WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. officials in Myanmar are receiving information that there may be over 100,000 deaths in the delta area because of the cyclone that devastated the Southeast Asian nation, the top U.S. diplomat in the country said on Wednesday.
"The information that we're receiving indicates that theremay well be over 100,000 deaths in the delta area," said ShariVillarosa, the charge d'affaires of the U.S. Embassy inMyanmar. She spoke with reporters by conference call fromRangoon.
Villarosa said the 100,000 figure was not a confirmed deathtoll but was based on estimates provided by an internationalnon-governmental organization. She declined to identify theorganization.
She said recent estimates by the army-run Myanmargovernment put the death toll at 70,000 deaths, primarily inthe delta area, she said.
"The situation in the delta sounds more and morehorrendous," she said. Many people had died there because thestorm surge hit them while they were sleeping, and eitherinundated them or swept them out to sea, Villarosa said.
It was very difficult to get to the region because therewere not that many roads to begin with, and bridges had beenwashed out, she said.
In the Rangoon area, where most of the damage was fromwind, the government estimated 600 or 700 deaths, she said.
There was a strong risk of an outbreak of disease becauseof the lack of clean water, Villarosa said. "There is a veryreal risk of disease outbreaks."
She said the United States was making efforts to meet withministers and senior officials and hoped to convey the messagethat the country needed a massive international relief effort.But, "this is a very paranoid regime," she said of the junta.
"I can only assume that the longer the delay (in aid), themore victims that are created."
(Editing by David Alexander)
