In Bangladesh
cyclone Sidr’s death toll reached 2,300 on Sunday and according to officials it
could jump when the rescuers will reach the isolated areas.
The rescue teams, formed out of international aid organizations
that work with army troops, tried to clear the roads of fallen trees and
twisted roofs in order to reach the remote villages. Relief items like tents,
food and water reached very hard the survivors, many of them homeless, who struggled
for food.
Selina Shahid of the Ministry of Food and Disaster
Management said that the death toll rose when contact was made with coastal
regions cut off by the storm, the New York Times reports.
The death toll was based on reports from the police, public
hospitals, military officials, relief workers and aid agencies in the country,
according to Mohammad Golam Mostafa, an official in the ministry.
The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society said that once the
rescuers reach the islands off the coast the figure can go up to 10,000 victims.
The chairman of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society,
Mohammad Abdur Rob, said that thousands of volunteers that were helping with
the rescue operations gave the estimation.
Government officials said that the authorities were up to
the task
Shahidul Islam, an official in Bagerhat, a district near
Barguna, said: “We have enough food and water. We are going to overcome the
problem.”
On Sunday Aiyub Bhuiyan, the Secretary of the Ministry of
Food and Disaster Management, met with United Nations’ representatives and
international aid groups to discuss about emergency response.
He said: “The donors wanted to know about our plan and how
they can come forward to stand by the victims. We have briefed them about what
we need immediately."
$5.2 million in emergency aid was allocated by the
government in order to rebuild houses
The U.S.
promised $2.1 million and the United Nations pledged $7 million to help. Also
other international governments promised aid.
Cyclone Sidr smashed tens of thousands of homes in southwestern
Bangladesh
with winds at 150 mph. It also ruined thousands of hectares of crops.
