SPECIAL REPORT: Delivering Aid to the Neediest

On May 2 and 3, 2008, Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar, devastating the low-lying Irrawaddy Delta region and surrounding areas and lashing the largest city, Yangon. The damage was catastrophic, with as many as 133,000 people dead and some two million homeless. Schools, health facilities and infrastructure were decimated.  A huge percentage of the farmland, fisheries and water sources in the Irrawaddy Delta were ruined, posing serious concerns about long-term food and water shortages.

Meanwhile, most international aid workers faced restricted access to the areas affected by the crisis and the populations most in need.  Initial emergency assistance was largely carried out by tireless local aid workers and volunteers and eventually expanded with the easing of restrictions on foreigners. 

Months later, a major relief and recovery effort is underway, reintroducing a semblance of normalcy to the lives of a shocked and battered population. However, there is still much work to be done to ensure adequate food, water, medical care and shelter, revive lost livelihoods and rebuild shattered infrastructure.

How We Help

The IRC responded to the Cyclone Nargis disaster days after the storm hit Myanmar. Working in close conjunction with the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS), IRC staff and volunteers began distributing emergency shelter and household relief supplies to some 80,000 people. Today, the IRC is working in the Irrawaddy DeltaÕs westernmost township, Ngapudaw, aiding some 40,000 people through programs focusing on water treatment, distribution of hygiene kits, building latrines, training locals on water treatment and sanitation, reviving health centers, hospitals, and schools, and providing seeds to restart farming.  The IRC is set to begin new relief and recovery activities there to help people regain jobs, income and self-reliance.

The IRC and its local partners in Myanmar are:

• -       Helping communities treat, filter and store water for safe consumption, protecting water sources, including man-made ponds, and providing education about hygiene, water treatment and sanitation
• -       Distributing family hygiene kits and building latrines to prevent infectious disease
• -       Launching major livelihood restoration projects including rice farming, fishing, and salt production
• -       Repairing, renovating and equipping public facilities including schools, rural health centers and the hospital in Middle Island of Ngapudaw Township that was badly damaged in the cyclone.

Learn More
- Support the IRC relief efforts in Myanmar and other emergencies
- SPECIAL REPORT: Delivering Aid to the Neediest

Media Contact
Melissa Winkler, melissa.winkler@theIRC.org,
+1 646 734 0305