Removing Fish from a Surreal Abandoned Shopping Mall

http://www.citylab.com/politics/2015/01/removing-fish-from-a-surreal-abandoned-shopping-mall/384569/

by timdierks • 12 years ago

105 25 12 years ago

javanix• 12 years ago

I wonder if the fish actually ended up helping with the mosquito population?

wooyi2• 12 years ago

Yes they would. Tilapia fries would definitely eat mosquito larvae in the water. There were likely smaller species like guppies that would totally keep the mosquitos in check.

dredmorbius• 12 years ago

They can and do. "Mosquito fish" are a frequent mosquito abatement measure.

Put them in _any_ standing water. Old tires are a notorious mosquito breeding ground: small, hard to individually find, hold water, don't degrade.

wooyi2• 12 years ago

Looks more like harvesting rather than relocating the fish.

JeremyMorgan• 12 years ago

Technically they are being relocated, probably several times.

calbear81• 12 years ago

Seems like an immense waste of money for a country that would have no problem doing a big fish fry for the community.

Tombone5• 12 years ago

Glory to great leader Gen. Prayuth, savior of the fish!

Mahn• 12 years ago

Something I always wondered whenever I saw pictures of that mall is why was it abandoned. I've turned to google multiple times but there doesn't seem to be anything about it.

zaroth• 12 years ago

4th paragraph: "Located in the city's Banglamphu district, Thailand's Supreme Court ordered a partial demolition of the shopping center in 1997 when judges determined that seven of the 11 floors were built illegally."

mbreese• 12 years ago

But there were 4 legal floors, which is apparently what is there now. Why were those floors abandoned?

mlrtime• 12 years ago

It is stated in the linked article:

"Located in the city's Banglamphu district, Thailand's Supreme Court ordered a partial demolition of the shopping center in 1997 when judges determined that seven of the 11 floors were built illegally"

There have been other large retail collapses in Asia[1] so it is good to see this happen.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampoong_Department_Store_colla...

ericcumbee• 12 years ago

What part of it exactly makes it illegal? Is it some missing permits or code violations that make it unsafe that would be cost prohibitive to correct?

pan69• 12 years ago

I Googled and found in 5 seconds:

http://mikeestravels.com/2014/03/09/urban-exploring-bangkok-...

Fair enough. It was posted less then a year ago.

troymc• 12 years ago

The number of fish swimming past the escalator each minute could be modeled as a random variable with a Poisson distribution.

junto• 12 years ago

I like your humour. Have an upvote. Are you British as well?

joeyyang• 12 years ago

that's tremendous and i applaud you

barbs2• 12 years ago

Can someone please explain this joke to someone not versed in statistics?

noodle• 12 years ago

Siméon Denis Poisson was a French mathematician.

Poisson is French for "fish".

nearnia• 12 years ago

It's incredible to see the escalation of global mall closings in recent years. There is a huge opportunity hidden therein. Thanks for the ::goodnews.

josu• 12 years ago

How were they able to keep the water inside the mall?

jerrytsai• 12 years ago

I am only guessing, but I think it is implied in the article: With the rainy weather common to southeast Asia and an open roof, the mall just became a basin of water, fantastic for breeding mosquitos. Unable to remove the water (or prevent water from entering), enterprising locals stocked the basin with fish to eat the mosquitos.

Removing Fish from a Surreal Abandoned Shopping Mall

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