Four people have died in flooding that has affected nine provinces over the past week, officials said Sunday. Two people died in flooding in Kratie province, one in Stung Treng province and another in Kandal province.
The flooding has risen above the emergency levels in Kratie and Stung Treng provinces, according to Nhim Vanda, deputy director of the National Committee for Disaster Management.
“Nine provinces have been affected by the flooding and only four people have died so far,” Mr. Vanda said. “The water levels are still rising so we cannot estimate how bad the damage will be yet.”
He added that the effect of Typhoon Rammasun, which has wreaked havoc across China, Vietnam and Laos in recent weeks, has added to the rise in northeastern provinces’ water levels.
The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology issued a warning regarding the effects of the typhoon on Friday, saying heavy rains could cause flooding between August 2 and 7.
Oum Vibol, director of Water Resources and Meteorology in Kompong Cham province, cited the typhoon as a reason for water levels rising faster than last year, but added that some flooding was “normal.”
Kratie provincial governor Sar Chamrong said four districts were experiencing floods above emergency levels.
“It’s not serious yet and we are preparing forces to help evacuate people to safe places,” Mr. Chamrong said Sunday, adding that about 1,700 hectares of rice paddies have been ruined in the flooding.
Stung Treng provincial police chief Mao Dara denied knowledge of any deaths in his province but said that the provincial hospital had flooded. He added that preparations for flooding have been in place for a month.
“We have prepared boats already to evacuate people to the safe places and people have also prepared themselves since the water started rising,” Mr. Dara said.
More than 1.8 million people were affected by last year’s floods resulting in about 168 deaths across the country.
