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.

Pet Rescue: Bangkok

Yelping terriers, wayward crocodiles, several dozen felines, a hairless poodle and a certified cat lady: While the floods in Bangkok have rendered thousands homeless, volunteers are scouring the city, rescuing--or in some cases, capturing--stranded pets.

"I can't live here any longer," says Tuanjai Chanpeng, standing outside her home in water that reaches up to her chest, "but I'm not leaving without my cats."

In this radio piece for PRI's The World, I spend a day with Bangkok's pet rescue brigade.

Surging waters consume Bangkok neighbourhoods

“We thought we were prepared,” says Rattima Srichan, standing waist-deep in floodwater on a Bangkok street, “but we didn’t know the water would be this high.”

The massive floods that have engulfed Thailand over the last three months are still rushing south toward Bangkok's core: A new radio piece from Bangkok, where rising floodwaters continue to surround the Thai capital and push thousands of residents from their submerged homes.

This story first aired on PRI's The World.

Thailand's lèse majesté laws under scrutiny

Thailand is facing mounting international pressure to reform its sweeping lese majeste laws. But observers say leaders in the Southeast Asian nation may have little appetite to significantly change the controversial legislation.

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Fueling conflict in Burma

"If they don't have school, how will they survive when they grow up?"
Burma is pushing to develop its energy sector. But new hydropower dams and mining projects are exacerbating tensions between Burmese soldiers and armed ethnic militias, leaving civilians trapped in between. A radio feature.

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