Capital anxiously bracing for worst flood waters in decades

(15 Oct 2011) Nonthaburi 1. Wide of flooded houses on the banks of the Chao Phraya river, pan to river 2. Various of flooded houses on the banks of the Chao Phraya river 3. Wide of flooded house surrounded by sandbags 4. Wide of man wading through floodwater 5. Wide of people travelling in boats 6. Various of submerged houses near banks of Chao Phraya river 7. Various of flooded cafes at roadside 8. Wide of people looking at flooded area next to Pakkret pier, pan to flooded area with sandbags 9. Wide of house surrounded by floodwater 10. Wide of floodwater, then to sandbags blocking water from stores 11. Child playing in shallow floodwater 12. Wide of store with sandbags in foreground Pathum Thani 13. Wide of Pathum Thani resident, Boonprahn Sangsun sitting in a truck that has been made into living quarters 14. Tilt up from flood water to Sangsun in the truck 15. Mid of Sangsun with fan in foreground 16. Tilt up of her hammocks 17. Mid of her supplies 18. Wide of her living quarters 19. Baby sleeping under blankets on the floor in the truck 20. SOUNDBITE: (Thai) Boonprahn Sangsun, Pathum Thani Resident: "Well, my house is flooded, right. So we can't stay there. So we have to live here. My knees, I have two bad legs. So being here, I'm stressed. Sometimes there's no bathroom, so it's difficult." 21. Boy sitting on a makeshift raft on flooded road 22. Wide of two boys on the raft 23. Tilt up from girl walking in flood waters to the boys on the raft 24. Various driving shots of the flood and its effects 25. Pan from a man on a truck to traffic 26. Close of a truck's wheels driving through water 27. SOUNDBITE: (Thai) No name given, flood victim: "Well, it's scary. The water rises. It keeps rising and rising and the whole house is flooded." 28. Various of traffic queue on bridge 29. Various of people riding on the back of a patrol car 30. Mid of traffic STORYLINE: Residents of Bangkok and surrounding provinces were bracing themselves on Saturday as they waited to see if fortified barriers erected in strategic areas north of the Thai capital can stop the deadliest floods in decades from reaching the city. The latest floods are posing the biggest test those defences have ever faced. Water rushing down from the north toward the sea is expected to be bolstered by heavy rains due this weekend. Incessant monsoon rains have killed nearly 300 people in Thailand since July, part of a wave of extreme weather, including back-to-back typhoons, that has plagued Asia this year. Rising ocean tides are expected to slow a critical outflow of water from the Chao Phraya River, which winds through Bangkok and into the Gulf of Thailand. Houses on the banks of the Chao Phraya, as it cuts through the province of Nonthaburi, remained submerged. Nonthaburi is a province in central Thailand just north of the capital, but is considered part of outer Bangkok. Residents in Pathum Thani, another province close to Bangkok, have been forced out of their homes because of rising flood waters. One woman, Boonprahn Sangsun, has been living inside a truck with her nephew. Her sisters, brother-in-law and father are staying with neighbours. "Well, my house is flooded, right. So we can't stay there. So we have to live here," she said. Other residents say they simply walked around all night because there was nowhere to sleep. "Well, it's scary. The water rises. It keeps rising and rising and the whole house is flooded," another resident said. There is also the obvious fear that supplies may run out. Cars drove slowly on flooded roads if they could move at all. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...