Buthidaung Township’s deputy administrator U Saw Tha Kyaw confirmed that 18 more flood victims' bodies were found in his township.

However, the locals claim that the number of casualties could be higher as many people are still missing following the cyclone and the flooding.

An elderly villager from Mrikna village in Minbya Township telephoned Narinjara News Agency to inform us that 10 members of a family were drowned by flood waters when they tried to escape the flooding in a small motor boat. Among them were four children. Seven bodies have already been recovered by the villagers.

Similarly, nine people from Mrauk U, three from Maungdaw Township and one each from Kyauk Taw and Ponna Kyunt reportedly died due to the flooding. The situation deteriorated as Cyclone Komen and incessant rain hampered the rescue and relief operation in Arakan State.

Over  200,000  people from 1000 villages have been affected by the flooding. The worst-affected townships in Arakan State are Mrauk U, Minbya, Kyauk Taw, Buthidaung, Rathidaung, Ponna Kyunt and Mraybon.

Thousands of families displaced from their villages are now taking shelter in pagodas, monasteries, schools and other buildings on higher ground. Even though the flood waters are receding from some of the villages and it is raining less the situation has still not improved enough for the villagers to return to their homes.

According to a government source, the flood waters have destroyed over 70000 acres of  farm land and killed more than 1000 head of cattle & buffaloes.

To add to their misery the affected families are yet to receive any adequate government relief, such as food, water, clothes and medicine because transport is still unable to reach the affected areas.

According to reports many villagers are also allegedly starving as they are receiving no relief supplies from the authorities.

Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI