A SHELTERBOX EXCLUSIVE FROM BURMA
 

ShelterBox has just received extraordinary photography and exclusive information from SRT member Mark Pearson in Labutta, Myanmar. The pictures depict that the swift operations and clear cut decision making from early May has helped hundreds of innocent people in times of disaster. Through the sheer persistence and hard work of ShelterBox the delivery and distribution of vital aid continues.

Mark Pearson comments from Labutta, “I have been in Labutta Division in the Irrawaddy I found 'three mile camp' which is home to 5,250 survivors of the Cyclone. There are around 700 ShelterBox tents there all arranged perfectly there is camp security, hospital, clean water, food and schools all run by the government. There are no international NGOs present as the Government is doing such a good job at it to the point that the UN finished the IDP cluster almost three weeks ago. The ShelterBox kit was in a good position above sea level and a cool breeze all day and most importantly shelter from the heavy monsoon downpours which happen most days and night. The survivors have set up shops in our tents and all sorts of little industries inside 3 mile camp.

Following Mark Pearson’s compelling report the ShelterBox warehouse volunteers began to pack 200 tents, 2000 mosquito nets, 2000 tool kits, 600 woodburning stoves, 600 cooking pots, 4000 ground sheets and 50 classrooms in a box. This aid will arrive early July.

“The population was around 40,000 (in the whole of Labutta) at its peak, the families remaining are from the worst hit areas in Labutta and the people I have spoken with their villages were completely wiped out so getting up to Labutta was their only option.

“While I was in Heignyi Island an Australian team member of Medecins Sans Frontieres told me that there were 300 tents on the island in good shape and he was amazed by the speed of distribution to the most remote areas by ShelterBox.”

ShelterBox can confirm the arrival of 35,000kgs of aid into Bangkok ready for the airbridge into Yangon. ShelterBox Response Team member and training manager Ed Cox will be joining up with the aid to ensure its safe delivery. Two SRT's (Mark Curnow & Martin Jackson both UK) make up the fourth team to enter Myanmar and have arrived safely today for a handover with photo-journalist and SRT member Mark Pearson who has been in country for one month. Back at the warehouse volunteers are packing more classrooms in a box, tool kits, mosquito nets, water carriers and groundsheets that will be flying in to Yangon on Thurs17th.

Monday 30th June - MYANMAR: Packing has commenced in the warehouse today as ShetlerBox plans to revisit Myanmar at the request from ShelterBox Response Team members on the ground. It is confirmed that the need for continued aid is still vital. The monsoon season now follows the devastating Cyclone Nargis making the already desperate situation unbearable for the surviving victims. ShelterBox will respond again with wood burning stoves, schools boxes (approximately 4,000 schools destroyed), tents and boxes (currently used by the fishermen for storage of fish).

Thursday 26th June - MYANMAR: Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar in early May leaving an estimated 150,000 dead and over 2 million left homeless and having lost their livelihood as 500,000 acres of rice farmland areas were swamped by a large seawater tidal surge. To summarize our progress in Myanmar Operation Manager Lasse Petersen says, "While the UN and most NGO’s could not gain access into Myanmar, ShelterBox was able to; immediately obtain as many visa’s as we wanted for our volunteers, bring almost 100 tonnes of ShelterBoxes into the Myanmar and be involved in delivery of boxes and establishing ShelterBox tent camps in some of the areas in the Irrawaddy Delta worst affected by Cyclone Nargis." He adds, "Initially ShelterBox sent 648 boxes. (200 boxes had 2 tents hence total was 848 tents). Thereafter ShelterBox chartered a DC10 from East Midlands to Yangon to deliver a further 1050 ShelterBoxes (Approx. total commitment so far provides shelter for almost 20,000)." To summarize to date 8 SRT’s have deployed in Myanmar including SRT’s from UK, USA & Australia. ShelterBox holds visa’s for several other SRT’s and currently has personnel in Myanmar with further aid delivery to disaster victims in progress.


 

Thursday 22nd May - Myanmar: ShelterBox can confirm that the majority of the ShelterBox tents have now been used in the two worst hit disaster areas of Labutta & Bogale. Considering the circumstances the first stage of the mission was completed; getting the most boxes of aid into the country in the initial stages of the disaster. Importantly a realistic pipeline for more ShelterBoxes to enter the country under the guidance of the local authorities has now been established.

These tents are in Bogale, one of the worst affected areas where many villages were completely destroyed. The image at top right shows Ian Neal, a ShelterBox Response Team [SRT] member in the Irrawaddy Delta overseeing the distribution of ShelterBoxes. One thousand eight hundred boxes were deployed in Burma. Lasse Petersen took the photos below as he flew over the devastated area.

The village of Kyien Kyaung Gyi, Myanmar where approx. 30 tents had been erected. The leader of this village lost his wife and all six children to the storm - water levels exceeded 15ft.