Myanmar Toll May Reach 60,000; UN Wants Aid Access (Update6)

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Myanmar Toll May Reach 60,000; UN Wants Aid Access (Update6)

By Paul Tighe and Demian McLean
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May 7 (Bloomberg) -- As many as 60,000 people may have died in the May 3 cyclone that struck Myanmar, the United Nations said as it called on the military government to allow international workers to start relief operations.

Aid officials, who are waiting for the military to approve entry visas, said the number of dead will rise without quick distribution of drinking water, food and medicine to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, such as cholera.

Myanmar's state television reported that 22,000 people died and more than 40,000 are missing after the southern Irrawaddy delta that feeds into the Andaman Sea was swamped by a surge of water as high as 12 feet (3.5 meters), the UN's IRIN news agency said.

``We are in close contact with the government on the response,'' said Chris Kaye of the World Food Program. ``Much more cooperation will be required.'' The WFP is distributing the 800 metric tons of food stocks it holds in Yangon, the former capital, Kaye said in an e-mail from Thailand.

More than 1 million people may be homeless after Tropical Cyclone Nargis hit the country, causing the worst natural disaster in Southeast Asia since a tsunami in 2004 killed more than 220,000 people across the Indian Ocean. Aid supplies sent by countries including India and Thailand are arriving to be distributed, the UN said.

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