Myanmar, Flood Warnings Come After the Floods

 U Kyaw Swa, an environmental activist, received an urgent government warning on Saturday to evacuate his home immediately because of the danger of heavy flooding in eastern Myanmar.

But it was too late.

The water had arrived nearly 24 hours earlier and flooded his home so quickly that he and his family had to be plucked by boat from a second-floor window.

“The flow of water was so fast, our house was flooded in 30 minutes,” he said. “We have nothing, and now we have to start our life from the beginning.”

This year’s monsoon season has brought crippling floods to many parts of Southeast Asia. In some cases, poor dam construction, deforestation and a lack of emergency preparations have worsened the effects.

In Myanmar, heavy flooding in eight states has killed at least 10 people since Friday and prompted the evacuation of more than 50,000, officials said.

In neighboring Laos, a dam failure during heavy monsoon rains last week caused widespread flooding that killed an undetermined number of people and left more than 130 missing. Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes without their belongings or animals.

In the Thai cave rescue, 13 people were treated as human beings by the military government,” said Mr. Kyaw Swa, who works for the Karen Environmental and Social Action Network in the now-flooded city of Hpa-An. “But in the Myanmar flood, many people are suffering and we are not informed by the government, as usual.”

In Myanmar, the heaviest flooding has hit the states of Mon and Kayin, especially along the Thanlwin River, which flows from the Tibetan Plateau through the city of Mawlamyine and into the Andaman Sea. There has also been heavy flooding to the north along the smaller Belin River.

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The water has engulfed farms, washed-out roads and flooded homes. Rescuers go by boat to pull residents from their rooftops. Boats zip down roadways and refuel at gas stations meant for motor vehicles.

Monks, maintaining their tradition of collecting alms every morning, wade through chest-deep water with their begging bowls.

Monsoons have long caused floods in Myanmar. Three years ago, flooding killed about 100 people around the country and forced more than 330,000 to flee their homes.