SEVERAL provinces have been warned of flash floods ahead of Tropical Storm Ketsana’s collision with Cambodia.

The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology released a statement on Sunday to alert people living in upland and coastal provinces that heavy rainfall is expected from Sunday through Thursday.

Department of Meteorology Director Seth Vannareth said Sunday that floods are to be expected in Kampong Cham, Kratie and Stung Treng provinces as well as along the coast in Kampot, Kep, Koh Kong and Preah Sihanouk provinces.

Mao Hak, director of the Department of Hydrology and River Works, said Ketsana had already increased water levels in the basin of the Mekong River while in Vietnam, and that the current is flowing downstream towards Cambodia.

“It will flood the homes of Cambodian people [along the Mekong River] for three days or more,” he said.

Ketsana was formed in the Philippine Sea, killing 73 and putting parts of Manila under 6 metres of water.