Cyclone Slams Southeast Asia
Death toll in the thousands after massive weekend storm in Myanmar
A man cycles past a destroyed house in Yangon, Myanmar, May 6, 2008. (Photo: ©Reuters)
A devastating cyclone swept across the country of Myanmar over the weekend, leaving thousands dead and scores of people missing. On Tuesday, the Myanmar government raised the estimated death toll to more than 22,000 people.
Tropical Cyclone Nargis slammed into the coast of the Southeast Asian nation early Saturday. Its winds reached 120 miles per hour, causing the sea to surge more than 12 feet. If government estimates are accurate, the death toll is the second highest in Asia from a natural disaster.
The tsunami of December 2004 remains the most destructive, taking 181,000 lives in Indonesia, Thailand, and other parts of southern Asia.
At a news conference in Yangon, the country's main city, Maung Maung Swe, the government minister for relief and resettlement, said 41,000 people were still missing. He also gave Myanmar's first official description of the cyclone's devastation.
"More deaths were caused by the tidal wave than the storm itself," he said. "The wave was up to 12 feet high and it swept away and inundated half the houses in low-lying villages. They did not have anywhere to flee."
The United Nations (UN) World Food Program said approximately 1 million people may have lost their homes in the Irrawaddy Delta where the cyclone came ashore.
Yangon's 5 million residents are without power, and the water supply has been contaminated, according to UN officials.
"What is clear is that we are dealing with a major emergency situation," said Richard Horsey, of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Bangkok. "The priority needs now are shelter and clean drinking water."
International Response
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| Map of Myanmar showing areas worst affected by Tropical Cyclone Nargis. (Illustration: UNOSAT/NewsCom) |
Human rights groups have been concerned that Myanmar's military government, known as a junta, would not allow foreign agencies access to the country to assess the damage and distribute aid. But according to Horsey, that should not be a problem.
"It will take some days to get a complete picture," Horsey said. "Travel is very difficult. What is constraining travel is trees falling on the road, not [governmental] red tape."
Paul Risley, a spokesman for the World Food Program (WFP), confirmed the junta's willingness to accept emergency aid from the United Nations.
"We hope to fly in more assistance within the next 48 hours," said Risley, speaking in Bangkok. "The challenge will be getting to the affected areas with road blockages everywhere."
The WFP is sending 500 tons of food to Yangon and will send more supplies after U.N. agencies and the Red Cross release a more in-depth assessment of the country's needs.
According to the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Yangon has authorized emergency aid of $250,000 to help with international relief efforts.
Political Price
Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar just one week before a national referendum (vote by the people) on a new constitution was to take place. In Tuesday's briefing, Myanmar cabinet ministers said the official referendum commission would postpone the May 10 vote in the worst affected areas.
Myanmar's government describes the new constitution as a "disciplined form of democratic rule," but it does not provide for an opposition party or free elections. Many in the international community, as well as pro-democracy groups in Myanmar, view the new constitution as a move by the ruling junta to tighten its grip on the already isolated country.
The military's response to the disaster will likely be a major factor in how the people vote on the new constitution. But for now, the focus for most is on basic survival.
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