The International Federation is stepping up its efforts to get food and water to those most affected by cyclone Nargis. With over a million people in need, resources are being put into place to provide almost a million litres of water per day in the heavily-damaged delta region of the Irrawaddy river.
But clean water alone won’t prevent mass outbreaks of disease, according to regional water and sanitation delegate Don Hutchinson.
"I’m more worried about sanitation becoming an issue", he said. "We’ve just got back from assessing some displaced centre near Yangon and while clean drinking water didn’t seem to be a problem there was a clear lack of sanitation facilities for the 500 people."
To this end a Red Cross Red Crescent mass sanitation unit, capable of serving 20,000 people is on the way to Myanmar via the regional logistics centre in Kuala Lumpur. Apart from containing tools and material needed to make latrines, the unit also carries health promotional material, essential if lives are to be saved.
The clean water supplies will come from four water purification units, two of which have already arrived in country.
"This is top priority" according to Bernt Schell, who is currently heading up the Field Coordination Assessment Team (FACT) in Myanmar.
"We have started to look for engineers that we can employ and train to use this equipment, both in Yangon and in the delta area."
"The health needs are very acute," notes Salome Zan, the Federation’s health training delegate in Yangon. "We have already heard reports of digestive tract disorders and malaria, and we are concerned that the situation could get worse if people continue to live without the basic necessities for survival."
An assessment team visited a centre for displaced people today and saw evidence of skin diseases and acute respiratory tract infections. "One in five people was reported sick," says Salome. "We are working with the Ministry of Health who have already sent a doctor and two nurses to help people."
Food aid is also on the move, with 30 tons of World Food Programme rice, sourced in Myanmar, currently being loaded onto trucks for distribution by Myanmar Red Cross volunteers in the main city and in the Delta region, where hundreds of thousands of people are in need.
The International Federation’s head of delegation in Myanmar, Bridget Gardner, is currently in the worst-affected areas. She confirms that the situation on the ground is "very grave. We visited many areas and saw many people in desperate need of help".
A decision has been taken by the International Federation to increase the number of people it will target to 100,000 of the worst affected and a revised appeal will shortly be launched.
Myanmar Red Cross headquarters continues to buzz with volunteers loading and unloading relief supplies. Trucks are coming and going from dawn to dusk, as volunteers form human chains to get supplies in and out.
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The International Federation is stepping up its efforts to get food and water to those most affected by cyclone Nargis. (p17613)
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Myanmar Red Cross workers load rice donated by the World Food Programme form a warehouse near Yangon today. 30 tons of rice is being distributed to three locaitons in the badly-affected delta region, and six locations in Yangon. (p17614)
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Food aid is also on the move, with 30 tons of World Food Programme rice, sourced in Myanmar, currently being loaded onto trucks for distribution by Myanmar Red Cross volunteers in the main city and in the Delta region, where hundreds of thousands of people are in need. (p17615)
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Cyclose Nargis survivors at a sports centre outside Yangon which has become their home since the disaster. Out of 504 people there, over 10 have skin diseases and respiratory tract infections. (p17616)
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Aid arriving aboard an ICRC flight at Yangon airport. (p17617)
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