Monday, May 19, 2008

Burma: On the ground in the Irrawaddy Delta -The general and current situation of Laputta hit by Cyclone Nargis as seen by an Eyewitness

"The whole town was devastated and all the buildings were falling down without rescue. The majority of locals living in Laputta lost their homes and businesses and everything belonging to them. As well there are shortages of food on a daily basis.


A few days after the storm, the victims who lost their families and villages in closed area of Laputta town began arriving in Laputta to rely on rescues and demand their needs in the refugee camps. Some victims have walked across along the farming fields filled with dead bodies for two or three days.

Seriously, when arriving the Laputta, there are no proper places- for the victims -prepared by the authorities. Presently, there are three main refugee camps recognized by the local authority. At least, more than ten thousands victims are staying contemporarily there, sleeping on the wet ground under the miserable roofs in the camps of the monasteries and pagodas areas and some victims are staying outside in the rain. They have no proper toilets and enough water for drinking and cleaning up. People don’t have vaccination forthcoming-soon diseases like diarrhoea. Most of the victims are patients who are suffering with diseases infected before.

The volunteering clinics have not enough medicine for patients. Only the hospital is full with the patients and it can't accept next new patients because of lack of medicine and free beds. Volunteer doctors are concerned about the victims because of the air, ground and water pollution because the toilets are pouring with human waste and flowing near by local areas. So they want to build the healthy toilets to prevent the diseases.

Each victim just gets a little rice for a day from government. Most of the children (Orphans) need to get nutrition, enough hygienic foods, cooking pots, plates, spoons, clothes, mosquito-nets, temporary-roof and toilet."

(Taken from MBA student with thanks)



No comments: