Flood-affected residents ride a bamboo raft in Taungoo, Myanmar's Bago region on Saturday, September 14, 2024, following heavy rains in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi. Typhoon Yagi brought a colossal deluge of rain that has inundated a swathe of northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar, triggering deadly landslides and widespread river flooding. - AFP
BANGKOK, Sept 13 (Bernama-dpa): Typhoon Yagi has hit Myanmar as well as Vietnam and Thailand, but the true scale of the impact is still unclear, the German news agency (dpa) reported.
Reports from the junta govt also indicate that the devastation could be as bad as seen in Vietnam and Thailand.
According to official figures, at least 19 people have died in flash floods and landslides in the country. According to eyewitnesses, many people are still missing and the number of victims could be much higher.
Many areas of the South-East Asian nation, which is ruled by a military junta, were cut off due to the flooding.
"The village and townships near Naypyitaw have been terrible... but some villages could not be accessed by the rescue teams,” local resident Kyaw Kyaw, who is helping with the rescue operations, told dpa.
In addition to Naypyitaw, the Bago region north of the largest city Yangon and two regions bordering Thailand were particularly badly affected.
"We don’t know how many were killed," Kyaw Kyaw said.
Yagi killed about 200 people in Vietnam, according to official figures.
"There are 236,649 people from 59,413 households who were displaced because of typhoon floods... There were 33 deaths and one person injured around the country," junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun said in an audio statement.
He said authorities have "lost communication with some areas" and urged those living near river banks to seek shelter elsewhere and "be vigilant" until Sunday.
Earlier Friday, Myanmar's fire service gave a higher death toll of 36.
Authorities were investigating reports that dozens of migrant workers in gold mining areas in central Mandalay region were missing following landslides, the junta spokesman said.
People in parts of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar have been battling floods and landslides in the wake of Typhoon Yagi, which dumped a colossal deluge of rain when it hit the region last weekend.
More than 2.7 million people were already displaced in Myanmar by conflict triggered by the junta's 2021 coup, which has plunged the country into turmoil. - Bernama-dpa
