Although his own home area was affected, the young leading actor's fighting spirit remains unbroken. “Aum Atichart Chumnanon” Recently, he had the chance to visit and assist many affected communities across Bangkok and other provinces. We recently caught up with “Aum” to hear his story. “Young Aum” shared a deeply moving account of his experiences.
How was your experience on the flood relief ground?
I have to say it was heartbreaking. Our home was flooded during that period; we had seen the forecasts, but when it hit, there was no preparation. For example, the day before, I had to move my car myself, and my vehicle registration was lost. With the traffic jams, we had to help ourselves first at home and at the factory. Once the factory stabilized and the warehouse was okay, I started checking out the surrounding districts. When I arrived, I saw volunteers gathering, everyone helping however they could. At Romklao Housing, I thought multiple agencies would be assisting, but although many were there, almost all were volunteers, including some government units acting as volunteers. I asked the onsite workers if there was a command center or coordination point, and they said everyone just acted voluntarily. The distress was huge: a single building housed at least a thousand people, and there were over 20 such buildings.
Boats and vehicles couldn’t reach these places. Crucially, the water was above the roofs, so no work was possible. After the water receded, where would people find money to repair cars, buy food, or fix their homes? This wasn’t only in Bangkok; I also went to Prachinburi and Chachoengsao, where farmers faced similar issues. The soil didn’t recover even after the water went down in three days. It’s a massive problem, and it saddened me. I wished I could do more, but what I could do was to provide relief bags and moral support. Sometimes, the residents were so overwhelmed that they forgot to accept the supplies, busy taking photos. That was their short-term happiness.
This area doesn’t flood every year, right?
Based on what locals told me, many of the flooded places never expected such flooding and had no prior experience dealing with it. Some areas were caught unprepared with no one organizing preparations. But in some places, like Chachoengsao, local leaders such as the subdistrict chief organized well, setting up emergency shelters where residents stayed with continuous food supplies from the kitchen. They had community halls for shelter, but many had no homes to return to, so the impact was widespread. Ultimately, people helped themselves, but I also saw some government officials, like district chiefs and subdistrict heads, who worked tirelessly, coordinating and checking on food, electricity, and water levels. However, in some places, I didn’t see such presence, although they might have been working behind the scenes.
Did residents share anything with you?
Many stories, too many to cover even after three days of interviews. One that struck me was an elderly woman in Don Mueang. When we visited, she was unwell, with floodwaters reaching her knees. After the waters receded, she passed away from leptospirosis—she had wounds and waded through water to get supplies, even though the water wasn’t very deep. I saw this with my own eyes when we handed her relief bags and wished her a speedy recovery. Two days later, the team informed me of her death. It was heartbreaking because I witnessed it firsthand.
Can you comment on the compensation issues for residents?
I believe everyone has already talked extensively about that, so no need to ask me. It’s all over social media. From what I saw, a relief bag probably costs between 500 and 1,000 baht since we have to buy supplies. Simple things at home need repair, and many cannot work, leading to significant losses. For example, at Romklao Housing and Khlong Chan, entire cars were damaged. It’s overwhelming. I won’t say more as the topic is widely discussed—better to listen to those reports.
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