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Zomi says:
Why not speedily allow those people of goodwill who want to help the
victims
of the cyclone?
If you do not want others' help, then do your work immediately and
efficiently!
=====
Myanmar Cyclone Claims Thousands as UN Surveys Damage (Update6)
By Demian McLean
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May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Almost 4,000 people are dead and 3,000 missing after
a
tropical cyclone slammed into Myanmar two days ago in the region's
deadliest
storm-related natural disaster since a tsunami struck Southeast Asia in
2004.
Myanmar's foreign affairs ministry put the possible death toll at more
than
10,000, according to Stephanie Bunker, spokeswoman for the United Nations
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The government today
increased the official toll almost tenfold to 3,939. About 100,000 people
are homeless.
Power was out today in the largest city, Yangon, and drinking water was
contaminated in the city of 5 million, the UN news agency IRIN reported,
citing officials from the world body.
``The UN will do whatever it can to provide urgent humanitarian
assistance,'' Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters in New York.
``Because of the lack of communications, we are not quite sure what will
be
the total extent of damages and casualties. I am very much alarmed by
incoming views that casualties have risen to more than 10,000, according
to
Myanmar's foreign ministry.''
Cyclone Nargis packed winds of 120 miles (190 kilometers) per hour when it
struck the coast May 3, sending the sea surging as much 12 feet (3.5
meters).
``At least eight townships are completely or mostly destroyed,'' said
Pamela
Sitko, a worker with the U.S.-based Christian relief group World Vision,
who
has spoken with colleagues in Myanmar, formerly Burma.
State of Emergency
The government declared a state of emergency in five low- lying provinces,
mostly in the Irrawaddy delta, where villages were flattened by winds and
rain, the UN said. Myanmar has a population of 47.8 million.
``The water supply is unfit to drink in the aftermath of the destruction,
raising fears of water-borne diseases'' in Yangon, IRIN reported.
A United Nations disaster-assessment team is scheduled to arrive tonight
in
Bangkok, spokesman Farhan Haq said. The UN is prepared to provide a grant
from the $500 million Central Emergency Response Fund, created to rush aid
to nations in need, he said.
The UN Children's Fund and its Development Program, which have offices in
Myanmar, stockpiled food, water and medicine before the storm. They will
distribute water-purification tablets, plastic sheeting, food and cooking
sets in Yangon and the delta region.
Communications Down
Flooding, blocked roads and disrupted communications are hampering efforts
to assess the extent of the damage, according to the world body.
The price of food surged after the cyclone struck, according to the
Irrawaddy newspaper, which is published by Myanmar dissidents in
neighboring
Thailand. An egg now costs between 200 and 250 kyat (20 cents) in Yangon
versus 50-70 kyat before the storm, while one viss (1.6 kilograms) of pork
is between 8,000 and 8,500 kyat, compared with 4,500 to 5,000.
Myanmar is regularly hit by cyclones that form in the Bay of Bengal
between
April and November. More than 220,000 people were estimated to have been
killed in the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean that struck Indonesia and
other Asian nations.
Nargis struck as the nation, which has been ruled by the military since
1962, prepares to hold a referendum on May 10 for a new constitution
before
elections scheduled for 2010.
Vote Still On
The junta vowed to press ahead with the referendum after the storm, AFP
reported, citing a state-run newspaper. The U.S. State Department said
April
11 said the referendum is an attempt by the military to retain power. New
York-based Human Rights Watch said the vote is being held in a climate of
censorship and repression, calling the referendum ``a sham.''
Exiled Myanmar dissident groups called for international assistance to
cope
with the disaster.
``The military regime is ill-prepared to deal with the aftermath of the
cyclone,'' Naing Aung of the Thailand-based Forum for Democracy in Burma
said in a statement on the group's Web site. As of yesterday, there were
reports the junta still hadn't deployed workers to help clean up, it said,
and residents were left to clear debris from the streets of Yangon.
To contact the reporters on this story: Demian McLean in Washington at
dmclean8@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
William Varner at the United Nations at
wvarner@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Updated: May 5, 2008 13:48 EDT
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ax_q9dPNoV9A&refer=home
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