Myanmar's condition starker than portrayed

Thousands still getting little or nothing from government, aid groups According to a recent assessment by U.N. and government officials, more than 450,000 houses were destroyed by Cyclone Nargis with total damage in the delta and part of Yangon estimated at $4 billion. Only a fraction of those left homeless by the storm have received newly built houses made of light materials, like these outside Yangon. YANGON, Myanmar - A rare bird's-eye look at Myanmar's Irrawaddy delta shows the devastation still left from Cyclone Nargis — broken levies, flooded farm roads, the shattered remains of bamboo huts and trees strewn like matchsticks along the coast. Conditions are far starker than reflected in the assessments from Myanmar's government and even in the recent optimism of some U.N. officials, The Associated Press has concluded from... [read full story]