Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

December 3, 2008 2:22:18 AM CST

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Millions Homeless, But Junta Impedes Cyclone Aid

Posted May 7, 08 8:01 AM CDT in World 

(Newser) – The death toll from Burma's devastating cyclone continues to rise—foreign aid workers now believe 50,000 have died, and 2 to 3 million are homeless—but the military junta is keeping international agencies from mounting a coordinated relief effort. A flight carrying UN relief aid is in the works, but UN workers cannot get visas, journalists are barred, and no comprehensive survey of the damage is available.

A spokesman for India's meteorological survey told the Times of London that his agency had alerted the Burmese government to the coming storm several days before impact, but the warnings had no impact. Now, frustrated relief workers are faced with a disaster one called "unprecedented in the history of Burma, and on an order of magnitude with the effect of the tsunami on individual countries."

Sources Times (UK), BBC

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Burma Still Cleaning Up 6 Months Later

    Nov 2, 08 7:18 PM CST
    Burma Still Cleaning Up 6 Months Later Six months after Cyclone Nargis smashed into Burma's coastline, killing tens of thousands of people, aid groups say once-lagging relief efforts have picked up pace but the task of rebuilding and recovery is far from finished, the AP reports. Foreign aid staffers were initially barred from cyclone-affected areas and the ruling military junta was criticized for its ineffective response to the disaster last May.
    More »

  • Global Warming Makes Storms Worse: Study

    Sep 4, 08 1:19 PM CDT
    Global Warming Makes Storms Worse: Study Global warming is causing intensifying hurricanes around the world, a new study shows. Scientists analyzed 2,000 “tropical cyclones” occurring from 1980 to 2006 and found that the “strongest storms are getting stronger, especially over the Atlantic and Indian Oceans,” USA Today reports. Warmer water “has more energy that can be converted to tropical cyclone wind,” explains one of the researchers.
    More »

  • Out of the Cyclone, Seeds of Change in Burma

    Aug 23, 08 6:51 AM CDT
    Out of the Cyclone, Seeds of Change in Burma In the wake of the ruling junta's efforts to waylay foreign aid following May's Cyclone Nargis, Burmese citizens—including former political prisoners—created a grass-roots relief effort to help the embattled populace. In doing so, writes George Packer in the New Yorker, they may have created the catalyst for long-awaited political change in a once-prosperous nation impoverished by its military rulers. More »

  • Burma Indicts Dissident Comedian

    Aug 7, 08 9:54 AM CDT
    Burma Indicts Dissident Comedian A popular comedian who became one of the most prominent critics of Burma's military government has been formally charged with several political offenses. Zarganar, who had been leading a citizen effort to aid victims of Cyclone Nargis, has been indicted on five counts, including unlawful association and creating public unrest. More »

  • Burma Aid Delays Less Deadly Than Feared

    Jun 18, 08 5:13 AM CDT
    Burma Aid Delays Less Deadly Than Feared Delays in getting help to cyclone survivors in Burma's Irrawaddy Delta have not caused the catastrophe initially feared, according to aid workers. Hardy villagers have managed to survive on fish and coconuts, helped by aid from private Burmese citizens and monks, reports the New York Times. Expected massive outbreaks of disease have not occurred—but aid workers warn that many are still at risk. More »

A dead body is seen in the Pyarmalot river following Cyclone Nargis, in Labutta town, Ayeyarwaddy province, 168 kilometers (105 miles) southwest of Yangon on Sunday May 4, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Woman lays the cloth to dry at a market in Yangon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008. International aid began trickling into military-ruled Myanmar, but much of the Irrawaddy delta, where most of the 22,464 reported...   (AP Photo)
A boy stands at the broken pier following devastating cyclone in Yangon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008. International aid began trickling into military-ruled Myanmar, but much of the Irrawaddy delta, where...   (AP Photo)
An aerial shot taken on a flight from Bagan to Yangon, shows flooded rice fields on the outskirt of Yangon, Myanmar, on Monday, May 5, 2008. A U.N. official declared Myanmar's cyclone-stricken Irrawaddy...   (AP Photo)
People go on their daily business after Cyclone Nargis, amidst toppled trees on the streets in Yangon, Myanmar on Monday May 5, 2008. International aid began trickling into military-ruled Myanmar, but...   (AP Photo)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (
1
 of 3)

Tags

Cyclone Nargis • cyclone


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other World Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »