Oxfam warns of post-cyclone health 'catastrophe' in Burma

Eight days after Cyclone Nargis tore through Burma, the British group Oxfam has warned that the lives of up to 1.5 million people are in danger from diseases if clean water and sanitation are not provided soon.

Oxfam regional chief Sarah Ireland said "there are all the factors" for a public health catastrophe.

"We are afraid there is a real risk of a massive public catastrophe waiting to happen in Myanmar. It is a perfect storm, if you will," she told reporters on Sunday.

In its latest tally, state media in Burma, also known as Myanmar, said 28,458 people caught in the cyclone have died and 33,416 are missing.

Some international aid organizations say the death toll could soon climb to more than 100,000 as conditions worsen.

United Nations official Richard Horsey has estimated that only about half a million people directly affected by the storm have received any sort of aid.

The country's military rulers are still holding up approval for most visas sought by foreign workers who wish to reach the survivors.

Food and water reached cyclone victims in greater amounts on Sunday after many roads were cleared, but there was no sign the junta would allow foreign experts to handle the distribution, international aid groups said.

Burma's military regime says it only wants international relief material and money but not the people to manage it.

The government allowed two more UN aid flights to land in the country on Saturday. It also allowed three UN trucks carrying supplies for shelters to cross from Thailand.

In a setback for relief efforts, a boat carrying the first Red Cross aid to enter the country hit a submerged tree and sank on Sunday while trying to reach people in the south of Burma.

The crew escaped, but supplies for about 1,000 people were lost, the agency said.

While the struggle for many to survive continues, counting is underway following a referendum held Saturday on a new constitution intended to maintain the military's grip on power.

The proposed constitutional changes guarantee 25 per cent of parliamentary seats to the military and allow the president to hand over all power to the military in a state of emergency.