June Update.

The latest news is that the Burmese government had let foreign aid workers in, (4weeks!!) after the disaster of May 2nd. This breakthrough was the result of a visit by UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon with the regime's leader U Than Shwe. I question what kind of government turns back international aid for 4 weeks and requires a top UN official to convince them to receive aid that is freely offered.
The latest BBC report says this: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7430960.stm


However we can take that as a small positive step in helping the tens of thousands of victims of the disaster.

• At least 78,000 people have died as a result of the cyclone, and another 56,000 people are still missing. 2.5 million people are affected and need help in rebuilding their homes and livelihoods.


• As with all disasters there is an initial rescue mission to prevent epidemics, provide immediate health care and shelter to those affected. Only when the areas affected are cleared, the area can be considered for rebuilding. The regime considers it now ok for rebuilding and as such are sending victims living in makeshift government shelters (built to impress the UN representatives) back to their homes with a bamboo stick and a tarpaulin sheet to 'rebuild' their lives. They are also asking for $1.5 billion to help them rebuild the areas affected. Ironic really as they refused the $2.5 million aid offered by the international community for immediate relief, claiming that the Burmese people can live without the foreign 'chocolate bars'.
  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7430867.stm


• The regime has also warned the victims to not approach the foreign officials for food and broadcasted in their national paper Myanma Ahlin, that standing by the road asking for help, tarnishes the Burmese image.


• Currently Pandan Cruise Tours has offered one of their cruise ships to the UK Medical Aid group Merlin, and they in turn have converted it into a makeshift floating medical clinic. On board, a 17 year old girl gave birth to her first child, grateful for the opportunity to have medical services in times of need. Please visit Merlin's UK website for more information: http://www.merlin.org.uk/


• I came across another blog (we are one of many that are dedicated to Burma): http://blog.moegyo.org/. They are a group of Burmese living overseas, mainly Australia and America that are actively collecting funds and other donated items (clothes etc) to freight over to Burma.


• Over the past 4 weeks, as foreign aid cannot get to places of need, doctors and other citizens of Rangoon (the capital) have ventured to the badly affected areas (Irrawaddy Delta) with their own supplies of medication, water, food, clothing, shelter (plastic sheets) in an effort to provide some hope to the victims, to let them know that even if the government isn't willing to help, there are people out there still willing to help. Reports however have suggested that the regime have turned some of these volunteers back to Rangoon, denying them the opportunity to help the victims.

Events in Adelaide:

• Our fundraising in the Adelaide Medical School is currently on hold while we are on holiday, but we are in the process of organising more events. The current tally stands at $1000 from the 5 years of medical students that we have collected from, with the first years contributing a generous $400. Thank you again guys!


• Insight is very supportive of our cause and their contribution is very much appreciated.


• Places that we are looking at publication are The Adelaide Chinese Newspaper, the Japanese newspaper and the AMSS magazine Stimulus.


• Planning is under way for our next event, Rock for Relief.


• A very good friend and upcoming local musician, Sean Robertson, is also active in raising awareness about Burma, speaking about it on ABC Radio (during its Busk for Burma campaign) and at his concert at the Promethian last Sat night (31/05/08) where he raised money to put towards our cause.

WHO Cyclone Nargis Report.

Mark Knight's Reality Check Aisle 3 Cartoon in today's Herald Sun.

Here is an abstract from the latest WHO report in the cylone:

Myanmar is the largest country in mainland South-East Asia, with a coastline of 2 400 kms which largely forms the east coast of the Bay of Bengal.
The country has three distinct seasons: rainy, cold and hot. The rainy season arrives with the south-west monsoon, which begins in mid-May and lasts to mid-October. Myanmar is divided into 14 primary administrative areas (7 divisions and 7 states) and each state or division is further subdivided into districts (65), townships (325), wards (2 781) and villages (64 910). It is a largely rural, densely forested (49%) country of 55.4 million people with an average density of 75 people / km2 that ranges from 595 / km2 in Yangon Division to 14 / km2 in Chin State, to the west of the country. The majority of Burma's population lives in the Ayeyarwady valley, the area of Cyclone Nargis touchdown.

The annual per capita income is USD 1 691 with a ranking on the UNDP Human Development Index 2007 (HDI) of 132/177 and on the Human Poverty Index (HPI) of 52/108. The HPI measures severe deprivation in health by the proportion of people who are not expected to survive beyond the age of 40.

Early reports indicate the cyclone has affected five divisions and states (Ayeyarwady, Yangon and Bago Divisions; Kayin and Mon States) in total, mainly in the southern part of the country, as well as offshore islands (see Figure 1). The area which has been declared a State Disaster Area has a total population of 24 million.

Cyclone Nargis (Category 3-4) developed over the Bay of Bengal and made landfall at 16.00 hrs, on 2 May 2008 in the Ayeyarwady delta region with winds up to 200 km/hr and associated tidal surges, rain and flooding. Due to the complex of deltas on the coast, tidal surges are likely to have penetrated inland.

The cyclone tracked inland reaching Yangon (former capital city, 5 million inhabitants). The effects of the cyclone are reported to be significant in the coastal areas which are densely populated and in Yangon city where there is a large population of urban poor.

As of 7 May, 2008, the figures for those killed, missing or affected are still not definitive. The state media is reporting the death toll at 22 980 deaths and 42 119 missing. The number of affected population is still unknown but could be in excess of one million. These figures may be conservative and are expected to rise as more information becomes available and the delta areas are assessed.

A storm surge is reported to have destroyed the vast majority of domestic dwellings in seven townships, also causing severe storm and flood-damage to roads, communication links and other essential service infrastructure, especially water and power supplies. Such damage will hinder and complicate assessment and response efforts and increase the risk of infectious disease.
Access to the public health system, which was already inadequate, has also been severely affected, and the capacity of the surveillance system to detect and respond to epidemics has been further weakened.
The areas devastated by the cyclone and flooding produce 65% of the country's rice, 80% of the aquaculture, 50% of poultry and 40% of pig production (FAO). Damage to these industries may have a longer term effect not only on domestic supply but also on importing countries which purchase rice from Myanmar such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, although exports have decreased over recent years.

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The Government of Myanmar has formed an Emergency Committee and announced that the priorities of its relief operations are to provide adequate food, safe drinking-water and shelter to the affected people.
Health issues are of major concern in districts affected by the cyclone.
The WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia and the WHO Country Office in Myanmar are actively involved in the response. A crisis room has been activated in the WHO Country Office in Yangon. The WHO Country Office in Myanmar is working with the Myanmar Ministry of Health, UNICEF and other partners on damage and needs assessments to assist the local health authorities.
Major health problems in Myanmar, which are most likely to be exacerbated by this crisis, relate predominantly to communicable diseases (malaria, dengue, measles) and malnutrition, especially in children. As of 2003, 40% of children under five were assessed as being stunted, indicating chronic malnutrition and 10% as being wasted (acute malnutrition) (UNICEF). Major causes of death overall, are from malaria, respiratory and diarrhoeal diseases.

Given the structural damage caused by the cyclone and flooding of water supplies there is an additional risk of waterborne diseases affecting large numbers of the urban, rural and displaced populations. In addition, extensive damage to infrastructure and distribution systems, as well as power supplies, will make it virtually impossible to prepare food safely, posing an additional risk of foodborne diseases. Chlorine powder, water purification units, plastic sheeting for shelter, cooking utensils, ready-to-eat survival food rations, essential medicines, cholera kits, antimalarial drugs, long lasting insecticide-treated bednets and supplies for the management of corpses are urgently needed.
Guidance for donors on donations of drugs and medical supplies has been developed by WHO in consultation with over 100 humanitarian organizations and experts. (see Sections 2.6, ix, and 4, Guidelines for Drug Donations). Adhering to these guidelines will ensure that the effect of donations are maximised for the people of Myanmar and will help to prevent stockpiling of unwanted medicines and medical supplies.

Risk factors for increased communicable disease burden
1. Interruption of safe water, sanitation and cooking facilities due to disruption of electricity and fuel supplies. The populations displaced by the cyclone are at immediate and high risk of outbreaks of waterborne and foodborne diseases.

2. Population displacement with overcrowding. Populations in the affected areas and relief centres are at immediate and high risk from the transmission of measles and at increased incidence of acute respiratory infections (ARI). In general increased risk of meningitis transmission is associated with overcrowding.

3. Increased exposure to disease vectors. Displacement of populations can result in increased exposure to disease-carrying vectors, increasing the risk of malaria and dengue. As well as other less commonly reported illnesses such as plague, chikungunya and hantavirus infection.

4. Malnutrition and transmission of communicable diseases. The combination of malnutrition and communicable diseases with a natural disaster creates the potential for a significant public health problem particularly in infants and children. Malnutrition compromises natural immunity, leading to more frequent, severe and prolonged episodes of infections. Severe malnutrition often masks symptoms and signs of communicable diseases, making prompt clinical diagnosis and early treatment more difficult.

5. Poor access to health services is of immediate concern. The damage caused by the cyclone to the health infrastructure is preventing access to usual services, as well as to emergency medical and surgical services being put in place in response to this emergency.

6. As flood waters recede, increased malaria vector breeding resulting in increased malaria
transmission will become an issue (usually after 2-3 weeks)

Reference:
Communicable Disease Working Group on Emergencies (CDWGE-WHO/HQ); Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response(CSR/SEARO); WHO Office - Myanmar.CD risk assessment and interventions: Cyclone Nargis, Myanmar, May 2008.
http://www.who.int/diseasecontrol_emergencies/MyanmarCycloneNargis090508.pdf

Addendum

So this entry is in regards to our blog name, which may initially come across as perhaps a little lame but subtlely (or perhaps not so subtely, if one is well learned about Burma) is related to something real.
The official newspaper in Burma is called the New Light of Myanmar, it is the only english language paper in the country and is produced by the government. It however has its own Australian affiliations because an Australian, is the chief editor of it.

Here is a link to its site, and you can judge for yourself how much help is getting to the people: http://myanmar.com/newspaper/nlm/index.html
And here is a simple explanation of what it is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Light_of_Myanmar

It wasn't because of copyright infringement that we called ourselves something different but rather because Burma is the original name for the country. For a general idea of Burma, consider this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myanmar, however the first 2 paragraphs may help explain our consideration in the naming.

Setting the scene

The catastrophe that was Cyclone Nargis ripped through the Irrawaddy Delta and Yangon (the capital) more than 2 weeks ago. There have been an estimated 30,000 deaths although local figures are underestimating the extent of it, claims WHO. And over a million people displaced, who have lost their homes and their livelihoods.

However the more pressing issue at the moment is the lack of proper aid that can prevent the long term sequelae of such a disaster. The cyclone was of the magnitude of Cyclone Katrina that swept through New Orleans, and Bangladesh that killed more than 100,000 people. (Long term effects is something another post will tackle.)

We are based in Adelaide and as such, we will highlight events in Adelaide, news that we have come across relevant to this cause. We are also fundraising for World Vision as it is one of a few organisations the Burmese government has allowed into the country to work.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Medical School Fundraising:
So far because of the generous donations of the Adelaide Medical students, we have raised around $1000 and counting.. Thanks guys :)

Insight Photo Exhibition:
Chesser Gallery, Chesser Lane, Adelaide
22-24th May 2008
For further details: http://www.amss.org.au/insight/

Rock for Relief:
Upcoming rock concert, with funds raised going towards World Vision's aid to Burma. Will keep you posted.

Publishings:
Look out for our upcoming articles, will update you on where it will be published with further information on our work and the story behind Nargis and more importantly Burma


Please bear with us, this is our first post and alot of plans are still TBC but will keep this updated.
Also there will be more informative stuff on the background, general information about Burma and what we believe will be the long term health related and social implications of this disaster...