Flood leak shuts Thai factory complex

Zoe Daniel, South-East Asia correspondent

Last Updated: Tue, 18 Oct 2011 02:46:00 +1100

Thai authorities have evacuated a key industrial estate after failing to stop a leak in a key flood wall.

Firest authorities issued a statement saying the Navanakorn industrial estate should escape major flooding.

But less than a day later the industrial area had been evacuated after two major breaches in a flood wall holding water back.

Four major industrial estates have already been inundated putting about 350,000 people out of work.

Thailand's government is confident it can protect central Bangkok from flooding but the outer suburbs and Northern provincial cities are suffering.

Water is metres deep in some places.

The government is building new canals and dredging others to try to move the water more quickly to the ocean.

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