Clean up operation begins in Thailand

Published November 23, 2011
This aerial picture shows flooded houses in a suburb of Bangkok on November 19, 2011.- AFP Photo
This aerial picture shows flooded houses in a suburb of Bangkok on November 19, 2011.- AFP Photo
This aerial picture shows vehicles travelling on a flooded highway in a suburb of Bangkok on November 19, 2011.- AFP Photo
This aerial picture shows vehicles travelling on a flooded highway in a suburb of Bangkok on November 19, 2011.- AFP Photo
Thai soldiers are silhouetted as they walk with brooms during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.- AFP Photo
Thai soldiers are silhouetted as they walk with brooms during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.- AFP Photo
A worker works in his factory in a flooded area of Ayutthaya province November 22, 2011. - Reuters Photo
A worker works in his factory in a flooded area of Ayutthaya province November 22, 2011. - Reuters Photo
Airplanes are seen parked in flood waters at Bangkok's domestic Don Muang airport at dawn, November 20, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
Airplanes are seen parked in flood waters at Bangkok's domestic Don Muang airport at dawn, November 20, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
A man stands in a flooded area in Ayutthaya province November 22, 2011.- Reuters Photo
A man stands in a flooded area in Ayutthaya province November 22, 2011.- Reuters Photo
A general view of a flooded street in Bangkok November 20, 2011. Thailand's worst flood. ? Reuters Flood
A general view of a flooded street in Bangkok November 20, 2011. Thailand's worst flood. ? Reuters Flood
A boy plays in a flooded street at Bang Yai district in Nonthaburi province, on the outskirts of Bangkok November 22, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
A boy plays in a flooded street at Bang Yai district in Nonthaburi province, on the outskirts of Bangkok November 22, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
An elderly man smokes a cigarette outside his flooded home in a slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.- Reuters Photo
An elderly man smokes a cigarette outside his flooded home in a slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.- Reuters Photo
Vehicles at Honda auto factory are submerged in floodwaters at the Rojana industrial district in Ayutthaya, central Thailand Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. Honda's auto factory in Thailand remains closed because of the floodwaters. ? AP Photo
Vehicles at Honda auto factory are submerged in floodwaters at the Rojana industrial district in Ayutthaya, central Thailand Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011. Honda's auto factory in Thailand remains closed because of the floodwaters. ? AP Photo
Thai Buddhist monks, city workers, volunteers and soldiers pray in front of Dhammakaya temple before starting a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.- AP Photo
Thai Buddhist monks, city workers, volunteers and soldiers pray in front of Dhammakaya temple before starting a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.- AP Photo
A girl tries to reach a rope to help her move through a flooded slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
A girl tries to reach a rope to help her move through a flooded slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
An elderly woman and her grandchild sit in their home which has been flooded for two months in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
An elderly woman and her grandchild sit in their home which has been flooded for two months in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
An elderly man sits outside his home which has been flooded for two months in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011.- Reuters Photo
An elderly man sits outside his home which has been flooded for two months in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011.- Reuters Photo
People make their way through a flooded slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.- Reuters Photo
People make their way through a flooded slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.- Reuters Photo
An elderly man looks at the fish being dried outside his flooded home in a slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.-Reuters Photo
An elderly man looks at the fish being dried outside his flooded home in a slum just outside Bangkok November 21, 2011.-Reuters Photo
Thai Buddhist monks walk with their brooms during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.-AP Photo
Thai Buddhist monks walk with their brooms during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.-AP Photo
Thai volunteers sweep a road during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirt  of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011. ? AP Photo
Thai volunteers sweep a road during a cleaning operation in Patum Thani on the outskirt of Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011. ? AP Photo
A man uses plastic canisters to float as he searches for lotus plants to use for food inflooded area in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
A man uses plastic canisters to float as he searches for lotus plants to use for food inflooded area in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
Dogs run through a flooded street in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo
Dogs run through a flooded street in Ayutthaya province November 19, 2011. ? Reuters Photo

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on November 19 declared central Bangkok safe from Thailand's worst floods in decades, as the death toll around the sodden kingdom approached 600.The situation has improved dramatically in recent days and cleanup has begun in many areas, though some still face weeks more under water.

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