9:01am UK, Thursday May 22, 2008

The first of 10 UN helicopters has arrived in Burma to carry aid to victims of Cyclone Nargis, who are  are facing dire shortages of food, water, shelter and medicine.

Water is in short supply

The aircraft will be used to ferry supplies from the main city of Rangoon to distant parts of the Irrawaddy Delta.

Around two million survivors of the storm, which hit overnight on May 2, are in desperate need of aid.

Fearful of losing their grip on power, Burma's military rulers have prevented a major relief operation offered by foreign countries.

Marcus Prior, spokesman for the UN's World Food Programme (WFP), said the fact that the helicopters had been allowed in was "very good news".

"We've got barges in Rangoon, lots of boats, trucks and now helicopters," he said.

"We're confident that we'll be able to move what we have."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has flown to Rangoon to press Burma's rulers to accept a full-scale relief operation.

Mr Ban repeatedly failed to get the top general, Than Shwe, to take his phone calls after the storm, which left at least 133,000 people dead or missing.

"I'm quite confident we will be able to overcome this tragedy," Mr Ban told the trustees of the Shwedagon Pagoda, the Buddhist country's most sacred site.

"I've tried to bring a message of hope to your people.

"At the same time, I hope your people and government can co-ordinate the flow of aid so the aid work can be done in a more systematic and organised way."

The UN estimates that only 25% of those in need are receiving international emergency aid.