IOM Myanmar: Cyclone Mocha Response Situation Report 3 (June 2, 2023)

HIGHLIGHTS

Extremely Severe Cyclone Mocha hit Myanmar’s Rakhine State with force on 14 May 2023, making impact close to its capital, Sittwe. This was one of the strongest cyclones ever recorded in Myanmar, with windspeeds of up to 250 kmph.

IOM launched its Cyclone Mocha Flash Appeal on 26 May 2023, requesting USD 11.25 million to target 75,000 people with life-saving humanitarian assistance. IOM’s Flash Appeal is fully aligned with the Inter-Agency Flash Appeal.

IOM Mobile Clinics have so far seen 1,094 patients in Rakhine State, while negotiations for broader access are ongoing.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

It has been almost three weeks since Extremely Severe Cyclone Mocha made landfall near Sittwe, Rakhine State, on 14 May 2023, bringing winds of up to 250 kmph. It was one of the strongest cyclones ever to hit the country. As the monsoon season approaches, humanitarian actors are working to rapidly respond to humanitarian needs. Safe shelter remains a key priority, along with health assistance, clean water, safe and functional sanitation facilities, non-food items (NFIs) and food assistance.

Aid organizations have been working to deliver assistance where possible, as well as to bring stocks of needed items to Rakhine from Yangon, as markets in the affected areas are struggling to meet demand and prices of key commodities have skyrocketed. However, the many political and bureaucratic challenges in Myanmar are limiting the movement of relief items into and around the country, while wider access to transport humanitarian supplies and movement of responders is urgently needed.

There continues to be obstacles to the roll out of comprehensive inter-agency needs assessment, due to bureaucratic impediments, limited access in specific areas due to the ongoing conflict and logistical barriers. With telecommunications and electricity not yet fully restored, information remains limited. However, some sectoral information has started to emerge from partners who were already on the ground, highlighting shelter, NFIs, health, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and food as the key priority sectors for the response.

Shelter/NFI: Initial estimates that up to 90 per cent of houses in Rakhine have been unroofed are particularly worrying as wetter and warmer conditions are predicted for affected regions for the next week. Markets are heavily disrupted while large scale shelter and NFI assistance has not been able to reach affected areas yet due to the abovementioned constraints.

Health: Most health facilities in Buthidaung, Maungdaw, Pauktaw, and Sittwe townships in Rakhine, where IOM is implementing health programs, were damaged and most remain non-functional. Teams report that traumatic injury cases remain common but lesser in number compared to the first week. Other common morbidities diagnosed include acute viral infection (AVI), upper respiratory tract infection (URTI), diarrhoea, and non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes mellitus.

WASH: Cluster partners in Rakhine have reported that over 200 water sources were flooded by seawater, affecting over 100,000 people in seven townships. According to WASH Cluster partners active in the Northwest, around 700 households in Chin, 4,800 households in Magway, and 2,800 households in Sagaing have been affected.

These figures are strictly indicative and are expected to continue to rise, particularly considering the mentioned obstacles to comprehensive assessments.

Food: In Rakhine, initial field observations make clear that seawater has devastated agricultural land and that livestock and food stocks have been destroyed at large scale, affecting both immediate food needs and longerterm food security.