Myanmar gripped by extreme weather, with 1,700 ancient pagodas toppled

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that severe weather conditions around Myanmar have resulted in deaths and injuries as well as large-scale damage to housing, a UN spokesman told reporters here Monday.

No exact number of casualties from the extreme weather is available at the moment.

More than 40 townships across Mandalay and Sagaing regions as well as Shan, Kachin and Chin states have been gripped by strong winds, hail and heavy rains since April 19, and more than 12,700 houses were destroyed or damaged, said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric at a daily news briefing here, quoting a source of the government of Myanmar.

In Kachin, strong winds destroyed shelters for displaced people and camp structures, said the spokesman.

Extreme weather has hit several parts of Myanmar over the last two days, with gale-force wind toppling around 1,700 ancient pagodas and destroying several houses and causing power outage in some areas in Shan state-south. The affected tourist attraction sites were closed by the local authorities to make way for clearing of debris, according to Sunday's official reports.

Meteorologists predicted there is risk of gale-force wind, accompanied by squalls and hailstorm that will occur over the weekend days, along with formation of a huge cumulus rain system, caused by El-Nino, over the country. Endit