VZCZCXRO9592
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHGO #0588/01 1211101
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 011101Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY RANGOON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4489
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0830
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 9606
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 4120
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1580
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 3300
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 6701
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 4315
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL CALCUTTA 0709
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 0710
RUDKIA/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI 0355
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2643
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0288
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000588 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS; PACOM FOR FPA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/01/2016 
TAGS: PGOV PREL EAID SENV CASC BM
SUBJECT: CYCLONE MALA HITS HARD, DIES QUICKLY 
 
 
RANGOON 00000588  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: P/E Chief W. Patrick Murphy for Reasons 1.4 (b,d) 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  Burma dodged another bullet from Mother 
Nature when Cyclone Mala hit landfall on April 29, quickly 
weakened into a tropical storm, and then completely petered 
out.  Before arriving on the western coast of Burma, however, 
the cyclone created substantial rainfall and heavy winds that 
caused considerable damage, and several casualties, in a 
western Rangoon suburb.  As of May 1, the GOB had not 
requested any assistance from UN agencies.  There were no 
reports of Amcit casualties.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) Burma, which emerged relatively unscathed from the 
2004 tsunami, experienced another lucky break when Cyclone 
Mala hit landfall on April 29 and quickly weakened into a 
minor tropical storm.  The cyclone formed in the Bay of 
Bengal and, according to international weather reports, 
gained in strength as it approached the western coast of 
Burma.  The GOB, which issued a cyclone warning on April 28, 
reported that the storm peaked at the equivalent of a 
Category Four hurricane, with winds of over 120 miles per 
hour. 
 
¶3. (U) The cyclone made landfall at about 12:00 noon local 
time on Saturday April 29 near the village of Gwa, in 
southern Rakhine State.  The pristine coastline in this area 
is sparsely populated.  Gwa is located about halfway between 
the tourist resort town of Ngapoli, 75 miles to the north, 
and the beach towns of Chaungtha and Ngwesaung, 50 miles to 
the south.  Ngapoli caters to high-end foreign tourists, 
while local Burmese and foreign residents in Rangoon frequent 
Chaungtha and Ngwesaung.  The cyclone arrived on a moderately 
busy long holiday weekend. 
 
¶4. (U) According to local reports, the cyclone weakened 
almost immediately upon making landfall.  A range of hills 
runs down the spine of Rakhine State, which quickly reduced 
the cyclone to a tropical storm.  By early morning April 30, 
the GOB meteorological service had downgraded the storm to an 
"unimportant land depression."  The impact of the storm on 
coastal areas was not immediately known, although local 
sources indicated that a ten-foot surf and high winds 
destroyed several hotels and homes.  Local officials and 
hotels evacuated foreign guests over the weekend of April 
29-30.  There were no reports of serious casualties in 
coastal areas. 
 
¶5. (C) The arrival of Cyclone Mala was preceded by 
substantial rain and heavy winds during the night of April 
28-29, resulting in severe flooding and damage throughout 
Rangoon and Irrawaddy Divisions.  The GOB did not immediately 
reveal casualty figures, but a senior GOB official at the 
meteorological service told us that the storm had killed at 
least one Rangoon resident and injured several dozen. 
International media reports said that the storm killed two to 
four persons. 
 
¶6. (U) Perhaps the area hardest hit by the storm was Hlaing 
Tharyar township, an industrial zone located in the western 
suburbs of Rangoon city and straddled by the Hlaing and 
Rangoon rivers.  Locals describe tornado-like conditions that 
severely damaged several hundred homes and at least five 
factories, including two garment operations and a soft-drink 
plant.  Flooding forced several hundred residents to evacuate 
the area, including two of the Embassy's local employees who 
reside in Hlaing Tharyar. 
 
¶7. (U) We contacted major hotels in Ngapoli over the weekend 
and learned that only a handful of U.S. citizens were in the 
area and were preparing to depart the coast prior to the 
arrival of the cyclone.  We have received no requests for 
assistance or reports of Amcits directly affected by the 
 
RANGOON 00000588  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
cyclone and related storms. 
 
¶8. (U) We also spoke over the weekend with UN agencies.  In 
accordance with lessons learned from the 2004 tsunami, key UN 
agencies have pre-positioned emergency supplies in Burma. 
Representatives from UNDP and UNICEF told us, however, that 
as of COB May 1 the GOB had not made any requests for UN 
assistance.  UN officers plan to meet on May 2 with IFRC and 
Myanmar Red Cross representatives to assess overall damage 
and assistance needs. 
 
¶9. (C) Comment:  Once again, Burma got a lucky break.  The 
GOB has frequently demonstrated an inability to quickly 
mobilize in response to a natural disaster or other public 
emergency.  Cyclone Mala was no exception.  The GOB's storm 
warning was issued late and not widely distributed. 
First-responders to scenes of flooding and storm damage were 
Burmese Army troops, dispatched to keep order, not to provide 
emergency assistance.  City workers subsequently labored to 
quickly repair downed power lines and restore electricity for 
those few residents who receive any.  Clearly any major 
natural disaster, however, would quickly overwhelm the GOB's 
limited capacity to cope.  End Comment. 
VILLAROSA