More than 100 dead in floods and landslides in Myanmar

September 15 (EUROPA PRESS) –

More than 100 people have died and more than 200 are missing as a result of floods and landslides that have hit Shan State in southern Burma.

“We have received more than 100 bodies of the deceased. They are still searching for the missing. Among the dead are babies as young as a month old and even elderly grandparents,” said a rescuer quoted by the Burmese affiliate of the British broadcaster BBC.

These victims have occurred in the region of the tourist city of Kalaw, where the streets have been flooded by water and mud, although they are now almost clear. Many cars have been buried in the mud. “The city is a ruin. There is no electricity or Internet. Only landlines work,” said a resident of Kalaw.

People are now in need of warm clothing and medicine, but access is complicated by blocked roads and landslides on the slopes.

The military junta that rules Burma announced last Friday that there were 33 confirmed deaths as a result of the floods, with areas particularly affected including Ramuthin in the Mandalay region. There are 187 temporary camps set up to accommodate the thousands of displaced people.