Chin townships need emergency relief supplies in aftermath of Cyclone Mocha

By Admin 24 May 2023

DMG Newsroom
24 May 2023, Sittwe

Residents of townships in Chin State that were hit by Cyclone Mocha urgently need shelter, food, and medicines, according to local sources.

Residential buildings as well as displacement camps were damaged by the cyclone, and shelter, food and medicine deliveries are part of recovery operations ahead of the rainy season, said a member of the Chinland Defense Force (Matupi).

“We can’t buy roofs anywhere. Silos were also damaged by the storm, and we need food. I would like to urge well-wishers to help with the recovery of Matupi,” he said.

Matupi residents urgently need shelter and building materials including tarpaulin sheets, said the Interim Chin National Consultative Council (ICNCC) on Tuesday.

“People displaced by the fighting were again affected by the storm. People are sharing food with each other. I heard eight villages were hit in Falam, and we need shelter,” said Ko Ngel Pi of the Falam Youth Organization.

Many houses, religious buildings, schools and silos were destroyed by Cyclone Mocha in Matupi, Mindat, Kanpetlet, Paletwa, Tedim, Tongzang, Thantlang, Falam and Haka townships.

“We are staying at a boarding school, but we have nowhere else to go when the school opens. I don’t know where people from other villages are staying. It is difficult to get a job here. We are having a real hard time,” said a resident of Tedim.

According to ICNCC, 2,774 houses, 185 schools, 102 religious buildings, 12 healthcare facilities and 259 silos were destroyed and 50 cattle were killed by the cyclone.

Matupi was hit hardest in terms of property damage, with 1,211 houses and 44 silos destroyed or damaged by the storm, followed by Mindat with 654 houses and 179 silos, said the ICNCC.

Myanmar’s military regime has designated Tedim, Paletwa, Matupi and Haka as areas hit by disaster.

According to the local civil society organisation Chin State Healthcare Group, more than 4,400 people were affected by the storm and 72 were injured.