Rescuers worked feverishly to evacuate forty patients as Bamnet Narong Hospital in Chaiyaphum was flooded on Sunday morning, seriously damaging the facility.
The Hook 31 rescue unit reported on Sunday afternoon that 26 patients were successfully transferred from the hospital in Bamnet Narong district to other hospitals in the province, while the Public Health Ministry said 14 less seriously ill patients were sent home.
Floodwaters rose in the district town and the hospital premises from Saturday night to Sunday morning due to the impact of tropical depression Dianmu, the storm that left about a dozen provinces under water -- with Chaiyaphum one of those hit hardest.
"All patients have been evacuated. All doctors, hospital staff and patients are safe," the rescue volunteer unit posted in a Facebook message.
Kiatiphum Wongrajit, the permanent secretary for public health, said Bamnet Narong and Sukhothai hospitals in the northern province were both damaged by flooding, but only Bannet Narong Hospital was forced to evacuate and shut its doors after water rose as high as 80 centimetres in one of the buildings.
An initial damage assessment found an X-ray room and several laboratories were among the units inundated, while seven ambulances and four other vehicles were submerged, according to the ministry.
Another severely hit province was Phetchabun, where a section of Road 21 remained closed to traffic on Sunday evening, with water levels rendering it impassible for all vehicles.
