A mass of cool air drifting down from China has given Chiang Mai an unseasonal taste of winter, even as the rainy season grinds on. The mild chill settled over the city on Monday morning, and tourists who’d made the climb up to the Doi Suthep viewpoint in Mueang district got an unexpected bonus with their skyline views. Up at the summit of Doi Inthanon in Chom Thong district, the temperature dropped to 10 degrees Celsius.
The cool air hasn’t pushed the rain out, though. The Northern Meteorological Center is still warning of heavy rainfall in pockets across the upper north, including Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Chiang Rai and Lampang, with the usual cautions about flash floods, runoff from the hills and landslides in areas on slopes or near waterways.
The more pressing number comes from the Regional Water Resources Office 1 in Chiang Mai, under the Department of Water Resources. Its soil moisture index, known as the API, jumped at Ban Mae Sun Noi in Mae Sun subdistrict, Fang district, from 145.9 yesterday to 181.5 today. That puts the area in the red alert zone. Officials say the risk is highest in spots with a history of flooding, since the ground has taken on so much rain it simply can’t absorb any more. Local authorities are keeping a close watch on the situation.
