Emergency supplies are loaded on to the first MSF aid plane bound for Yangon. Bordeaux, 2008
Photo by Nicolas Tucat/AFP
MSF's first cargo plane, carrying 40 tons of relief supplies and medical materials, left Europe today for Yangon, Myanmar (Burma). MSF is intensifying its response, with teams now providing emergency assistance in some of the most affected areas by Cyclone Nargis.
On the Bassein River, MSF teams are using two boats to reach the most affected areas on both sides. Teams are already set up in Haigyi, Tongwa, and Pyinsalu and are in the process of expanding to other villages. MSF teams have seen many dead bodies, but it remains difficult to give an estimate of how many people have died. There are a huge number of flattened houses and other structures and much of the area remains flooded. This is posing problems in finding suitable places to set up facilities to provide medical consultations.
So far, nine truckloads of supplies have gone to Pathein (Bassein) and as of today there will be about 70 MSF staff working in this area with many more coming from MSF’s established projects in other parts of the country.
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