Citizen journalist
Already grappling with a deadly third wave of COVID-19 infections in a health crisis made worse by chaos from the military coup, southern Myanmar was inundated by severe flooding over the weekend that hampered the efforts of healthcare workers and aid groups.
Heavy rains battered the southern states of Kayin and Mon and Tanintharyi region beginning on Sunday, impacting as many as 3,000 people. More than 100 in Kayin’s Hlaingbwe had to be evacuated, according to a relief official from the area. No deaths have been reported.
In Mon state’s Ye, Kyaikmaraw and Chaungzon townships, the rising Thanlwin River limited movement and frustrated efforts to treat patients infected with COVID-19, An Nu, a resident of Mawlamyine’s Shwedaung ward, told RFA’s Myanmar Service.
Reuters
More than 3,000 people in Myanmar have died after contracting COVID-19 as infections from the third wave of the pandemic increased the strife-torn country’s total confirmed caseload to nearly 150,000, the military government announced this week.
Myanmar detected its first positive COVID-19 case on March 23, 2020. The country, which shares a long land border with China, initially had a low number of confirmed infections and single-digit deaths until mid-August 2020, when the number of COVID-19 cases began to skyrocket during a second wave that was deadlier then the first.
To contain the spread, Myanmar officials put in place stay-at-home orders, lockdowns, and mandatory quarantines for those traveling to other states and regions within the country as well as for those returning to Myanmar from abroad.
Fear of New COVID-19 Outbreak in Western Myanmar irrawaddy.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from irrawaddy.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Myanmar Pilgrims told to Stay Home to Tackle COVID-19 in Rakhine State
Pilgrims at the Maha Mui Buddha in Kyauktaw. / Facebook
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By Khine Rola 17 December 2020
Sittwe, Rakhine State — The Rakhine State government has restricted travel to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in response to increased movement in the state.
The Sittwe authorities on Tuesday asked residents not to travel unless necessary and to seek approval from ward and village administrators for any travel plans. Sittwe residents have been increasingly leaving the township for pilgrimages or pleasure.
Dr. Soe Paing Win, assistant director of Rakhine State Public Health Department, on Tuesday reported 3,954 COVID-19 cases with 3,717 recoveries and 34 deaths in the state.