NONG KHAI -- Water in the Mekong River at this border town is rising alarmingly and municipality officials are preparing to shut drainage outlet pipes to prevent water from the river seeping into the city and causing flooding, reports said.
On Wednesday morning, the river level was 10.19 metres high, only 2.01 metres below the critical level, the provincial hydrological office of the Water Resources Department reported.
The water had been rising at a rate of 6 centimetres per hour during the previous 24 hours. If the increase continued at this rate, the river level was expected to be 1 metre higher on Thursday.
Nong Khai Municipality officials said that they were preparing to shut the town's drainage pipes to prevent water from the town emptying into the river.
