Another cyclone in Myanmar?

2008-05-10 08:03

Geneva - Myanmar could suffer another major storm this season even as it braces for more bad weather after the devastating impact of Cyclone Nargis, a UN weather expert warned on Friday.

"It's not rare if they have another (cyclone)," said Yuichi Ono, a programme officer for the UN's International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR).

The Bay of Bengal generally sees two cyclone "peaks" either side of the monsoon season which is likely to start by the end of May, Ono said.

An estimated 1.5 million people have been left homeless in Myanmar by the disaster, which has killed tens of thousands and left the country's infrastructure in tatters.

The impact of any further cyclone would be much more devastating and even if early warnings were issued, it is not clear where people could go amid the devastation, Ono said.

"But they shouldn't be in low-lying areas or stay in destroyed houses," he added.

UN relief spokesperson Richard Horsey warned that another storm was heading in Myanmar's direction, which could further complicate the slow-moving relief efforts.

"Our meteorological people tell us there's likely to be fairly strong rainfall in the next seven days," he said in neighbouring Thailand.

"That's going to be a big issue with unpaved roads. Heavy rainfall could complicate things for all those people going without shelter," Horsey said.

"If there's an epidemic of water-borne disease and a lack of shelter when a storm comes in ... if we have another storm coming into the delta, that's going to be a significant concern for all those people without shelter."

Myanmar's reclusive military leaders have blocked journalists and international aid workers from coming in to assess the situation, making it difficult to get a true picture after the storm, which the government says left 60 000 dead or missing.

- AFP