Myanmar Cyclone Kills Thousands

Jon Popham May 5, 2008 | 2:39 pm EST

A devastating cyclone in Myanmar killed close to 4,000 people over the weekend with another 3000 missing in its aftermath, the state media reported. The self isolated military junta in power in the Southeast Asian nation has taken the highly unusual step of asking for massive outside assistance in response to the humanitarian crisis there.

Cyclone Nargis, seen in the satellite photo below, wreaked havoc on the Burmese coastline with 150 mph winds on Friday night and Saturday morning, dumping more than 20 inches of rain. Massive flooding has ensued in the region and the risk of disease now threatens to kill thousands more.

You can by learning about the work of World Vision, a US based humanitarian relief group working now to help stabilize the situation on the ground during this unfolding tragedy.