We are 2 in a Million- Marooned in Thailand

Flooding and collapsed bungalows in Thongnaipan Koh Phangan Island

29 March 2011 BREAKING NEWS: 1 Million people stranded as floods rage through Thailand’s South ...in Dry Season? 

Monsoon rains, winds and waves will typically pass over Thailand in November’s rainy season leaving large puddles, muddy roads and bored tourists. In the hot and dry season, you can expect to see the locals celebrating the heat wave, splashing and dancing with buckets of water in the streets.



Locals wading through main street Thongnaipan
photo courtesy of Miss Choi

 Two weeks before Songkran Water Festival (Thailand’s dry season celebration) one million people are trapped in knee to neck deep water sloshing through mud and debris searching for a roof that won’t drain on their head, a simple meal, siphoned fuel or worse, buried in landslides.

31 March 2011 BREAKING NEWS: Thai Navy rescues tourists stranded on flooding islands…In Dry Season?


Touists climing up the Navy ships
photo courtesy of Yahoo news



Desperate and scared Thais and travelers climbed up emergency nets dangling from the side of a Thai Royal Navy ship today while others were transferred by helicopter onto Thailand’s only Air Craft Carrier and transported to a naval base outside of heavily flooded mainland regions.

What are the chances Brian and Brenda would be stranded on that island? I’d say the chances were "Two in a Million" but we've always  been lucky.

Thongnaipan Boat Storm- morning after School Party

It was a weird season on Koh Phangan Island anyway with frequent short rains and cooler temperatures. We knew something was wrong as we sipped our coffee and watched from our sea view balcony, a phenomenon which was the beginning of a long stream of disasters. A calm turquoise bay suddenly turned from shades of blue to shades of black. Large rolling waves appeared on the horizon and boats danced on the water like a playground of teeter-totters. We ran to the beach to check the fishermen’s boats which normally drift gently behind a protected reef. Scanning the bay we could see about 25 boats dipping behind walls of water and reappearing in a white spray.

The traditional Longtail boats pulled against their lines until the sea cut them free. Fishermen swam into the waves avoiding a collision with drifting boats and started their engines. The roar of the engines mixed with the roar of an angry sea and then the roar of thunder surrounded the entire bay.

 

Pulling Longtail Boats to safety

Everyone watched the boatmen skillfully maneuvered the waves, then run the boats full speed aground onto the beach. With each landing, all the men ran to the boats to heave them onto the shore and secure them to palm trees. The entire morning sounded of engines, thunder, crashing waves and the cadence of 50 exhausted men pulling boats to safety.


Two speedboats tumbling onto the beach



The rain fell and the lightening cracked and Brian returned drenched and sore to a beachfront restaurant needing a rest. The head waiter paled with fear as the storm blew furniture around the restaurant while he told us of the dream he had during the night recalling tsunami waves and a washed out resort. We all stared through blustering plastic screens as the remaining speedboats in the bay began to break anchor and crashed into the shore. We could see there was no hope of recovery, for the large waves captured and tossed them through the sea until the tide left them in a heap on the beach surrounded by their broken debris.

beached boat



boat carnage




boat graveyard at PinJun Resort



Brian taking advantage of some windy days

The next week brought a small earthquake to northern Thailand but the weather calmed to gray skies with occasional sun and wind. We welcomed the change and sailed the bay on our wind board, confident that the dry season had finally arrived. We were wrong. Long dreary days of rain returned and we retreated to the indoors, boring ourselves of movies and books, then reserved our flight out of the soggy province.



Brenda getting cold,wet and grumpy



Sitting with friends we complained of the lousy rainy weather causing our inconsistent internet and power cuts saying “It has to get better soon, it can’t get worse.” We were wrong. A full day of downpours started cutting into the landscape and small flooding began in the center of Thongnaipan village. The new concrete road and manhole covers filtered the water but did not fully accept the capacity of this massive rain. The early morning was busy with sandbagging and blockades were put up to divert the flows. The power failed again and we waded through the streets looking for mobile signals knowing that it must get better as it couldn’t be worse.

Post Office road turing into rappids

We were wrong. Heavier unstoppable rains continued to fall, trees began to fall, power poles began to fall and waters began to rise. Thunder and lightning splintered the dark sky and then a mountain of waterfalls rolled down the hills, streets and pathways streaming into the village at increased speeds. The water formed rivers, waves and excavated falls through dirt roads while making its way to the sea.

Thick, brown debris filled water, tunneled below the new concrete road and broke off chunks of cement while the sidewalk and light poles collapsed in heaps.

Game Bar hosting Monsoon Rain Parties

We gathered at night with friends around candles telling stories and jokes trying to keep our spirits up, tolerating a few warm beers at our Early Songkran Party. In the beginning, we were entertained with white water kayaking through the village until the full force of combined water cut a deep crevasse through a resort, collapsing bungalows to the ground. These were the bungalows at PinJun Resort which we lived in for the 10 previous years and it deeply saddened our dampened spirits.

A final farewell to Pinjun Bungalows. RIP
(moment of silence please)

 

Paradise Garden Resort under water

For two days, flooding spread through the village, cascading through homes, shops and resorts while cutting new rivers, washouts and causing more damage. Along with the initial power failure, came the failure of electric water pumps to fill tanks. There was no running water, no flushing toilets, no showers and then the water table rose until the septic tanks were full. We went home each night, cold, wet, shocked and depressed into a dark, molding, stinking but safe house. We woke to long gray days, conserved our gas and candles and collected rain water from our roof to clean and store for the days ahead. We had an emergency plan, our bags were packed and we were ready to get off the island so that we could catch our scheduled flight to Bankok and back to the states. We knew it would be better soon, but we had already had enough.



Fishing- for debris?
photo courtesy of Miss Choi



Construction workers camp under water

We were wrong. High winds brought huge waves and we watched Mother Nature continue to devastate the bay. Water was tumbling from the hills behind us and waves were eating away the beach in front of us. Beach front restaurants and resorts were being undermined and we woke to fallen trees, a collapsed business and beach furniture debris scattered across the bay.

Andi next to Mr T's house

PinJun's new restaurant seating blown to the ground

The way to Ta's Shop and Pens Bunglalows

A few resorts on the bay had generators but they did not have access to additional fuel, so after siphoning fuel from vehicles, power was rationed as well as food and water. We ate what was available as the freezers thawed. There was no power for 5 days and no phones, internet or access into our saturated, dark, disaster zone.

collecting water in the miserable wetness

Tourists were already scared but when they realized that the only road out of Thong Nai Pan village was now washed out in two places, they slowly began to break down. Word of mouth news was arriving throughout the day reporting severe flooding and landslides burying entire villages on the mainland. We learned that all transportation to/from southern mainland Thailand was closed. Additionally the high waves prevented all ferry boats from getting to or from our island. There is no airport on ko Phangan island and we had no means of travel out of the village. Even if we could get off the island, there was nowhere to go. We were officially stranded and isolated on Thongnaipan bay.

bridge washout

As the contaminated waters flowed, fuel and food depleted and the risk of someone needing medical attention rose. It became apparent that Thongnaipan bay needed to be evacuated of tourists so efforts were made to build temporary bridges over the washed out rivers. Trucks transported guests to the first crossing and those that would walk the plank, made their way through the river with a hand rope. A hike through the mud and over the next bridge crossing would bring them to a truck that would be waiting to complete their journey through the jungle and into the main town. We bade them a safe farewell and were relieved to see them headed to better communication and some power. One step closer to the pier was at least a moving direction.

first log bridges accross the washouts
photo courtesy of Mr O

Except later in the night and after resorts were closed down, they came back completely exhausted, cold, scared and hungry. They told us that by the time they made it to the second bridge passage, the waters had risen to chest level and no one wanted to risk the journey in the fast moving water. They headed back to the first bridge but in the same time, the temporary planks there had washed out as well. They were stuck between the two washouts the entire day waiting in a monsoon storm for the road crew to build a different temporary solution. When guests from Longtail Beach Resort arrived back to a dark abandoned Resort, the staff offered lamps, washing water and delivered dinner to their rooms.

Good bye and Good Luck
photo courtesy of Mr O

The road crew continued to work with the ever changing situation of fallen trees, shifting rivers and constant heavy rains until new temporary bridges were made through and over the three different washouts. The next afternoon, guests braved the journey one more time. This time Brian accompanied with safety gear and was prepared to rig a zip line and harness system if the situation allowed or called for it.
The first plank crossing was built higher but above a deep raging river and without possibility of hand lines. Brian and other local Thais bounced across2x6 planks carrying the guest’s luggage while a stream of 30 trembling tourists followed behind making their way safely across the river.

The road out of Thongnaipan
photo courtesy of Mr O

Guests were told to remain while Brian and the guys hiked about 2 kilometers through the jungle and mountains to evaluate the safety of the next crossing and find a truck to send back to those waiting. At the next bridge the Thais had rigged a supply trolley line and were floating barrels of fuel across the river. Overnight, a tree had fallen down river making a partial walkway. It was a dodgy two part crossing through a pineapple plantation up a submerged tree and across a final stretch of planks. They had made it safely so far and were determined to continue on. Beyond a few fears and tears everyone finished the journey into town.

Brian and Kim seeing that guests cross safely
photo courtesy of Mr. O

Unfortunately Thongsala Town and pier is as far as they could go until the next day when the Thai Navy responded to the crisis and arrived to the islands. Helicopters hovered above and evacuated the hospitals. The ship was nearly full from evacuating Koh Tao, a neighboring island but made room for an additional 200 sick and needy people. Over a thousand Thais and tourists lined up hoping for the chance to make another leg of the journey. Those that went were loaded on frigates, and climbed up the side of a Navy Vessel on emergency ladder nets.

The Royal Thai Navy has returned and is continuing to offer assistance and transport while delivering food and water to the islands and providing temporary shelters to millions affected by the storm.

Flash floods and landslides still remain a problem everywhere in the south with sporadic heavy rain fall. The water is draining out of the mountains, the skies are looking a bit lighter, the main street in the village is almost above water today and we are hopeful. Electricity has just come back in waves, and we are thankful to have mobile phones and random internet again. Our flight to Bangkok was canceled as the airport we were booked on, remains under water. We missed our flight to the states but it’s all being rearranged and we should be home in about 10 days. We will wait to leave the island until we know that our home is safe, the village is recovering and we are not needed for clean up.

fallen trees, sliding boulders and dangling power poles
make the way to the pier a dangerous route

For now, we are simply thankful that no one on the bay was injured and ever more thankful for imitation light, running water, a hot shower and access to the world outside of Thongnaipan village. Our small scale disaster is nothing in comparison to the devastation in Japan but we have learned much about our community and friends here in Thailand. We are grateful for our extended Thai and expat family who have supported us through this adversity. We feel fortunate that these friends are some of the Million that we were stranded with.
"Indebted thanks to Thailand for an organized, painless and safe evacuation of the islands."

"And thanks for the invitation, but we’ll skip the dry season's Songkran Water Festival this year."



Thanks to Mr A
for always taking care





Thanks to the entire Longtail Beach
Resort Staff for feeding us













 



 


 

 

Thanks to 'Meenu Man' and
Havanna staff for their friendship
& taking care of our
communiction needs

A BIG Thank you to Mr O
manager of Longtail Resort
Proven to be a true leader
through difficult times











First mobile service and calls out to family
Thanks to Miss Nok for pre-cooking the entire fridge



Regrets to Miss A for another big loss at PinJun and
Thanks to Miss A and Miss Choi for their support
Thanks to Andi at Nu Bar for never ending friendship



To our Big PinJun Family: Thanks for the Memories