Washington, D.C. - United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes warned today that a larger tragedy may unfold in Myanmar if relief aid is not delivered while describing the situation as "increasingly desperate on the ground."

"We are in close touch with the Myanmar authorities to keep on pressing hard for more cooperation, for more facilitation and for much greater ease of access, if at all possible, for waiver of visa and other requirements for the expert staff who are needed to help with distribution," Holmes said in a press conference at UN headquarters in New York.

"We are simply trying to help the government of Myanmar to carry out the responsibilities to aid these people in desperate need," he added. "I appeal very strongly indeed to the government of Myanmar to both step-up their own relief efforts and to help people on the ground."

About 1.5 million people have been "severely affected" by the disaster, according to Holmes.

About 23 UN agencies and NGOs are on the ground but they are having difficulty getting access to the region due to problems with visas.

At least 40 visa applications for UN staff are pending while the World Food Programme (WFP) staff was granted two visas.

Two members of the UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination are on the ground in Yangon and two others were not let into the country.

WFP sent four aircraft loaded with critically needed food aid, including 45 metric tons of high energy biscuits, and other relief items.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is sending 3 million water purification tablets which are enough to provide clean water to 200,000 people for a week.

Humanitarian agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are distributing food, plastic sheeting and health kits.

The UN will allocate at least $10 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for the aid effort. In addition, over two dozen countries have indicated their willingness to contribute to relief efforts, in the amount of $30 million. The UN is working with the government to prepare a flash appeal to donors to be launched on Friday.

The government in Myanmar has confirmed that over 22,000 people have died, and more than 41,000 people are missing. Initial estimates suggest that up to 1 million people are currently homeless, and many more require assistance.

Cyclone Nargis, which made landfall in the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) delta region and then moved across the country's largest city, Yangon, caused widespread destruction, including destroying homes, tearing down trees and power lines and damaging communications.