PATHUM THANI — Two sections of Leab Khlong 4 Road in Khlong Luang district have been closed to traffic after subsidence forced emergency repair crews to be called out.
District authorities cordoned off the road for fear of another fatal accident in the area. Last month a motorcyclist was killed and his pillion passenger badly hurt when he drove into a collapsed section of roadway in neighbouring Nong Sua district.
Officials were called to Leab Khlong 4 road on Friday when the first subsidence of about two metres deep and 50 metres long on the western side was found in Moo 2 village. They found another section of collapsed road of almost the same depth and width on the same day in Moo 8 village.
Sampao Ngarmhong, 57, who lives near the subsidence in Moo 8, said she heard the sound of a loud crack on Friday afternoon while she was inside her house. She rushed out to see what was happening and found the road in front of her house had subsided by almost two metres. She said the cracks were only a few metres from her property and she was worried they could pose a danger to her house if it continued.
Officials at Khlong 4 tambon administration organisation have erected barricades and warning signs and lights at the two spots and declared them off-limits to all vehicles.
Tambon chief Pratuang Wongchang believed the subsidence may have been caused by Khlong 4 canal which runs along the road drying up. He said the Royal Irrigation Department had had no water to release into the canal since last year.
Mr Pratuang said he had urged provincial authorities to investigate the cause of the collapses and fix the road quickly for fear of further slips or fatal accidents. He said the TAO did not have the funds to repair the road, though the cost has yet to be estimated.
He said the road slip would not affect residents much because motorists can still use the eastern side of Leab Khlong 4 Road.
Photo by Pongpat Wongyala