A suicidal man yelled at rescuers not to save him as his Toyota car sank in the Chao Phya River yesterday morning.

Chon Buri native Sakda Pholfarang, 41, drove his car into the river in Pak Kret, Non-thaburi. Police later retrieved the vehicle and Sakda's body near Wat Sanam Neu pier.

Witness Chalor Muangboon says she was sitting at a small pavilion near the river when the vehicle sped by and into the river.

Several people dived in to rescue the driver, but he yelled at them to stay away and then wound the window up so they couldn't reach him, she says.

Brother Pichai Pholfarang, 37, says Sakda was single and living in Samut Prakan and had been on a visit to their mother in Pathum Thani.

Expect floods

The capital can expect heavy rainstorms between October and December, bringing severe flooding with them.

A flood-prevention seminar heard sustained flooding during this time could damage the city's water reticulation.

The Navy's Hydrographic Department says the Chao Phya can be expected to burst both banks in places. This will lead to severe flooding.

Thanawat Jaruphongsakul of Chulalongkorn University says tropical storms with winds in excess of 250 kilometres an hour can generate 5.5-metre waves that will batter Bangkok and Samut Prakan coastal areas.