2. Highlights of 2011/2012
2-1. Report on the 2011 Thailand Floods(1)Unprecedented level and nature of disaster impact
The year 2011 has been marked by two particularly notable natural disasters: the Great East
Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, and the massive floods in Thailand. While the flooding inThailand is still continuing and even expanding toward the southern provinces, The Asian
Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) has been consulting with relevant organizations regarding
what types of support will be both needed and feasible during the recovery and restoration phases.
As part of these activities, ADRC sent a staff member to Bangkok, from 29 November to 2
December to assess the situation and identify areas in which ADRC might be able to provide
support. This was done by consulting with relevant organizations including the Thai government,
UN agencies, and other disaster management organizations.
The massive floods in the Chao Phraya basin have been gradually expanding downstream sincelast October, devastating Ayutthaya province in the central region and the Bangkok metropolitan
area and its environs. As of 6 December, approximately 1.75 million households and 4.7 million
people had been affected. These figures include 684 deaths and three missing persons, according
to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) of the Thai Ministry of Interior.
At the beginning of December, the overall situation seemed to be improving somewhat, as water
began subsiding in many affected areas and some factories resumed operations. However, theflood risk is still present, and it is likely to take quite some time before economic activity is
restored to pre-flood levels. According to one estimate, the Thai floods rank as the fourth largest
disaster in terms of economic damage, behind the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami,
Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji (Kobe) Earthquake, in that order.
The economic damage levels currently being reported primarily take into account direct damage
to assets, but do not necessarily include the indirect costs and losses of profit, especially thoseincurred due to the disruption of supply/production chains not only in Thailand but around theworld.

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2. Highlights of 2011/2012(2)Priorities in recovery process and current efforts
At individual factories, the highest priority is replacing damaged production equipment andreestablishing production lines. A scarcity of necessary equipment and competent professionals
may hamper early restoration efforts. Measures must be taken to improve protective facilities andraise the level of embankments in preparation for future flood risks. Great efforts must also betaken to retain skilled workers as well as to maintain hard-won supply and production networks
and to sustain relationships with local partners.

(3)ADRC’s initiatives
Many aid and UN agencies and research institutes have been already operating in the field. For
example, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has provided emergency supplies,
such as food, water, and tents, as well as special vehicles to help with water drainage, and hasoffered support to affected factories and agricultural sector industries. ADRC has been consultingwith the Thai government and with the UN and other agencies in Thailand to identify areas where
support is both possible and desirable. In the process, ADRC is carefully examining how
industries have been affected by the floods and is exploring ways to mitigate possible damages. It
may also prove useful to examine such topics as the disaster preparation of businesses andresidents, including disaster communications, the management of emergency shelters, andhousing recovery in the reconstruction process by comparing cases in Thailand with past cases inJapan. To do this, ADRC will continue to consult with relevant organizations and initiate relevant
activities, as deemed5