The summary will be available for release January 2001. Motor vehicle crashes occurred at various rates across the 12 months of reporting. We read and hear about risks of cholera outbreaks from dead bodies, and badly needed disaster supplies arrive at air fields of the affected regions. Because we see these images over and over again, with each new natural disaster news story, they begin to become self-validating. They must be true.
Dead bodies pose little disease threat to disaster stricken communities.
Yes, people can be carriers or hosts of diseases such as cholera, typhoid fever and other feared plagues. But these people are much more dangerous alive than they are buried beneath a landslide or the rubble of a collapsedbuilding. These unsubstantiated fears pressure the authorities to take harsh measures like incinerating or burying bodies in mass graves Inthe process, the rights and needs of local communities to properly honorand bury their loved ones are the casualty of this haste. In many cases there is not an absolute paucity of resources. There is, however, considerable difficulty in getting food and water where it is needed, when it is needed.