central bank: Floods cause 3.24 bln dollars damage to Thai industries

Bank of Thailand governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul estimated Monday that damage caused by heavy floods in many industrial parks in central Ayutthaya province is expected to reach about 100 billion baht (3.24 billion US dollars). Five industrial estates in hard-hit Ayutthaya, also a home to ancient temples, were inundated last week as all government\'s attempts to protect them from flood waters totally failed. The cost of damage to those industrial estates was about one percent of the country\'s gross domestic product, according to the governor. Nationwide approximately 352,025 workers in flood-stricken 15 provinces have their jobs suspended. In Ayutthaya only, 616 businesses have been submerged and nearly 200,000 workers suffered. Over 300 people have been killed so far in the country\'s worst flooding in decades while more than 200 highways and roads became impassable and north bound rail lines were suspended by floods which have affected two-thirds of the country.