US begins airlift to cyclone victims as Myanmar junta is accused of 'malign neglect'

The U.S. began its first airlift of relief goods for Myanmar cyclone victims Monday after prolonged negotiations with its military rulers, accused of endangering the lives of up to 1.5 million survivors by restricting international aid efforts.

In what was seen as a huge concession by the junta, the United States finally received the go-ahead to send a C-130 cargo plane packed with supplies to Yangon, with two more air shipments scheduled to land Tuesday.

However, the government continued to refuse visas for most foreign aid experts, insisting that the long-isolated country is capable of distributing aid alone.

"Let them in, let them save lives," urged Eric John, the U.S. ambassador to Thailand.

The junta has been sharply criticized for its handling of the May 3 disaster, from failing to provide adequate warnings about the approaching storm to responding slowly to offers of help.

Myanmar state television announced Sunday the death toll from Cyclone Nargis had jumped by about 5,000 to 28,458, with another 33,416 still missing.

International aid groups say they fear the number could reach 100,000, and the British group Oxfam said up to 15 times that number could face death from a public health catastrophe if people do not get clean water and sanitation soon.

"A natural disaster is turning into a humanitarian catastrophe of genuinely epic proportions in significant part because of the malign neglect of the regime," British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said.

Though international assistance has started trickling in, the few foreign relief workers who have been allowed entry have been restricted to the largest city of Yangon. Only a handful have succeeded in getting past checkpoints into the worst-affected areas.

Myanmar's military rulers are especially suspicious of the United States, which has long been one of the biggest critics of the junta's human rights record and its failure to hand over power to a democratically elected government.

"We hope that this is the beginning of a long line of assistance from the United States," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe told reporters in Crawford, Texas, over the weekend. "They're going to need our help for a long time."

The C-130 took off from a Thai air force base in Utapao, Thailand, loaded with 28,000 pounds (12,700 kilograms) of supplies, including mosquito nets, blankets and water in an operation dubbed "Joint Task Force Carrying Response."

"Today's flight is just the first step and we hope they will allow us to do more in the future. It's really just up to what the Burmese will allow us to do," said Lt. Col. Douglas Powell, the U.S. Marines spokesman for the operation. Myanmar is also known as Burma.

Powell said the military transport was carrying U.S. government, not military, aid supplies and was unarmed.

He said the United States had 11,000 servicemen and four ships in the region for an annual military exercise, Cobra Gold, which could be harnessed to help in the mercy mission.

Admiral Timothy J. Keating, who commands the U.S. Pacific Fleet, said Washington was prepared to offer 200,000 pounds (90,700 kilograms) of relief aid each day, "anything we can put on the back of a C-130."

Highlighting the many challenges ahead, a Red Cross boat carrying rice, drinking water and other goods for more than 1,000 people sank Sunday near hard-hit Bogalay town. All four aid workers on board were safe.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies could not say how much of the cargo had been lost, but said the food supplies were contaminated by river water.

"Apart from the delay in getting aid to people we may now have to re-evaluate how we transport that aid," said Michael Annear, the IFRC's disaster manager in Yangon, who described the sinking as "a big blow."

Other aid was increasingly getting through, the group said, but on "nowhere near the scale required."

Heavy showers were forecast for the coming week, further complicating aid delivery to the badly hit Irrawaddy delta, which was pounded by 120 mph (190 kph) winds and 12-foot-high (4-meter-high) storm surges from the sea.

The U.N. said about 2 million people were severely affected by the storm.

In hard-hit Laputta, hundreds of survivors crowded the floor of a monastery's open-air hall, the sound of hungry children wailing. Many people tried to sleep sitting up because of lack of space.

Pain Na Kon, a tiny nearby village of just 300, was completely obliterated.

The only 12 known survivors _ including 6-year-old Mien Mien, who lost both her parents _ huddled together in a tent set up in a rice field, sharing a small portion of biscuits and watery soup handed out at a local monastery.

"We are family now," said U Nyo, a man in his 30s, his eyes red and watery. "We are from the same place. We are together."