Cold weather claims lives in Northern Thailand

The cold weather has claimed another victim after a 68-year-old man was found dead in his home in Buriram province.

Police believe the man had died from the sudden drop in temperature, which reached 13 degrees Celsius on December 19 in many areas of the province.

Uttaradit provincial authorities earlier reported that two people have been killed by the cold weather. Local officials said residents have been struggling to cope with winter temperatures, which dropped to 9 degrees Celsius. Two elderly locals who have been suffering from asthma attacks died as a result of the sudden heat drop.

Chiang Mai’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department Office has declared Omkoi and Fang districts as disaster zones during the ongoing cold spell. Temperatures in the region would drop by about 4-7 degrees Celsius. Doi Inthanon, the highest peak in the country, saw the lowest temperatures and frost on the mountainside.

There have been wild speculations that the kingdom could soon witness snow falling in the northern region following a sharp drop in temperatures across the country and surprising snowfalls in Egypt and Vietnam in the past few days. Meteorological experts however have ruled out the possibility, saying the low altitude of most of the country would not permit it.