Floodwaters from the Sittaung River have inundated the section of the road in Mone Township in Nyaunglebin District – an area controlled by Karen National Union (KNU) Brigade 3 – in Bago Region, hampering supplies to displaced people, according to local aid agencies.
As the section of the road is flooded, relief supplies are being transported by hiring people and vehicles to cross the water, said a man from a Karen civil society helping the displaced.
“We have to use motorcycles to get to the flooded road section. Each motorcycle costs 4,000 kyats. When we reach the flooded area, we have to hire people to carry our things across. The flood waters reach up to our necks. In the past, it only reached up to the waist,” he said.
Aid workers said there could be more flooding on the section of the road in Mone Township as the water level of the Sittaung River continues to rise.
After the military council restricted the delivery of food and medical supplies in Nyaunglebin District, aid workers have to rely only on the flooded section for delivering the supplies, the man added.
After the airstrikes on Natthankwin town, junta soldiers extorted tolls from the town’s residents and their motorcycles travelling between the town and Penwegon, while prohibiting the transport of large quantities of food, according to local sources.
One resident of Mone said, “The junta soldiers charge a certain amount per person or motorcycle if they want to cross the Sittaung River from Natthankwin. You can cross the river as long as you pay the demanded fees. But you can’t carry a large amount of (cooking) oil and other groceries. The army won’t allow that.”
The Myanmar army’s restrictions on medical supplies and aid deliveries in Nyaunglebin District have been ongoing for months.
Although aid groups are trying to find other ways to deliver supplies, the floods have created additional challenges for aid deliveries and transportation.
Currently, displaced people are struggling to receive much-needed food aid due to movement restrictions imposed by the military council.
They now face flooding and are in urgent need of shelter, displaced people and aid agencies said.
Sent by KIC.