Cyclone Nargis hit the southern delta region of Myanmar (Burma) on the 3rd May 2008, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The exact death toll is still unknown but the latest government estimates reveal that approximately 78,000 people were killed with a further 56,000 still missing or left unaccounted for in the Irrawady delta. The 10 hour cyclone hurtled in to the country at 150 miles per hour leaving 1.7m Burmese homeless or in distress.
Two weeks after the cyclone, only a trickle of aid has been permitted into Burma and the government is still refusing to allow International Non-Government Organisations in to the country, leaving people struggling to survive without enough clean water, food or shelter in the main city Rangoon. Reports of dysentery have already surfaced and there are fears of a measles epidemic along with some early indications that cholera is breaking out. It is feared that children are most at risk, being vulnerable to waterborne diseases such as dengue fever and malaria.
Children are a huge concern
If aid doesn't get through soon the country could possibly face a "second disaster" as a generation of children could be wiped out. Many children who survived the cyclone now remain orphaned, injured, malnourished or open to exploitation.
The UN says child traffickers are targeting the youngest and most vulnerable survivors of Burma's catastrophic cyclone and two suspects have already been arrested.
