In late January, the American Society of Civil Engineers sent three teams to the tsunami disaster zone to conduct damage assessments. This is their third report from the field, the first from Thailand.
FEB. 1--We just completed our first day in the field. We visited the Patong wastewater treatment and pumping station. The tsunami flooded the sewage system, allowing salt water to get into the activated sludge treatment plant. This caused the system to fail and required additional activated sludge and "food" to get the plant in gear. Six of thirteen pump stations were flooded and out of service most due to electrical control panel flooding, though others are clogged with sand. It will be two or three months before they get the funds to buy replacement parts (which are not available in Thailand). In the meantime, raw sewage is flowing into the bay.