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Red Cross Aid Boat Sinks in Burma

Crew survives, but precious supplies are lost as clock ticks

By Katherine Thompson,  Newser Staff

Posted May 11, 2008 12:00 PM CDT
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(Newser) – A Red Cross aid boat delivering desperately needed supplies to the survivors of Cyclone Nargis hit a submerged tree and sank in Burma's Irrawaddy Delta today, reports CNN. All those on board survived, but the 500 bags of rice, 5,000 liters of drinking water, and other critical cargo were all lost.

Red Cross official Joe Lowry noted that this was "the first time we got a boat going with so much aid on it," and added, "The local Red Cross people are extremely saddened and distressed that they've lost this." Oxfam warns that continued delays in bringing aid like potable water to the region could affect 1.5 million people.

Sick villagers receive treatment from a local NGO at the Paw Taw Mu pagoda at the outskirts of hard-hit Bogalay town, southern Myanmar on Sunday May 11, 2008.
Sick villagers receive treatment from a local NGO at the Paw Taw Mu pagoda at the outskirts of hard-hit Bogalay town, southern Myanmar on Sunday May 11, 2008.   (AP Photo)
A homeless villager, with traditional makeup on, gathers at the monastery of Kyi Bui Khaw village, in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008.
A homeless villager, with traditional makeup on, gathers at the monastery of Kyi Bui Khaw village, in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Villagers sail near the destroyed boats in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008, a week after devastating cyclone Nagris slammed into the low-lying region.
Villagers sail near the destroyed boats in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008, a week after devastating cyclone Nagris slammed into the low-lying region.   (AP Photo)
Villagers work on a house in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008. Aid efforts have been set back by the sinking of a Red Cross boat laden with supplies.
Villagers work on a house in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008. Aid efforts have been set back by the sinking of a Red Cross boat laden with supplies.   (AP Photo)
A dead body, right rear, floats in the river in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008. A Red Cross boat carrying supplies sank in the delta region today.
A dead body, right rear, floats in the river in Pyapon, a town in the Irrawaddy delta of Myanmar, on Sunday, May 11, 2008. A Red Cross boat carrying supplies sank in the delta region today.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
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Sinking is a major drawback
Gazette (Cedar Rapids)

Government contributing to further disaster
Vancouver Sun

Aid is being used as political weapon
CBS News

 
aid • Oxfam • Red Cross • Burma • disaster recovery • boat accident • Cyclone Nargis • Irrawaddy Delta

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