ReliefWeb

The Ministry of Public Health instructs provincial public health offices in flood-affected provinces to impose measures to take care of health and hygiene of people and urgently repair toilets for them to prevent diseases.

Permanent Secretary for Public Health Md.Prat Boonyavongvirot expresses concerns over flood conditions in almost 20 provinces across the country. He says a new storm which is likely to hit the country may worsen the situation.

Hospitals under the ministry in the provinces of Saraburi and Lop Buri have also been affected by inundation. The damage was estimated at ten million baht. The permanent secretary says the provincial public health offices are required to report the flood situation to the war room of each flood-affected province everyday at 14.00 hrs. Weekly reports on the flood situation will be submitted to the minister of public health and Cabinet meetings respectively.

Md.Prat says he has assigned each of the provinces to distribute black plastic bags to the people and ask them to use the bags instead of dropping their excrement in water to prevent water-borne diseases. 8,000 sets of medicines have been distributed to the flood-affected in Phitsanulok, Phichit, and Nakhon Nayok.