Myanmar Cyclone Death Toll Still Rising

As of this morning the death toll from the tropical cyclone that hit the country of Myanmar (or Burma) this past Friday night had risen to over 22,000. Cyclone Nargis struck land as a borderline Category 3/Category 4 storm with sustained wind speeds of 130-135 mph. It made landfall on the Irrawaddy River delta region, which is a low-lying densely populated area. Nargis then went on to make a direct hit on the capital city of Rangoon (Yangon). In addition to the still rising death toll, an estimated 30,000 people are still missing.

The cyclone was very destructive mainly because of its storm surge. The storm surge or tidal waves that crashed ashore were estimated at over 13 feet high. The counter-clockwise circulation of Nargis allowed the water to build up significantly over the rather shallow waters off the coast of Myanmar. The path that Nargis took was basically a worse case scenario for the relatively poor country. The satellite images at the top left are quite dramatic. The top half photo was taken in the middle of April and shows the well defined coastline along with the bare ground and vegetation. The bottom half photo was taken on May 5th and shows the coastline, which has been inundated with incredible amounts of flood water.

Due to the secrecy with which the country of Myanmar likes to operate, the true facts of the extent of the damage from Nargis won't be heard for awhile. More wild photos can be seen here on the website of the Today show. After following that link, click on the slide show option on the right hand side of the screen. -ADAM