Ban Kiriwong – The story of a village devastated by water

“On the night of November 21ST, 1988, rain poured so heavily that it created a stream which ran down through a forest in Khao Luang Valley at high speed and arrived in our village in a matter of minutes, flooding it. Kiriwong village was thus devastated by the strong flow of water that took houses and everything with it. Only an empty space was left behind, covered with debris and sand high over our heads”. These words were told by an official at the Flood Coordinating Center of Ban Kiriwong.

Kiriwong is an old community at the foot of Khao Luang Valley of Tambon Kanloan, Lan Saka District, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province. The first inhabitants migrated and settled down about 200 years ago; villagers today have a quiet lifestyle and rely on each other as if they where a single, vast family. Their main occupation is mixed fruit cropping, called Som Rom Garden, where they grow mangosteen, durian and betel nut palms in the same plantation. Today, 20 years from that tragic day, signs of destructions are still visible: the landscape created by the stream that changed its direction, the Kiriwong Temple where only ½ of its structures remained intact, and a 2-storey house that has its 1st floor imbedded in the sand, leaving only the 2nd floor to be seen. Its owner intentionally keeps it as a memorial to remind him of the occurrence.

Ban Kiriwong, as someone has rightly said, is the Pai of Nakhon Si Thammarat, a place where fog often occurs in the early mornings and in the evenings. A stream of cold water flows along the village passing through stones of strange shapes, both sides of the stream greened with many different kinds of tree species.

Ban Kiriwong is a small village situated on a valley blessed by the natural beauty of Khao Luang Forest. All those who visit this place are impressed by the warm welcome they receive from the local villagers. Mangosteen and rambutan sweeter that the ones you find in markets are available everywhere and you can even enjoy walking through the villagers’ gardens, picking fresh fruit to be eaten directly from the trees. Ban Kiriwong is a clear example of a strong agricultural community that promotes environmental conservation projects and local based ecotourism.

There are many projects that help support eco-businesses that coincide with the normal lifestyle of the villagers, and this forms the basic principle upon which the establishment of the local ecotourism association is based on. This has further expanded into separate groups that stems from a local culture that has its own unique identity. These groups produce handicrafts and souvenir items, such as the durian group, the batik cloth group, and the wickerwork and traditional medicines groups. Thanks to the unity that exists amongst the people in the village, to their local wisdom, and to the natural beauty of the Khao Luang Valley, Ban Kiriwong has thus become a distinct community that coexist in harmony with the surrounding nature, and that retains an easy lifestyle and culture.

The 1988 flooding may have once created deep wounds and a massive flow of tears. However, Ban Kiriwong has rehabilitated itself to become a strong community that defies the past. A village that nurtures the lives of its people by promoting sustainability and by securing the conservation of its nature in the forest valley of Khao Luang, so that it can continue to be seen for long time to come, hopefully forever.