And we think a couple hundred people dying from a natural disaster is bad… . This was brought to my attention by Steve over at Graphoogle. In his email, Steve said:
I’m travelling today, but got this note from a missions group in Indy that julie and I have travelled with, sounds like Myanmar got hammered. I haven’t been to this seminary personally but the group with me in Bangalore last year had recently visited there and reported God doing some pretty amazing things.
Here is an excerpt from Yahoo News:
More than 10,000 people have been killed in a tropical cyclone that struck Myanmar at the weekend, Foreign Minister Nyan Win told state television, adding that his nation would welcome international aid.
The United Nations had earlier said hundreds of thousands of people had been left homeless when the storm, packing winds of 190 kilometres (120 miles) per hour, ripped through the countryside, destroying entire villages in its fury.
Thousands of buildings were flattened as the furious cyclone also ripped power lines to shreds, uprooted trees that blocked key roads and disrupted water supplies in the main city and former capital, Yangon.
“I haven’t seen anything like this in my whole life,” one elderly resident told AFP….
…. “If we look at the emergency needs for shelter and drinking water, there are several hundred thousand people who will need urgent assistance,” he told AFP.
Please keep these people in your prayers. Also, if you know of any ways to get involved or to give to help, please comment with the information.
UPDATE — I receive continuous emails from World Vision and they sent one about how to help with this incident. The email says:
Dear Friend,
World Vision is airlifting emergency supplies to survivors of the devastating cyclone that struck Myanmar over the weekend. Right now, more than 10,000 people are feared dead. Thousands more have been left homeless and desperately need food, shelter, and fresh, clean water. Please click here to rush them aid!
World Vision is delivering emergency supplies to the children and families who’ve lost their homes in the cyclone. Your gift today will enable us to speed critical aid to the survivors….
…. World Vision’s National Director in Myanmar, James Tumbuan, described a chaotic scene: “Yangon totally collapsed. All the roads were blocked with fallen trees … Getting drinking water is a real problem. We need water purification units like those that were used in the tsunami. It could take days to get the electricity back.”
As you respond, please also pray for the people of Myanmar as they struggle to recover from this terrible disaster. Thank you, and God bless you for your faithful support during times of emergency.
In Christ,
Rich Stearns
President, World Vision U.S.
P.S. One of the most powerful ways you can help is by sponsoring a needy child in Myanmar. There are 100 children in Myanmar waiting for a sponsor like you — and the need has never been greater. Please prayerfully consider making a sponsorship commitment today to a child in Myanmar.
There you have it, straight from World Vision.
UPDATE 2 — From Reuters:
The cyclone and storm surge that tore through Myanmar’s Irrawaddy delta killed at least 15,000 people and left 30,000 missing, officials said on Tuesday, warning the toll could rise in low-lying, remote villages.
Foreign Minister Nyan Win said 10,000 people had died just in Bogalay, a town 90 km (50 miles) southwest of Yangon, as he went on state television to give the first detailed account of the worst cyclone to hit Asia since 1991, when 143,000 people died in Bangladesh.
After a meeting with Myanmar’s ambassador to Bangkok, Thai Foreign Minister Noppadol Pattama said he had been told 30,000 people were missing after Saturday’s devastating storm.
“The losses have been much greater than we anticipated,” he said after ambassador Ye Win declined to speak to reporters.
Woah. I am speechless….
Related posts:
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
You need to post another update. People need to be made aware of what is going on around the world…most of us are too busy getting our Starbucks and watching a butt load of TV (that isn’t life, is it?)…well the UN stated that there may be well over 100,000 dead bodies from this cyclone in Burma. Westerners don’t care, until it happens to us. What can we do about this tragedy? About 22,000 bodies have already been recovered, millions are homeless and these people are starving. Jesus!–the Better Half