Catastrophe in Burma

Over 15,000 dead, according to some reports:

More than 15,000 people have died in Myanmar after a cyclone hit the country at the weekend, including 10,000 people in a single town, a state newspaper said Tuesday in the latest update on casualties.

The official New Light of Myanmar newspaper said that the town of Bogalay, located in the heart of the Irrawaddy river delta where the storm swept ashore, had suffered 10,000 deaths.

The cyclone pounded the delta and then tore through Myanmar's main city of Yangon, leaving a total of 15,000 dead across the country, the paper said.

The latest toll marked a 50 percent jump from the estimate given on state television late Monday by Foreign Minister Nyan Win, who said 10,000 people had been killed nationwide.

In dictatorships like Myanmar/Burma, the state media usually downplays the death toll from disasters like this, so who knows how many people really lost their lives. World Vision is accepting donations for much-needed assistance. (American residents can donate here.)

Damian P.

Posted by damian at May 6, 2008 07:28 AM