IRIN
MYANMAR: Relief effort gears up as death toll soars
5 May 2008


BANGKOK, 5 May 2008 (IRIN) - The official death toll from Myanmar's 
devastating weekend cyclone has now soared to around 4,000 people, with 
thousands more said to be missing, as military authorities and aid 
agencies struggle to bring relief to survivors.

In an evening broadcast, Myanmar's state TV said 3,934 people were 
confirmed dead, and another 2,879 were missing in Rangoon (Yangon) and 
Irrawaddy divisions, which are just two of the five regions that were 
declared disaster areas in the storm's aftermath on 4 May.

But in an afternoon meeting with foreign diplomats yesterday, Myanmar 
government ministers acknowledged the toll was even higher, saying that 
10,000 people had died, and 3,000 were missing in the Irrawaddy Division 
alone, an international official told IRIN.

Assessing the full extent of the damage from Tropical Cyclone Nargis, 
which slammed into Myanmar packing winds of up to 190km per hour on 3 
May, has been a slow and difficult process, with communications severed, 
and roads blocked, as a result of the storm.

However, UN assessment teams - made up of local Burmese UN employees not 
subject to the same travel restrictions that affect foreign aid workers 
- yesterday began fanning out into the afflicted regions to make 
on-the-ground assessments of humanitarian needs.

"It will take some days to get a complete picture," said Richard Horsey, 
a spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian 
Affairs (OCHA). "Travel is very difficult. What is constraining travel 
is trees falling on the road, not red tape."

Teams from the International Committee of the Red Cross yesterday began 
distributing initial relief supplies to some survivors from existing 
stockpiles in Yangon (formerly Rangoon) and elsewhere in Myanmar 
(formerly Burma), but Horsey said far more will be needed given the 
scale of the disaster, and the numbers of those affected.

Drinking water contaminated

Hundreds of thousands of people - left homeless after the storm 
flattened their fragile bamboo and thatch homes - are in urgent need of 
shelter and clean drinking water, after the flooding contaminated local 
drinking water supplies, he said.

The rice-growing Irrawaddy region, which is where the storm made 
landfall, is said to be the worst hit area.

Myanmar authorities have now quietly made formal requests to the UN and 
foreign governments for help to cope with the humanitarian disaster, and 
UN officials are now engaged in talks with the government on how best to 
help, Horsey said.

Among the topics under discussion are how to bring in large quantities 
of relief supplies, such as plastic sheeting and water purification 
tablets, without getting caught in customs delays, as well as getting 
speedy visas for international UN staff to help with the relief 
operation.

"There is an indication that they are receptive to international 
assistance," he said. "Discussions are taking place in New York, and on 
the ground about what is needed, what the UN can provide, and how to get 
it to the people."

In Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, residents are still struggling to 
cope without electricity, which has yet to be restored. City dwellers on 
5 May were queuing for candles, drinking water, and fuel, but supplies 
were dwindling, and they told Myanmar journalists that prices of 
commodities were skyrocketing, due to concerns of imminent shortages.


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Appropriate Donations for International Disaster/Humanitarian Needs
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Center for International              web: www.cidi.org
   Disaster Information          listserv: www.cidi.org/listsub.htm
                               guidelines: www.cidi.org/donate.htm
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Myanmar: Cyclone Nargis           www.cidi.org/incident/myanmar-08e