What happened when a flood barrier split a Bangkok neighbourhood in half

"It changes people. It makes good people go mad."A long barrier of dirt and mud runs down the length of Hathai Mit Road. For weeks, this makeshift dike has been one of Bangkok’s last lines of defense. It’s kept floodwater from rushing south, into a key industrial zone, and on to Bangkok’s central core.

On one side of the road, the simple homes have been submerged in chest-deep water for weeks. But the barrier kept the other half of this village dry--until last week, when dozens of frustrated villagers living north of the barrier tore it down.

In this radio piece for PRI's The World, I look at how a flood barrier divided one Bangkok community.