Mr Ralph had left his girlfriend sleeping while he went for a cigarette at the end of the carriage, many of which have no doors or barriers. As per The Independent, the tourist is believed to have been injured after falling off the train before being pulled briefly along the tracks. 

Ms Morgan said she raised the alarm when she woke up an hour later and he was missing. Nearly 200 police officers and rescuers then joined a search for the 24-year-old. Police believe that the tourist lost his footing while the train was still moving, before dragging himself underneath to escape the wheels. However, he later passed out and died from blood loss, the outlet reported. 

Also Read | UK Woman, 33, Scarred For Life And Left Wheelchair Bound After Hot Water Bottle Explodes

The couple had been planning to celebrate Mr Ralph’s birthday at Koh Island, which has been dubbed “Death Island” following the 2014 murders of two British tourists. He was found dead on Thursday, under a newly built platform at a station in the Ratchaburi province. Cops said that he was found with severe injuries on both legs. 

“He had in his pocket a wallet containing various documents and Thai banknotes,” Police Lieutenant Colonel Rathnont Kasemchaisit said. “From the preliminary investigation, there were no traces of assault,” he added. 

Separately, a rail worker said he was shocked when he found the 24-year-old dead. 

Meanwhile, there have been a series of deaths on Thailand’s trains which are often blamed for poor safety standards. In 2014, a 19-year-old died when he fell from a train on the same route, as per the outlet. In 2017, a 20-year-old British tourist was also left in intensive care after falling from a moving train on the same journey. 

An EVA Air flight (BR67) from Bangkok to London was forced to make an emergency landing at Heathrow Airport on Friday after a passenger attempted suicide inside the airplane bathroom, according to The Metro.

Cabin crew discovered the passenger during the plane’s descent when they noticed someone was still in the restroom. Upon checking on the passenger, they found them in a condition that suggested a possible suicide attempt, as per news report.

The identity of the passenger and the reason behind the attempt remain unknown. Crew members and a doctor onboard provided first aid to the passenger.

The plane landed at around 7:30 pm local time, where medical personnel awaited to transport the passenger to a hospital. There are currently no updates on the passenger’s condition.

EVA Air confirmed the incident but has not provided any further details or responded to requests for comment.

Earlier this year, another incident caused a flight to divert. In January, a Ryanair flight from the UK to Spain was forced to land unexpectedly in Portugal due to a fight among passengers.

According to news report, a group of possibly intoxicated men were harassing female passengers on the flight. The situation escalated when a flight attendant tried to intervene, but was allegedly knocked unconscious by the unruly passengers. This prompted the captain to issue a warning and ultimately divert the plane.

The passenger added that the group didn’t pay any heed to the captain’s warning, and the brawl continued for 20 minutes. Just after it all, in the next 20 minutes, the flight landed in Portugal.

Visitors head to the Siam Paragon Mall in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

The teenage boy who allegedly shot two people dead and wounded five others inside a major shopping mall in the center of Thailand’s capital used a mock handgun that had been modified to fire real bullets, police said Wednesday, October 4, 2023.

The suspect was taken into custody less than an hour after the first gunshots Tuesday afternoon at the Siam Paragon Mall, one of Bangkok’s biggest and most upscale shopping destinations.

Video uploaded to social media and broadcast on television showed a long-haired teenage boy in the custody of police. Major Thai media reported he was 14 years old and a student at a prominent private school. Recently appointed Police Chief Torsak Sukvimol confirmed only that he is a minor and had a record of being treated for mental illness.

Assistant National Police Chief Samran Nualma said at a news conference Wednesday that the weapon used was “a plastic gun and adapted to use with real bullets.” It has variously been described as originally intended to fire blanks or BBs.

Samran said the authorities were looking into the regulation of such items. Mock weapons are popular among military buffs in Thailand and can be freely purchased. Licensing of real guns is restricted and limited to people 20 years or older. The penalty for unlawful possession of a firearm is up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 20,000 baht ($538).

The Minister of Tourism and Sports, Sudawan Wangsuppakitkosol, confirmed at the news conference that a Chinese citizen and a Myanmar citizen had died. She said five people were hospitalized — one from China, one from Laos and three Thais — and that several were in critical condition.

‘Confidence building measures needed’

“We need to rebuild confidence. We will discuss with the National Police putting safety measures in malls and communities to prevent such incidents,” she said.

Siam Paragon installed metal detectors at its entrances during political tensions several years ago, but recently they have been only casually monitored. Security guards were conducting hand searches of customers’ bags at entrances on Wednesday. Inside, workers were repairing the front of a luxury shop that was apparently damaged by the gunfire.

Thailand is relying on its once-robust tourism industry for a full economic recovery after the coronavirus pandemic. It is especially encouraging visitors from China, who before the pandemic were by far the largest national group. But Chinese social media have lately been filled with warnings about safety in Thailand because of some high-profile crimes and scam operations.

Gun violence is not uncommon in Thailand, though mass shootings are rare.

The incident occurred days before Thais are to mark the anniversary of the country’s biggest mass killing by an individual, a gun and knife attack at a rural day care center in a northeastern province that killed 36 people, most of them preschoolers, on Oct. 6, 2022.

In 2020, a disgruntled soldier opened fire in and around a mall in the northeastern city of Nakhon Ratchasima, killing 29 people and holding off security forces for about 16 hours before eventually being killed by them.

Tuesday’s shooting prompted authorities to temporarily shut access to the nearby Siam Square elevated train stop, preventing commuters from exiting at the key transfer point as the evening rush hour began and intense rain pounded the city.

Although gun laws in Thailand are relatively restrictive, the country has one of the highest levels of gun ownership in Asia, according to GunPolicy.org, a research project at Australia’s University of Sydney.

There are about 10 guns per 100 people in Thailand, including those owned illegally, compared with less than one per 100 in neighboring Malaysia, the project said.