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Written By Ross von Metzke & Tracy E. Gilchrist
Location: Bangkok, Thailand
Category: | Daily News |
Government officials say the death toll in Myanmar has reached 22,000 and climbing, with some 41,000 people missing in what's become the biggest natural disaster to hit Asia since the 2005 tsunami.
"If at this stage, only four days in, the government are telling us the numbers are already reaching over 20,000 and there are 40,000 people missing, I think it could well go higher," spokesman Dan Collinson told AFP/Google News.
As President Bush urges the Myanmar government to allow United States rescue workers into the country to offer assistance, according to AFP, the country's ruling Junta, which has spurned the international community for decades, insisted they are still waiting on visas to allow workers into the country.
Once the dust began to settle from the cyclone that ravaged Myanmar, formerly Burma, the number of dead rapidly rose to 4,000. That number quickly climbed, making the death toll the highest of any natural disaster to hit Asia since the tsunami in December 2005, which killed 181,000.
Myanmar cabinet ministers, including foreign minister, Nyan Win, initially announced at a briefing that the death toll was dramatically higher than the 351 people killed that officials originally estimated Sunday, according to Richard Horsey, a spokesman for the United Nations disaster response office in Bangkok.
“What is clear is that we are dealing with a major emergency situation, and the priority needs now are shelter and clean drinking water,” Horsey said.
Cyclone Nargis ripped through the Irrawaddy Delta and the country’s main city, Yangon, early Saturday, leaving hundreds of thousands of its citizens homeless and scrambling to find food and clean water.
The Myanmar government, which traditionally restricts the movement of foreign groups in the country—including those providing assistance—gave the green light for the United Nations to send emergency aid to the country, said Paul Risley, a spokesman for the World Food Program.
Assessment teams have been sent to the most ravaged areas to assess the damage and determine the most pressing emergency needs, said Laura Blank, a spokeswoman for World Vision.
“Stories get worse by the hour,” a Yangon resident wrote via e-mail. “No drinking water in many areas, still no power. Houses completely disappeared. Refugees scavenging for food in poorer areas. Roofing, building supplies, tools—all are scarce and prices skyrocketing on everything.”
The World Food Program is prepped to send 500 tons of food in to Yangon and intends to send in more relief supplies, said Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
According to reports, First Lady Laura Bush has been critical of the situation in Myanmar, saying the government did little to warn the people of the approaching storm.
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