Cyclone Nargis

**Cyclone Nargis** (JTWC designation: ***01B***, kent as **Very Severe Cyclonic Storm Nargis** an aw) wis a rare, eastward movin at law-latitude strang tropical cyclone that caused the worst naitural disaster in the recordit history o Burma. The cyclone made landfaw in Burma on Friday, Mey 2, 2008, sendin a storm surge 40 kilometers up the densely-populatit Irrawaddy delta, causin catastrophic destruction an at least 138,000 fatalities. The Labutta Tounship alane wis reportit tae hae 80,000 deid, wi aboot 10,000 mair daiths in Bogale. Thare wur aroond 55,000 fowk missin an mony ither daiths wur foond in ither touns an auries, altho the Burmese govrenment's offeecial daith toll mey hae been underreportit, an thare hae been allegations that govrenment offeecials stopped updatin the daith toll efter 138,000 tae minimize poleetical fawoot. The feared 'seicont wave' o fatalities frae disease an lack o relief efforts never materialized. Damage wis estimatit at ower US$10&nbsp;billion, which made it the maist damagin cyclone ever recordit in this basin.

Nargis is the deidliest named cyclone in the North Indian Ocean Basin, as well as the seicont deadliest named cyclone o aw time, ahind Typhoon Nina o 1975. Includin unnamed storms lik the 1970 Bhola cyclone, Nargis is the aicht deadliest cyclone o aw time, but an uncertainty atween the daiths caused bi Nargis an those caused bi ither cyclones (lik the 1991 Bangladesh cyclone), coud put Nargis as sevent deidliest or heicher, acause the exact daith toll is uncertain. Nargis wis the first tropical cyclone tae strike the kintra syne Cyclone Mala made landfaw in 2006, which wis slichtly stranger, but haed a significantly lawer impact. Accordin tae reports, Indie authorities haed wairned Burma aboot the danger that Cyclone Nargis posed 48 oors afore it hit the kintra's coast.

Relief efforts wur slawed for poleetical raisons as Burma's militar rulers ineetially resistit lairge-scale internaitional aid. U.S. Preses George W. Bush said that an angry warld should condemn the wey Burma's militar rulers wur handlin the eftermath o sic a catastrophic cyclone. Burma's militar junta feenally acceptit aid a few days efter Indie's request wis acceptit.

Hamperin the relief efforts, anly ten days efter the cyclone, nearbi central Cheenae wis hit bi a massive yirdquauk, kent as the Sichuan yirdquauk which measured 7.9 in magnitude an it alane haed taken 87,476 lives, an caused US$85&nbsp;billion in damage, makin it the costliest disaster in Cheenese history an third costliest disaster ever kent. Furthermair, some donatit aid items wur foond tae be available in the kintra's black mercat, an Burma's junta wairned on Mey 15 that legal action wad be taken against fowk who tradit or hoardit internaitional aid.

The name "Nargis" ( ) is an Urdu wird meanin daffodil; the wird haes its ruits in the Persie name Nargess, which haes the same meanin. The first named storm o the 2008 North Indian Ocean cyclone saison, Nargis developed on Aprile 27 in the central aurie o Bay o Bengal. Ineetially it tracked slawly northwastward an, encoonterin favorable condeetions, it quickly strengthened. Dry air waikened the cyclone on Aprile 29, tho efter beginnin a steady eastward motion Nargis rapidly intensified tae attain peak winds o at least 165&nbsp;km/h (105&nbsp;mph) on Mey 2 accordin tae IMD observations; the JTWC assessed peak winds o 217&nbsp;km/h (135&nbsp;mph), makin it a waik Category&nbsp;4 cyclone on the SSHS. The cyclone moved ashore in the Ayeyarwady Division o Burma at peak intensity an, efter passin near the major ceety o Yangon (Rangoon), the storm gradually waikened till dissipatin near the mairch o Burma an Thailand.

## Resources

## Freemit airtins
*Damage information frae BBC
*Google Map: Path o Cyclone Nargis
*Reid Cross  - Reid Cross Movement response tae Cyclone Nargis
* "Eyes of the Storm" Full episode o PBS documentary on orphans o Cyclone Nargis fendin for themselves.