Environment News

Myanmar cyclone kills 15,000, entire towns under water

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 6 May, 2008 : - - 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.

The storm devastated Myanmar's main rice-growing region, which is home to about 24 million people, or nearly half the country's population. State television has shown images of entire communities submerged by the massive storm surge that accompanied the cyclone. Aid agencies dispatched teams Tuesday to assess the damage and to find ways of delivering emergency relief to the region, which has been largely cut off from the rest of the country.

Chronology Of Major Asian Cyclones 

Oct. 30, 1960 - BANGLADESH 
About 10,000 people are killed after a cyclone packing winds of 210 km per hour (131 mph) hits Bangladesh at night.

May 9, 1961 - BANGLADESH 
About 12,500 people are killed in a cyclone with top wind speed of 161 kph (101 mph).

May 28, 1963 - BANGLADESH 
Severe cyclone hits Chittagong coast in the night, destroying about 1 million homes, and killing more than 11,500 people.

Nov. 12, 1970 - BANGLADESH 
The country's deadliest cyclone destroys Chittagong and dozens of coastal villages, killing around 500,000 people.

Nov. 19, 1977 - INDIA 
More than 10,000 people die when a cyclone hits India's southeast Andhra coast. The storm disrupts life for 5.4 million people in 830 villages, and damages 1.4 million hectares (3.5 million acres) of cropland.

May 24, 1985 - BANGLADESH 
About 11,000 people killed in cyclone that hit Chittagong, Cox's Bazar and coastal islands.

April 29, 1991 - BANGLADESH 
Around 143,000 people are killed after cyclone pummels the southern coast with a 15-foot tidal surge.

Oct. 29, 1999 - INDIA 
A "super-cyclone" slams into northeast state of Orissa. At least 9,885 are killed.

Nov. 15, 2007 - BANGLADESH
Cyclone Sidr strikes Bangladesh, killing around 3,500 people.

May 4, 2008 - MYANMAR
A devastating cyclone strikes Myanmar, killing nearly 4,000 people and leaving thousands more missing. 

Read the full article at AFP

Survey: Map Surfing’s future 
 
More Australasian Surfing News available here
Check the latest Australasian Surf Reports and Forecasts

New! B2B News ASBE-Surf   |  Receive News-Alerts

Sources: AFP / Reuters

Environment - Surfersvillage