By Prensa Latina,
Yangon : Five days after the Nargis cyclone passed through Myanmar, calculations show nearly one million victims while economic damages were more devastating than the 2004 Sumatra tsunami.
The last official figure established the death toll at 30,000 and over 40,000 missing while estimates of foreign observers reported nearly 100,000 deaths, about half of them children.
All access routes from this capital to the south are destroyed or blocked.
Nargis hurricane also wreaked economic damages since it devastated a huge rice zone and demolished hundreds of thousands of houses.
Reports from the Food and Agriculture Organization noted the cyclone has destroyed rice crops and cattle and its effects have already damaged international markets.
The so-called rice-cup of this South Asian nation located on the Irrawaddy River delta was devastated by Nargis’ attack, which also wiped out five provinces which provided 65 percent of the total production.
The situation looks better in Yangon, but the city remains in darkness and nearby localities are still waiting for aid, isolated by the storm’s ravages.
The biggest threats are now food shortage and lack of drinkable water, noted sources from international entities assisting the population.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon considered it necessary to focus on mobilizing all resources and capacities to back emergency efforts.