Thailand PM pledges more funds for flood recovery

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra pledged more than $4 billion on Wednesday to help
Thailand recover from the worst floods in half a century, as workers slowed the flow of water threatening the commercial heart of the capital, Bangkok.

Tropical storm Nock-ten battered Thailand in late July, and since then, at least 529 people
have been killed in the floods.

The government has set up evacuation centres in public buildings, including several schools.

“The government, with the private organizations, has cooperated quite will,” said Dr. Apichart Intravisit, a professor at Assumption University in Bangkok and a representative of the Catholic Social Commission of Thailand.

He told Vatican Radio the Catholic Church has been very active in relief efforts.

“The Catholic community, particularly in the suburban part of Bangkok, even in the periphery part of Thailand, have been quite instrumental in easing the situation,” Professor Apichart said. “The Camillian Fathers set up [an evacuation centre for the elderly]…the Redemptorists…set up evacuation parks for the handicapped…It really revealed the spirit of the Catholic community in Thailand at large.”

Listen to the full interview by Charles Collins with Dr. Apichart Intravisit: