Burma braces itself for second storm

A second storm was heading towards Burma's devastated Irrawaddy delta region tonight.

Even as it gathered strength the UN warned that so little aid has reached the two million survivors of the last deadly cyclone there could be a second wave of deaths from disease and starvation.

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The US military's Joint Typhoon Warning Centre said there was a good chance "a significant tropical cyclone" will form and head across the delta.

The area was smashed by Cyclone Nargis on May 3, leaving at least 35,000 dead and 27,000 missing, according to official figures. The UN says the death toll could exceed 100,000.

An estimated two million survivors are still in need of emergency aid, but rescuers have been able to reach only 270,000 people so far.

However the ruling military junta today told visiting Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej it was in control of the relief operations and did not need foreign experts.

"They have their own team to cope with the situation," Samak said.

He said the junta gave him a "guarantee" that there was no starvation or disease outbreaks among survivors. In Rangoon, Samak visited a government relief centre.

"From what I have seen, I am impressed with their management," Samak said.

The junta has granted approval for a Thai medical team to visit the delta. If it is allowed to go as scheduled on Friday, it will be the first foreign aid group to work in the ravaged region.

The government has separately announced it will allow 160 relief workers from neighbouring countries to enter Burma, but it is not clear if they include the Thai medics or whether they can travel to the delta.

Bottlenecks, poor logistics, limited infrastructure and the military government's refusal to allow foreign aid workers have left most survivors living in miserable conditions without food or clean water.

"The government has a responsibility to assist their people in the event of a natural disaster," said a spokeswoman for the UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs.

"We are here to do what we can and facilitate their efforts and scale up their response. It is clearly inadequate, and we do not want to see a second wave of death as a result of that not being scaled up," she said.

The news of a possible second cyclone was not broadcast by Burma's state-controlled media, which was criticised for not issuing warnings about the May 3 storm. Rangoon residents picked up the news on foreign broadcasts and on the internet.

Professor Johnny Chan, a tropical cyclone expert with City University of Hong Kong, said the new storm was unlikely to be as severe as Nargis because it was already close to land, and cyclones need to be over sea to gain full strength.

"There will be a lot of rain, but the winds will not be as strong," he said.

Although the delta was off limits to foreigners, the junta gave access to an International Red Cross representative who returned Tuesday to Yangon.

Bridget Gardner, the agency's country head, described tremendous devastation but also selflessness as survivors joined in the rescue efforts.

She said she saw volunteers giving medical aid to hundreds of people a day even though they themselves were homeless. In one location, she saw 10,000 people living without shelter as rain fell.

The military, which has ruled since 1962, has taken control of most supplies sent by other countries.