As Canadians prepare to celebrate Mothers' Day with brunch and cake, an estimated 1.5 million people in the low-lying delta region of Myanmar (Burma) are without food and water in the afternoon of Cyclone Nargis.

Called the Asian equivalent of hurricane Katrina, Cyclone Nargis swept into the low-lying Irrawaddy Delta in central Myanmar (also known as Burma) with winds of 240 km/h and storms nearly 12 feet high leaving thousands of kilometers of land under water and tens of thousands dead. Yangon, the country's largest city, is littered with fallen trees and most is without power.

According to UN officials and western diplomats, the death toll may top 100,000 and about 24 million citizens are without running water or electricity. Bodies float in waterways and in the nation's largest city, mobs swarm shops.

Latest news from the International Red Cross estimated on Friday that 220,000 of up to 1.9 million people who are left homeless, injured or subject to disease have been reached by this week's relief efforts.

As temperatures soar upwards of 40 degrees, and tight military control dictatorship stifle relief efforts, the death toll will be steadily mounting due to starvation and disease due to outbreaks of water-borne diseases such as dysentery, cholera and severe diarrhea. With the rainy season expected in the next two weeks, flooding and land slides can further hamper efforts to help the victims.

To date, few aid workers and vehicles have been able to enter the country despite the readiness of relief-laden military cargo planes. According to the United Nations' coordinator for humanitarian efforts, John Holmes, the exact scale of the disaster is still undetermined and logistical challenges of getting aid into the delta affected are massive.

The United Nations issued a "flash appeal" to its members Friday to raise $187.3 million in cyclone relief for Myanmar to cover $56 million for food, $50 million for logistics and about $20 million for shelter.

Last Monday, the Canadian government offered to contribute up to $2 million in humanitarian assistance to respond to the tropical cyclone. Canada's Minister of International Cooperation, the Honourable Beverley J. Oda, announced that Canada is working closely with the Red Cross and United Nations humanitarian agencies.

Spotlight on Myanmar (Burma)

Burma, also known as Myanmar, has been ruled by a military dictatorship since 1962 and economically controlled by military-run enterprises. Government control rests in the hands of 12 senior generals.

Ruled by Britain over a period of 62 years (1824-1886), Myanmar was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate colony and attained independence in 1948.

Smaller than Texas but larger than Afghanistan, Burma has a population of 48.8 million and is the largest country in mainland Southeast Asia.

Internet access and media are tightly controlled by the government. Military-run media curtail the flow of news as well as cultural expressions such as poetry and film.

Myanmar is one of southeast Asia's poorest countries despite offshore oil and gas resources, expanses of teak forests and rich deposits of jade, pearl, rubies and sapphires. Fewer than 750,000 tourists visit the country each year. Government controls, inefficient economic policies, and rural poverty have stifled Myanmar's development. Rice covers about 60% of the country's total cultivated land area.

Roughly one-third coastline (nearly 2,000 kilometers), Burma is located in mainland Southeast Asia. Northwest of India, Myanmar is bordered by China (north), Loas (east), Bangladesh (west), Thailand (southeast) and the Bay of Bengal to the southwest.

The  majority of citizens are Buddhist, and the official language, Burmese, is related to Tibetan and to the Chinese language.

How to Help Myanmar Today

Myanmar might be half a world away, but Canadians can still help the relief effort.

Organizations like the Red Cross already have relief workers on the ground in the disaster-struck area. Your donations can ensure that the essential needs are met: the distribution water purification tablets as well as emergency medical supplies, medical kits, food, plastic sheeting, cooking sets, and bed nets.

Several organizations accepting donations include the Canadian Red Cross, Care Canada, UNICEF Canada, and the United Church of Canada. To support UNICEF, call 1-877-955-3111 or visit http://www.unicef.ca/.

To donate to the Canadian Red Cross, call 1-800-418-1111 or visit:

https://www.paypaq.com/redcross/new/index.php

The 24-hour toll free line accepts Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Cheques should be made payable to the Canadian Red Cross, earmarked "Myanmar Cyclone" and mailed to the Canadian Red Cross National Office, 170 Metcalfe Street, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 2P2.

To donate to CARE Canada's Emergency Relief Fund for Cyclone Nargis, phone 1.800.267.5232.

The United Church of Canada partner, Action by Churches Together (ACT) is also preparing to distribute immediate relief food and supplies. Contributions can be made to the United Church's Cyclone Nargis Emergency Appeal either through a local United Church in your area or directly to their secure online donations page, https://www.strategicprofitsinc.com/unitedchurch/donate.

Local Fundraising Luncheon in Surrey May 18

Interested in donating non-perishables or funds locally?

Attend the fundraising luncheon on May 18 from 10 am to 2pm in Surrey's Manawmaya Theravada Buddhist Society at 13260-108 Avenue.

A local relief fund-raising effort has been spearheaded by three groups: the Action Committee for a Free Burma, the National League for Democracy Canada and the Burmese Students' Democratic Organization (BSDO).

Asia and Disasters

When it comes to natural calamities, Asia is arguably a region hit by some of the deadliest phenomena: earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones, hurricanes and other storms.

Earlier this year, Typhoon Neoguri struck China's southern province, Hainan, and forced the evacuation of 100,000 people. In late 2006 and early 2007, the Malaysian government had to evacuate nearly 200,000 people due to flooding.

Among the disasters with the highest death tolls (up to 275,000 casualties), a 9.0 quake off the coast of Sumatra on December 26, 2004,  triggered tsunamis throughout the Indian Ocean's coastal areas affecting a dozen countries. On Oct. 8, 2005, at least 80,000 people were killed and three million left homeless after a quake struck the mountaineous Kashmir district in Pakistan.

Although vulnerability to natural disasters is not limited to Asia, regions with least-developed infrastructures are the most vulnerable to disaster mismanagement as well as corruption.

Is Global Warming the Culprit?

The meteorological community is divided between those who attribute global warming as a factor in catastrophic storms and those who believe that warmer ocean temperatures mitigate the effect of cyclones and hurricanes.

In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reached the conclusion that warming oceans can lead to severe cyclones with stronger winds and heavier rains.

Yet earlier this year, at the American Meteorological Society's conference in January, some meteorologists postulated warmer ocean temperatures may actually reduce the strength of cyclones and hurricanes.

In the eyes of Jeff McNeely, Chief Scientist for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the impact of devastation in Myanmar was severe due to the absence of nature's best defense: protective vegetation. Stripped of mangrove farms over the past decade, the densely-populated low-lying area of rice paddies and shrimp farms had no natural barricades against the intense winds.

"If you look at the path of the (cyclone) that hit Myanmar, it hit exactly where it was going to do the most damage, and it's doing the most damage because much of the protective vegetation was cleared."

According to Sunita Narain, director of India's Centre for Science and the Environment, while evidence points to climate change intensifying tropical cyclones, it's impossible to lay the blame solely on global warming.

"Nargis is a sign of things to come," Sunita commented. "The victims of these cyclones are climate change victims and their plight should remind the rich world that it is doing too little to contain its greenhouse gas emissions."

In March 2007, at a four-day conference of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency for weather, climate and water, Secretary General Michel Jarraud stated that global warming is very likely to lead to more frequent tidal waves.

"Heavy precipitation events are very likely to become more frequent ... and it's likely that hurricanes and cyclones will become more intense," Jarraud warned.

According to the World Meteorological Organization on May 7, Myanmar had issued warnings ahead of the devastating cyclone, but the WMO could not confirm whether these warnings reached the population.

Glossary of Wind Storms

What's the difference between a cyclone, typhoon, hurricane and a turnado?

Hurricanes, typhoons and tropical cyclones are essential synonyms for the same type of storm.A tropical cyclone is a wind storm which forms over the ocean; the centre of the storm is warmer than the surrounding air. There are no fronts, and the strongest winds are near the surface of the earth.

In the North Atlantic Ocean, South Pacific Ocean or Northeast Pacific Ocean east of the dateline, a hurricane is called a tropical cyclone. But in the Northwest Pacific Ocean west of the dateline, the same storm is called a typhoon.

All three names refer to cyclical tropical stormes but technically, there is no difference in strength, speed, or damage caused by these storms. What they share: winds of 74 mph or more. In the northern hemisphere, these storms rotate counterclockwise, while in the southern hemisphere they rotate clockwise. Cyclones and typhoons are distinct from tornados. Although a tornado is also a violently rotating windstorm that turns counterclockwise, it appears as a funnel-shaped column that touches down and reaches the ground. A tornado is produced by atmospheric conditions during severe thunderstorms.

What's in a name?

In most of the world, a storm is given a name when it reaches tropical storm intensity. Why give it a human name? It's faster, easier to pronounce and remember than using latitude or longitude. When exchanging storm information, time is of the essence.

The tradition of naming tropical storms dates back to 1953. The original list of names featured only women's names. But in 1979, men's names were added. A total of six lists are used by the World Meteorological Organization. The 2008 list of names will be reused in 2014.

Global Warming: The Canadian Connection

When it comes to tropical storms, can lifestyles in Canada make a difference?

Can global warming can be slowed with practical actions that yield a cleaner, healthier atmosphere?

According to the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the answer is yes
"Many people don't realize that we are committed right now to a significant amount of global warming and sea level rise," said Gerald Meehl of the National Center for Atmospheric Research. "The longer we wait to do something about it, the more change we will have."

We can make a difference by cutting back on the release of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping "greenhouse" gases into the atmosphere by reducing our use of electricity, gasoline, oil, and coal.

When it comes to our homes, we can start by reducing the amount of electricity we use. Why? Much of the electric energy we use in our homes comes from power plants which burn fossil fuel to power our electric products. Some simple steps include powering on only when we need to use electricity, switching to energy-efficient lighting, selecting appliances with the highest rating for energy efficiency, turn back the thermostat or switch to a programmable thermostat, insulate your home, reduce draft and

When it comes to transportation, every gallon of gasoline burned puts 26 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Carpooling can make a difference whether you start with your soccer team, neighbourhood, family or friends. Alternate between public transit and using your vehicle. Consider switching to an electric scooter, bike, or hybrid vehicle. Try consolidating trips to the mall, to school or to the temple.

While lifestyle changes may seem inconvenient, putting a priority on energy conservation can make a difference in the lifestyles goal of people across the globe who are vulnerable to the devastation of global warming.

As the Chinese proverb, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.