At 2:50pm today (May 24) officers from the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Chalong office received report that a big tree near a guest house fell down and hit a building at the entrance to Soi Bangrae Moo 10 in Chalong.
Mr Supphawatthagan Khunnaluck, an official from Chalong Municipality, arrived at Shanti Lodge Guesthouse along with Chalong DDPM officers and found a large Azadirachta Indica, approximately 70cm in diameter and about 30 years old, had fallen and hit a cement wall and building.
Rain pipes and roof tiles were damaged. On the opposite side of the wall a house was also damaged. A nearby Toyota Fortuner narowly avoided damage.
A guesthouse attendant said, “At about 2pm today there was a strong wind which caused a big Azadirachta Indica tree inside the guesthouse to fall down with a loud noise. It hit the guesthouse drain pipe and roof tiles. The drain pipe then hit with a resident house nearby.”
Officers from DDPM Chalong office took an hour to cut the tree branches into manageable pieces with a chainsaw.
The owner of Shanti Lodge Guesthouse said “We will take responsibility for all costs to the residents of the damaged buildings.”