Deputy PM Tours Nan for Flood Recovery and Tourism Boost
Deputy Prime Minister Yotchanan Wongsa-wat visited Nan province on October 19, 2026 to oversee flood‑damage reconstruction, including a new home for villager Kalong, and to check tourism readiness for the high season. The visit covered housing repairs for 15 households across Pua, Phu Phiang and Tha Wang Pha districts, funded by local and central emergency budgets. He also inspected restored tourist attractions and encouraged local silversmith businesses to revive the province’s tourism sector.
Deputy Prime Minister Yotchanan Wongsa-wat visited Nan province on October 19, 2026 to monitor flood‑damage recovery and discuss long‑term development plans for the province. He went to Ban Hiey village in Si Lao Liang subdistrict, Pua district, to inspect progress on a completely new house for Mrs Kalong Luayot, known locally as “Pae Kalong”, to replace her home destroyed by a flash flood and mudslide. The visit is part of a broader housing reconstruction programme for flood victims in Nan that also covers Phu Phiang district (Fai Kaeo and Muang Chang subdistricts) and Tha Wang Pha district (Yom subdistrict), an additional 14 households, aiming to give every affected family a safe and secure home. After walking from the bridge head to examine the old house site and the new construction site, he checked the building’s structural progress and ground preparation. Kalong’s house was swept away by a severe flash flood on the morning of August 19, leaving two family members homeless and bereft of all possessions. As chairman of the Northern Flood and Drought Prevention Committee, Yotchanan had previously visited Kalong on August 21 and 26 to give encouragement and press for the replacement house. At the construction site, the Pua district officer reported that the district disaster assistance committee had approved an initial relief grant of 88,600 baht, while the local administration had prepared a central budget request of 391,000 baht from the Prime Minister’s emergency fund to build the new house. Yotchanan asked officials to ensure the house would be sturdy and completed on schedule; local headmen thanked him and presented a souvenir. Afterwards, Yotchanan and his team visited Wat Phu Ket in Woranakorn subdistrict, Pua district to inspect the restoration of a key tourist attraction, then proceeded to Doi Silver Factory in Chaiyawatana subdistrict, Pua district to check on silversmith businesses affected by the flood and discuss ways to support local enterprises and revive tourism in Nan province.
