16 dead in Thailand floods
Posted: 21 September 2008 1337 hrs

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BANGKOK : Severe flooding across Thailand has left at least 16 people dead and affected more than half a million people, the government said Sunday.

Floods caused by heavy rain have deluged 21 of Thailand's 76 provinces in the north, east and centre of the kingdom, affecting almost 700,000 people, the disaster prevention department said.

Nearly 1,900 houses, hundreds of roads and tens of thousands of acres of farmland have been damaged in the floods, which began earlier this month, they said.

The health ministry said more than 123,000 people had been given flood-related medical care in the last 10 days.

The disaster prevention department said two people remained missing. It did not say how the 16 people were killed, but local media reports said most had been swept away in flood waters.

Authorities are delivering food, drinking water and medicine to those affected, officials said.

- AFP/vm/ir