Estimate: cyclone could kill 500,000

Will Cyclone Nargis, the catastrophic storm that ravaged Burma/Myanmar, ultimately be worse than the 2004 tsunami? Christ almighty.

That fearful prediction comes from the Sun, so you may want to take it with a grain of salt. But it's based on an estimate of what could happen "through disease and hunger if the nation's hardline army rulers continue to block aid for the devastated lowlands of the Irrawaddy Delta."

And blocking aid is exactly what these evil rulers are doing. They've seized all food supplies and are preventing it from being distributed to the victims, forcing the U.N. to suspend its relief efforts. Meanwhile, according to Nyo Ohn Myint, leader of an exiled opposition party:

"The bodies need to be collected and burnt as soon as possible or disease will claim many more lives. But the government has organised nothing and its 400,000 soldiers are doing nothing while undistributed aid piles up.

"They are hoping bodies will be washed out to sea so the final count is smaller – but it could kill half a million people within a matter of weeks. The world must know what is going on."

There is a special circle of Hell for these junta bastards.

Incidentally, a death toll of 500,000 would place Nargis on the Top 5 list of deadliest natural disasters in history (excluding famines and diseases). Although, the term "natural disaster" may not be entirely appropriate, as Myint pointed out: "Much of this will be a man-made disaster, caused by the military regime."

P.S. The deadliest tropical cyclone in world history was the 1970 Bhola cyclone in India and Bangladesh, which killed between 300,000 and 500,000 people.

Comments

[Andrew]

I can't believe you are making this into a pet political issue. You should be in sorrow over this immense tragedy. Have you no decency?

[Brendan]

Oh, stop it. Must your pissant feud with copndor consume three threads?

I didn't have any problem with your original post that started the argument, but I find this one annoying.

[Andrew]

Sorry, I couldn't resist. ;-)

[B. Minich]

One of the interesting things about the Bangladesh cyclone is that it caused the country to come into existence. Before then, Bangladesh was known as East Pakistan, and was a part of Pakistan. The horrible Pakistani response to that cyclone prompted a revolt against the government.

That could happen here, which may be a positive.

[Andrew]

Sorry, I couldn't resist. ;-)

[copndor]

It is one thing to criticize the junta now, when there's evidence that they have been seizing supplies. It is another thing, right after thousands of innocent folks were killed, and before the junta's actions in the aftermath might warrant such a reaction, to hope not that the storm were less extensive so that more innocent people were saved, but that the storm were extensive enough to kill guilty people were killed.

[copndor]

Omit the last two words there.

Or maybe it was safe to assume that the junta was going to butcher up the relief effort, since they are nasty. I don't get why copndor is so hung up on the wording of a comment wishing the junta was no more. Maybe you didn't know the junta was a horrible little group before this all happened?

[copndor]

"Or maybe it was safe to assume that the junta was going to butcher up the relief effort, since they are nasty."

If that was Andrew's intention, then fair enough. But speaking of reading into a comment, that reading doesn't seem warranted.

[David K.]

copndor, that would only be true if Andrew had been criticizing the junta solely for its behavior in regards to the typhoon. I'm fairly certain he, like I and many others, believe their behavior in general warrants the hope for their removal by an act of God.

P.S. Don't be too hard on yourself Andrew, if you hadn't brought it up I was going to say the same thing...

[B. Minich]

David: I think knowing that you were going to say the same thing is going to make Andrew be harder on himself. ;)

B Minich - "if you hadn't brought it up I was going to say the same thing..." ... (in re Andrew ...

(grin)

[Alasdair]

)

(sigh)

Yes, that was me - not sure why it didn't have my info, however ...

[Andrew]

It is one thing to criticize the junta now, when there's evidence that they have been seizing supplies. It is another thing, right after thousands of innocent folks were killed, and before the junta's actions in the aftermath might warrant such a reaction....

You know, copndor, reading Wikipedia, I just don't have the faintest clue why someone might suspect the worst from the military junta at the outset of a disaster such as this. I mean, it seemed like a moderate, legitimate, benevolent regime, obviously well respected by its neighbors and the major global powers. Whodathunk that they'd let the bodies pile up like this while crates and boxes of foreign aid supplies sit in planes idling on the runways?

[MHiggo]

From: The Junta

To: The Rest of the World

Thanks for the aid, now GTFO. We'll take it from here ... trust us.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/10/cyclonenargis.burma