By Chularat Saengpassa
The Nation
The sharp drop in temperatures over the past few days makes it seem as if winter has returned to Thailand.
The mercury plummeted to between 16 and 18 degrees Celsius in Bangkok and its neighbouring provinces, while the temperature on Doi Inthanon, the country's highest peak, plunged to just 3.4 degrees yesterday.
Meteorological Department acting chief Somchai Baimuang said yesterday that the drop in temperatures had stemmed from an intensely high-pressure ridge, which was now hovering over Thailand.
"Never before in my working life have the temperatures dropped as much as 10 degrees in a single day. Never before have I experienced a winter in the summer," he said.
The cold weather has become a hot topic on Web boards and social-networking websites. One user posted: "I took a motorcycle to work this morning and, while going down Sathorn Road, I thought this must be the coldest day in the decade." Another said: "It was extremely hot last weekend. Then, we had heavy rains on Monday and Tuesday … and now it's so cold … this reminds me of the movie '2012'."
Meanwhile, a two-metre high wave hit Chon Buri province on Wednesday night, completely destroying five houses and sinking 10 boats.
"I've never seen a wave this high before. It was up to two-metres high," fisherman Muen Jitkawan said, adding that his fellow fishermen were talking about the possibility of a tsunami hitting Pattaya.
In Surat Thani, rough waves also sank about 10 boats, but there were no casualties. The sea was too hostile for ferries to Koh Pha-ngan.
"The waves are much stronger than last year, and small fishing trawlers should not venture out," Surat Thani Governor Thirayut Iamtrakoon said.
The Meteorological Department has predicted strong waves in the Gulf of Thailand, and is advising all ships to proceed with caution and small boats to stay anchored until Saturday.
Meanwhile, Somchai said the drop in temperatures had nothing to do with the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
A senior meteorologist said yesterday that this cold weather was unusual and caused by ocean winds from the West that were encountering cool winds from China, which made the cold last longer and brought on rains.
Anont Sanitwong na Ayutthaya, director of the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, said the weather would be unpredictable due to changes in the |wind's direction |and sea currents.
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