Floods and mudslides kill more than 200 in Myanmar

The number of people in Myanmar who have died in the wake of Typhoon Yagi rose to more than 220, with nearly 80 others still missing, according to the military government.

The storm swept through northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar last week, killing more than 500 people across the region, according to official figures.

It triggered severe floods and mudslides in Myanmar, leaving at least 226 dead as whole villages were wrecked.

With hundreds of thousands of acres of crops destroyed, the UN also warned that more than half a million people in the war-torn country are in urgent need of food as well as drinking water, shelter and clothes.

A civil war has engulfed the country since early 2021, when the army sized power after ousting the democratically-elected government. Since then thousands have been killed and millions forced from their homes as various armed resistance groups battled the ruling military junta.

In the last year or so, the army has lost control of large parts of the country, creating an unstable, patchwork of governance.

That coupled with poor communication in remote areas has meant information about casualties has been slow to emerge.

The United Nations' disaster response agency says an estimated 631,000 people have been affected by the flooding with blocked roads, damaged bridges and severed communication lines, all of which have severely hampered relief efforts.

Aid agencies also have little or no access to many parts of the country, including Shan State, one of the worst-hit by the flooding, which is now largely controlled by a rebel army.

The ruling military junta issued a rare appeal for help at the weekend, with neighbour India so far the only country to respond. It sent aid, including food, clothes and medicine.

The UN said the floods are among the worst in Myanmar's recent history.

Typhoon Yagi also caused 10 deaths in Thailand and one in Laos.

In Vietnam, the death toll stands at 292, with 38 missing, more than 230,000 homes damaged, 280,000 hectares of crops destroyed and major manufacturing hubs heavily damaged, according to authorities.