A hero soldier carried a stranded pet dog to safety as thousands of homes were battered by tropical storm Sinlaku in northern Thailand today (Aug 3).<br /><br />Theerachot Homjom saved the hapless creature when torrents of muddy water from heavy rain swamped homes in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand on Sunday morning. <br /><br />"The floods can destroy my house but not this beautiful dog," said Theerachot, a solider who had been assisting villagers during the floods in Northern Thailand.<br /><br />Heavy rain caused flash floods which submerged homes in more than 44 provinces including Chiang Mai, Loei, Phayao, Lampang, and Nong Bua Lamphu.<br /><br />The Kuang River bust its banks, Chiang Mai, causing torrents of muddy water to hit buildings as residents fled to higher ground.<br /><br />Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered rescue workers to provide urgent help to more than 1,000 households in Loei, which is one of the worst-hit regions. Many residents were today being moved to higher ground. <br /><br />Officials from the Thai Meteorological Department said that heavy rain and flash-flood warnings were still in force until at least Tuesday, with rain expected throughout the week.<br /><br />However, tropical storm Sinlaku has now weakened into a tropical depression after moving into north-central Vietnam, where strong winds and rain were felt. The storm also moved into parts of Laos. <br /><br />There have so far not been any casualties reported.
