Bangkok Post
March 16, 2002

The water level of the Mekong river has reached a record low partly because the spillways of a Chinese dam were closed to prepare for rock blasting on the banks of the river.

Somchai Poonnikhom, head of Chiang Saen’s hydrographics centre, said it was unusual for the water level Chiang Saen to drop by more than a metre- from 2. 48m to 1.45m- in 10 days, even though it climbed to 2.14m on Tuesday.

The skipper of a transport ship travelling between Chiang Saen and China’s Yunnan province said the sharp drop was partly caused by the closure of spillways on a Chinese dam.