Tropical Cyclone Nargis Myanmar: rapid environmental assessment
Purpose
This brief report provides the findings of a rapid environmental assessment conducted following Cyclone Nargis.
Background
Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar on 2 and 3 May 2008 with winds up to 200 kph, sweeping through the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) delta region and the country’s main city and former capital, Yangon (Rangoon). Authorities initially declared five states and divisions (Yangon, Ayeyarwady, Bago, Mon and Kayin) to be disaster areas, but on 6 May revised this to the Ayeyarwady and Yangon Divisions only. Damage was most severe in the delta region, where the effects of extreme winds were compounded by a sizable storm surge that destroyed an estimated 95% of housing1. The official figures for dead and missing were reported as over 77,000 people killed and almost 56,000 people missing. The estimated number of affected people at the time of this assessment was 2.4 million.
The Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit (Joint Environment Unit) is the United Nations mechanism to mobilize and coordinate the international response to environmental emergencies. In situations such as Cyclone Nargis, the Joint Environment Unit’s role is to assist in the identification and address any acute environmental issues that may have resulted from the disaster – with an emphasis on those that have greatest implications for human life and health.
However, in the case of Cyclone Nargis, the Joint Environment Unit requested that an environmental expert from the Swedish Rescue Services Agency (SRSA) be deployed on a bilateral basis, which SRSA agreed to do.