The landfall on July 30 of Cyclone Komen in Bangladesh brought strong winds and heavy rains to Myanmar, particularly to Rakhine and Chin States and Sagaing and Magway Regions in western Myanmar. More than one meter (40 inches) of rain that followed turned the floods into a major natural disaster. On August 3, the Ministry of Agriculture stated that 525,895 acres of farmland had been submerged. The Relief and Resettlement Department (RRD) of the Government of Myanmar put the number of deaths at 63 and displaced people at 200,000. But newspapers (e.g. Myanmar Times, August 4) state that it is an underestimate. The figures will rise as more areas become accessible. Around a third of Kalay city of 500,000 inhabitants in the Southern Sagaing Region (headquarters of Kalay diocese) is underwater. Landslides have destroyed a large number of bridges and roads connecting Kalay with Hakha the capital of Chin State (headquarters of Hakha diocese), with the villages in the hills and with the major cities of Mandalay and Yangon. Transportation, electricity and communication are disrupted in all the areas and access to many areas remains a major challenge because of landslides. Diseases are spreading and a UN communiqué states that the death toll will probably rise during the next few days, a big proportion of them children. The Myanmar military is air dropping food and some supplies but they are inadequate given the enormity of the problem.
The Jesuits in Myanmar are coordinating their work with Karuna (Caritas) Myanmar and are trying to get involved in relief and reconstruction mainly in Chin State. Kalay is close to the plains and has an airport, and destruction is mainly in its outskirts where 27 villages have been flooded. The Myanmar army too is active in relief in Kalay city. However, its situation is not as bad as in Hakha which is in the hills and is inaccessible except by helicopter. We are planning to work mainly in Hakha diocese, coordinating our efforts with the Karuna set-up of the diocese.
The immediate needs are essential items like food, drinking water, medicines, tents and materials for temporary shelter. At a later stage, we will need funds to help in the rehabilitation of people who lost their homes, displaced and living in temporary shelters. The funds received will be used for relief and rehabilitation work in Hakha diocese in coordination with the diocesan network of “Karuna”. The Jesuit Mission of Myanmar will receive, distribute and be accountable for the funds received.
Fr Jose Changanacherry SJ
Delegate, Myanmar Jesuit Mission
August 4, 2015
If you wish to support the relief efforts in Myanmar, donations can be made through the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific. Please contact jcapsj@jcapsj.org for the bank transfer details. Please also inform us if you are making a transfer so that we know where to channel your donation.
Photo: Residents paddle through floodwater in Kalay, Sagaing Region, on August 1. AFP photo taken from The Myanmar Times.