Across the Floodwaters
Over a week ago, we shared an urgent appeal after devastating floods swept across Lemyethna Township in Myanmar's Ayeyarwaddy Delta. An embankment breach sent floodwaters rushing into villages, forcing thousands of families from their homes and leaving entire communities surrounded by water.
Today, thanks to your generosity, we are grateful to share that emergency relief has reached those who needed it most.
Working through Better Burma's team and trusted network of local partners, a team of one monk, fifteen nuns from Sagaing and Yangon, and four lay volunteers undertook a six-day journey to deliver emergency assistance to flood-affected communities. Their journey was anything but simple. Traveling overnight by truck and car, they continued by boat across submerged farmland before transferring supplies onto tractor-trolleys, trucks, and yet more boats to reach villages cut off by the floodwaters.
What they found was heartbreaking.
Monasteries stood in waist-deep water. Homes were submerged. Families had taken refuge on the upper floors of monastery buildings after losing access to their villages. In Pauk Kone alone, around forty displaced families were sheltering at the monastery, while surrounding villages remained isolated by floodwaters stretching as far as the eye could see.
Thanks to your support, Better Burma was able to provide emergency relief for 110 families in Pauk Kone Village. Each household received essential food and hygiene supplies, including instant noodles, dried cakes, soybean milk, electrolyte drinks, soap, detergent, and canned fish, items chosen to help families meet their immediate needs while they remained displaced.
As conditions changed on the ground, our local partners adapted. While bottled drinking water had initially been planned, local rescue leaders explained that many previous donors had already supplied water, and transporting additional bottles had become a logistical challenge. Instead, those resources were redirected toward food and other urgently needed relief items. It is this kind of close coordination with trusted local communities that allows Better Burma to respond effectively when disasters strike.
The team also identified families who had unintentionally been overlooked. On the journey to Pauk Kone, they stopped at a small settlement near Shwe Zedi Monastery, where residents told them they felt like the "skipped village" because so many relief groups had passed them by. Better Burma contributed support for the monastery and provided cash assistance to each of the twenty-six families living there, ensuring they, too, received help during the emergency.
What makes this response especially meaningful is who carried it out.
Many of the nuns who joined this mission were themselves beneficiaries of Better Burma's previous humanitarian projects. Some came from nunneries we had supported after the earthquake. Others had partnered with us to build classrooms for orphaned children. When disaster struck another part of Myanmar, these same communities came together, collecting rice, medicine, clothing, and household supplies before traveling hundreds of miles to help complete strangers. The journey was far from easy. Vehicles broke down. Fuel shortages created constant uncertainty. Flooded roads forced repeated changes in transportation, while every leg of the trip required careful coordination between local charities, monasteries, boat operators, and volunteers. Yet despite these obstacles, the team reached flood-affected communities within a week of the embankment's collapse, delivering lifesaving assistance when it mattered most.
This is what Better Burma is all about.
We don't maintain large warehouses or international offices. Instead, we invest in trusted relationships that have been built over years of working alongside local communities. When emergencies happen, those relationships become lifelines, allowing aid to move quickly, thoughtfully, and directly to the people who need it most.
To everyone who donated, shared our appeal, or kept these families in your thoughts: thank you!
