Vessels rush aid to Burma as death toll rises

Naval rather than merchant vessels have been charged with carrying the first consignments of emergency aid to Burma, where the death toll from tropical cyclone Nargis is now put at over 15,000.

India’s ministry of external affairs has confirmed that two warships are due to leave the major naval base of Port Blair for former capital Yangon, carrying relief and medical supplies including food, tents, blankets, clothing and medicines. Nargis struck Burma at the mouth of the Irrawaddy river, about 220km south-west of Yangon, before going on to hit the country’s economic heartlands. The US has also pledged help in the aftermath of the cyclone, with the aid likely to be channelled through the World Food Program and other agencies. No vessels will be chartered in the immediate future, although the picture should become clearer in a week or so. Hutchison spokesman Anthony Tam said the company was “still trying to establish” contact with the Myanmar terminal after tropical cyclone Nargis struck the Irrawaddy delta and the coastal region along the Andaman Sea. Telecommunications have been disrupted by damage caused by the storm which brought 190 km per hour winds and a 3.5m storm surge. As a result it was difficult to find out if there had been any damage to the terminal. The terminal, which covers 75 hectares, has five container berths with a total quay length of 1,000 m at Thilawa, about 25km from the former capital at Yangon, facing the Andaman Sea.

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