2 of 2

In the absence of clean water sources, the specter of waterborne diseases is now the most urgent concern. There is stagnant water everywhere. As people become more desperate, dysentery, cholera, and malaria is likely to take many more lives.

Movement throughout the southern delta region is extremely slow. Cyclone Nargis cut a broad swathe 160 miles into Myanmar; by comparison the 2004 tsunami reached about two miles inland when it struck. Massive amounts of debris must be moved. Only then will any sort of assistance start to reach those who have been hardest hit. Temporary shelter needs to be set up to allow families some respite from the elements.

There will be longer-term structural problems for the country as well. The Irrawaddy Delta area was the rice bowl of the nation. It is now a devastated wasteland. The banks and levees are destroyed. Rice has doubled in price.

With every day I spend here, my sense of urgency increases. There are thousands of people receiving aid every day, yet there are tens of thousands more still to be helped. The sight of so many people without shelter or basic necessities is distressing. The work is urgent, the need great. As I write, there are hopeful signs of a breakthrough in discussions that will allow aid to start flowing into the country. But the clock is ticking in the race to save lives.

Tim Costello is president of World Vision-Australia.

Copyright © 2008 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

More on the effects of Cyclone Nargis is available from BBC News, Yahoo's full coverage, and Reliefweb.

first page |  2 of 2

share this page

May (Web-only) 2008, Vol. 52