115 highways in 23 provinces in Thailand still flooded

Wanchai Phakluck, director-general of the Department of Highways, on Wednesday announced that there are 115 highways in 23 provinces still being flooded. Of these roads, 55 spots are still passable while some 75 spots are severely damaged and crippled, the director-general said. Wanchai also warned drivers should be more careful while driving and should check the traffic conditions at least one hour before starting a journey. According to another report issued by the department on Tuesday, 535 highways in 64 provinces across the country have been flooded, causing damage cost of over 5 billion baht (163 million U.S. dollars). Some 67 of those were impassable as damages were serious. Highways in northern 16 provinces were the most hard-hit ones, the report said. Heavy rains and widespread floods have lashed the country along with other Southeast Asian nations since July. Thailand\'s worst floods in over 50 years have so far claimed at least 317 lives, affected some 2.4 million and submerged thousands of factories. The initial damage cost was expected at 3.3 billion U.S. dollars, according to the central bank.