Cambodia Expats Online: Forum | News | Information | Blog

More than 250 boats and 16,000 competitors will participate in three days of racing during this year’s Water Festival in Phnom Penh, government officials said yesterday.
The boat races are an integral part of the annual holiday – which this year will be from November 13 to 15 – and it has been two years since they were held...

While government officials in Phnom Penh prepare the city for the Water Festival, hospitals across the country are bracing for a steep rise in traffic accidents as citizens travel during the holiday.
Health Minister Mam Bun Heng informed all provincial health departments to have staff on call 24 hours a day starting on November 10...

http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/31676/ ... oat-races/

Siem Reap is also preparing for its Water Festival, and decorations are already going up in readiness for the two days of festivities.

Siem Reap gears up for a more relaxed Water Festival
Fri, 4 November 2016

This year’s Water Festival is set to be slightly scaled back, says Siem Reap’s provincial deputy governor, Kim Chhaihieng.

Last year, Siem Reap’s celebrations drew more than 80,000 visitors from across Cambodia, including those unable to attend the Phnom Penh events, which Prime Minister HE cancelled, citing drought. This year, Siem Reap will hold a two-day festival – on November 13 and 14 – to allow people in other provinces to spend the third day in the capital...

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/post-weeke ... r-festival

Security measures in place for Water Festival
Mon, 7 November 2016
Kong Meta

With the population of Phnom Penh set to swell for the coming Water Festival, National Police on Friday ticked off planned measures to ensure public safety but also identified a silver lining to the crowds: a few hundred thousand potential detectives.

At the meeting, police officials said authorities are hoping to utilise the extra eyeballs in town for the November 13-15 event to scan the crowds for wanted criminals.

“We will post pictures of theft and fraud suspects on Facebook because people . . . can check their smartphones and be more cautious, and they can report to us when they see these suspicious people [during the event],” Phnom Penh municipal police chief Touch Naroth told security officials...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/s ... r-festival

Streets Will Be Cleared of Vagrants During Water Festival
by Ben Sokhean and Khy Sovuthy | November 9, 2016

Vagrants will be rounded up across Phnom Penh in the coming days as dozens of municipal social affairs department officials work with police to clear the streets during the Water Festival celebrations, an official said on Tuesday.

Ninety-one officials from his department have been selected to help police clear these “professional beggars” from the streets, he said, adding that much of the work would take place during the festival, from Sunday through Tuesday.

Mr. Sophal estimated that 300 people would be detained.

“They bring disabled kids who have big heads, are legless or are armless to beg for money,” he said. “We will crack down on them. We cannot let them do this anymore.”

Child exploitation was of specific concern, he said, adding “this is child labor and we need to crack down.”

Mr. Sophal declined to explain what would happen to those who were detained...

https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/stre ... al-120367/

CEOCambodiaNews wrote:Security measures in place for Water Festival
Mon, 7 November 2016
Kong Meta

With the population of Phnom Penh set to swell for the coming Water Festival, National Police on Friday ticked off planned measures to ensure public safety but also identified a silver lining to the crowds: a few hundred thousand potential detectives.

At the meeting, police officials said authorities are hoping to utilise the extra eyeballs in town for the November 13-15 event to scan the crowds for wanted criminals.

“We will post pictures of theft and fraud suspects on Facebook because people . . . can check their smartphones and be more cautious, and they can report to us when they see these suspicious people [during the event],” Phnom Penh municipal police chief Touch Naroth told security officials...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/s ... r-festival

I hope they keep their eyeballs open and see the hundreds of motorbikes weaving in and out of the pedestrians on the riverside walkway. Tonight was just a sample of how it will be for the festival. Motobikes and more motorbikes.

this might actually help.

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/c ... r-festival


Phnom Penh Governor Pa Socheatvong yesterday issued a statement demanding a complete moratorium on construction projects and banning large trucks from November 12-16 for the Water Festival.
“We are going to ban any truck transporting goods as well as buses, cement trucks and any construction site from operating,” the statement reads.


cheers

Bertros

Maybe for a separate thread all together but what's going to be open /closed over the water festival?

Any special event on in any of the bars?

I was trying to find a schedule of events as I'd like to go to this (although they indicated upwards of 2 million people will attend!)

Anyways, this is what I found doing a wee bit of searching. not much help as to actual times/events etc. May just
have to wander about to check it out. Wat Botum Park (SP?) is just a few blocks away and it looks like it might be
the place where a lot of this is set up. I assume the boat races may be closer to the Palace along sisowath,
but that's just a guess.

any better info?

http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/31936/ ... iday-woes/

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/p ... r-festival
(interesting booths in the back ground, I will be hoping for beer and food vendors!)

http://www.tourismcambodia.com/tripplan ... stival.htm
(interesting vernacular here...just sayin')


cheers


Bertros

Bertros wrote: I assume the boat races may be closer to the Palace along sisowath,
but that's just a guess.

That's where they always are. That's what the pavilion in front of the palace on the river is for, the king sits there watching the races.

Duncan wrote:

CEOCambodiaNews wrote:Security measures in place for Water Festival
Mon, 7 November 2016
Kong Meta

With the population of Phnom Penh set to swell for the coming Water Festival, National Police on Friday ticked off planned measures to ensure public safety but also identified a silver lining to the crowds: a few hundred thousand potential detectives.

At the meeting, police officials said authorities are hoping to utilise the extra eyeballs in town for the November 13-15 event to scan the crowds for wanted criminals.

“We will post pictures of theft and fraud suspects on Facebook because people . . . can check their smartphones and be more cautious, and they can report to us when they see these suspicious people [during the event],” Phnom Penh municipal police chief Touch Naroth told security officials...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/s ... r-festival

I hope they keep their eyeballs open and see the hundreds of motorbikes weaving in and out of the pedestrians on the riverside walkway. Tonight was just a sample of how it will be for the festival. Motobikes and more motorbikes.

The water front is very quiet right now. More motorbike zooming up and down the walkway than there are pedestrians.


http://ezecom.com.kh/en/riverside