Four days after Cyclone Mocha made landfall in Myanmar, killing hundreds and devastating communities in its path, aid groups seeking to deliver humanitarian assistance remained stymied by the junta on Thursday as survivors faced growing threats of hunger and illness.
Pierre Peron, a spokesman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said relief agencies were ready to deliver food, medicine and other much-needed supplies, but were awaiting the military regime’s approval.
Aid groups fear that the death toll, estimated by some at more than 450, will only rise as victims of the cyclone face food shortages, disease, a lack of clean water and the loss of their homes. Survivors also face the threat of unexploded land mines that may have moved during the flooding. An estimated 5.4 million people in Myanmar were affected by the storm.
Without swift aid, humanitarian experts fear that the number of deaths could climb, as was the case after Cyclone Nargis,…
This article was written by Richard C. Paddock and originally published on www.nytimes.com