Thai soldiers sweep once flooded streets.

Thai soldiers sweep once flooded streets in a big cleaning day at Lat Phrao shopping district as floodwaters recede from the area, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. With tens of thousands of soldiers on the streets helping flood affected people, Thais are applauding their assistance restoring the formerly tarnished image of Thai forces after their involvement in the bloody crackdown of 2010 red shirt political protests. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites.

Thai women collect the thick brown Effective Micro Organism (EMO) fluid into recycled plastic water bottles, to spread into floodwaters as an attempt to prevent  disease, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding while millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites, shaving at least one per cent off the country's economic growth.

A Thai woman walks through receding floodwaters carrying a water container in a street in the Laksi area of Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites.

A Thai woman walks through receding floodwaters next to a small taxi boat in a street in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites.

Thai men ride through floodwaters on their high-water converted motorcycle in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites

Thai soldiers sweep once flooded streets in a big cleaning day at Lat Phrao shopping district as floodwaters recede from the area, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. With tens of thousands of soldiers on the streets helping flood affected people, Thais are applauding their assistance restoring the formerly tarnished image of Thai forces after their involvement in the bloody crackdown of 2010 red shirt political protests. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites. 

A Thai man walks on a raised walkway above floodwaters passing a picture of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding while millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites, shaving at least one per cent off the country's economic growth. 

Thai soldiers sweep once flooded streets in a big cleaning day at Lat Phrao shopping district as floodwaters recede from the area, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. With tens of thousands of soldiers on the streets helping flood affected people, Thais are applauding their assistance restoring the formerly tarnished image of Thai forces after their involvement in the bloody crackdown of 2010 red shirt political protests. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites. 

Thai soldiers sweep once flooded streets in a big cleaning day at Lat Phrao shopping district as floodwaters recede from the area, in Bangkok, Thailand, 19 November 2011. With tens of thousands of soldiers on the streets helping flood affected people, Thais are applauding their assistance restoring the formerly tarnished image of Thai forces after their involvement in the bloody crackdown of 2010 red shirt political protests. As floodwaters start to recede in some parts of Bangkok, Thailand is counting the enormous cost after weeks of flooding as millions of people remain affected by the worst flooding in five decades. More than 500 deaths have been reported in the disaster and it has caused billions of dollars in damages to residents homes, small businesses and to many foreign owned industrial manufacturing plants, as well as tourist sites. 

No Stoping Loy Krathong

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road.

The Great Flood of 2011 didn't deter Bangkokians from celebrating Loy Krathong last night – with some flooded roads lit up by hundreds of krathongs.

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road.

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road.

Lat Phrao intersection.

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road.

Santi Chaiprakarn Park, Phra Athit Road.

Wat Nuan Chan, Bung Kum district.

Central Plaza Lat Phrao.

Govt apologises to flood victims

Highway bail-out begins: Highways Department workers begin salvaging Bangkok-Stephan Buri Highway 340 in Pathum Thani yesterday. The road will be used as a detour to the South in case the Rama II Road, which is the main route to the South from Bangkok, is made impassable by floods.

From left: Bangkok Post reporters and photographers camp out at the newspaper head office after their homes were flooded or at risk of being inundated; A family sits on an embankment of big sand bags after receiving donations from a team of Bangkok Post reporters who visited flood victims in Don Muang district.

From left: Bangkok Post photographer Pattanapong Hirunard drives a motor boat to heavily flooded spots impassable to vehicles to take photos. SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL; Washing lines are put up on the roof of the Bangkok Post building for staff taking shelter at the company during the floods.

From left: Bangkok Post photographer Patipat Janthong wades through water to take food to dogs stranded by floods near Song Prapha Road in Don Muang district. SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL; A Buddhist nun paddles her way in a large basin in swamped Wat Or Ngern in Sai Mai district. PATTANAPONG HIRUNARD; People in Bang Bua Thong district of Nonthaburi travel by boat past a submerged garage selling spare parts. Boats are still a popular way of getting around despite the receding floodwater.

From left: Monks get onto a pickup truck from a raised platform at Wat Nual Chan in Bung Kum district of Bangkok. PATTANAPONG HIRUNARD; People are forced to live on the roofs of their homes in Don Muang after a sandbag barrier sent floodwater surging into their areas.

Will Bangkok's flood defenses protect its heart

Keeping Bangkok's commercial district dry

Having lived with severe flooding for so long, some Thais have taken improvisation to a new level. This pick-up truck was adapted to act as a boat in water.

For almost a month, a sea of filthy brown water has been seeping down into the capital from the north of the city

City workers man the pump 24 hours a day, collecting vast amounts of stinking rubbish from the pumps.

The pumping stations are the front line in the fight to protect central Bangkok.

For so many other people in Bangkok at the moment, it's a daily struggle to survive.

Having lived with severe flooding for so long, some Thais have taken improvisation to a new level. This pick-up truck was adapted to act as a boat in water.

The truck effortlessly moved out of the water and onto the road by raising the customized floats.

The city's economy has been badly hit in areas beyond the protected central zone, with a number of businesses facing ruin.

Thailand's Teflon tour industry to weather floodsForeign tourists spend time at a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwaters, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

Foreign tourists spend time at a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwaters, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

A foreign tourist walks past a shopping mall fortified with sandbags in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

Foreign tourists, right, spend time at a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwaters, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

Tourists and locals visit a shopping mall fortified with sandbags in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

A foreign tourist takes pictures of the entrance of a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwater, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

A foreign tourist walks past a shopping mall fortified with sandbags in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

A foreign tourist, right, smokes inside a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwater, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

Foreign tourists spend time at a cafe, fortified with sandbags to stop floodwater, in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 11, 2011. Thailand is once again in tourist turmoil as floods linger, but ever resilient industry unfazed.

Water Festival

Thai girl Sawanya Seesura prays before releasing a traditional Krathong float into a pool during the Loy Kratong festival in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Every year when the moon is full and the rainy season draws to an end, Thailand's waterways fill with millions of floating lotus-shaped lanterns - a symbolic, centuries-old gesture once meant to placate to the country's goddess of water. This year, flood-ravaged Thailand has plenty of reason to pray for rebirth - and little reason to celebrate. 

A young Thai boy makes his way with Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs or paper, to a canal during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

Thai citizens buy Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs, before floating it in to the river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

Thai people pray before floating Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs or papers, into a canal during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

A Buddhist monk gives an advice to a man to buy Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs or papers, before floating it in to a river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months. 

Traditional Krathong floats are released into a pool during the Loy Kratong festival in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Every year when the moon is full and the rainy season draws to an end, Thailand's waterways fill with millions of floating lotus-shaped lanterns - a symbolic, centuries-old gesture once meant to placate to the country's goddess of water. This year, flood-ravaged Thailand has plenty of reason to pray for rebirth .

Thai residents buy Krathong, a small lantern made of paper, before floating it in to the river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

A woman helps her son pray before releasing a traditional Krathong float into a pool during the Loy Kratong festival in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Every year when the moon is full and the rainy season draws to an end, Thailand's waterways fill with millions of floating lotus-shaped lanterns - a symbolic, centuries-old gesture once meant to placate to the country's goddess of water. This year, flood-ravaged Thailand has plenty of reason to pray for rebirth - and little reason to celebrate.

A Thai woman lights candle and incense sticks to decorate in the Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs or papers, before floating it into the water during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

Thais celebrate water festival despite floods

Thai boy Pattana Suntharotok prays before releasing a traditional Krathong float into a pool during the Loy Kratong festival in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Every year when the moon is full and the rainy season draws to an end, Thailand's waterways fill with millions of floating lotus-shaped lanterns - a symbolic, centuries-old gesture once meant to placate to the country's goddess of water. This year, flood-ravaged Thailand has plenty of reason to pray for rebirth - and little reason to celebrate.

Buddhist Thais float their Krathongs, small lanterns made of banana leaves or papers, at the statue of Lord Buddha during the Loy Krathong water festival at a flooded temple in Nonthaburi, Thailand Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival comes on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

Thai Buddhist monks chant prayers to honor the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

Thai residents buy Krathong, a small lantern made of paper, before floating it in to the river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.

A Thai woman holds a Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs, before floating it in to the river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion.

A man floats a Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs, in to the canal during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months. 

A Thai Buddhist Novice waits for people to buy Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs, before floating it in to the river during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months. 

A young Thai boy makes his way with Krathong, a small lantern made of banana leafs or paper, to a canal during the Loy Kratong festival at a temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. The festival, came on the heels of a cataclysmic waterborne disaster that's drowned one-third of the country in three months, killing 529 people and wiping out rice fields and factories and livelihoods along the way. The flooding is the worst in Thailand since World War II, and it's not over yet. Damage so far is likely to exceed $6 billion. Recovery will take months.