Ananova:

Burma's state has said 22,000 people were killed by Saturday's cyclonee.

State television said 10,000 had died in the town of Bogalay, in the country's Irrawaddy delta.

Earlier, Burma foreign minister Nyan Win had told diplomats in Rangoon that thousands of people died when Cyclone Nargis struck.

Charity workers are starting to distribute aid supplies to thousands of people stranded by the cyclone in Burma. Save the Children is set to hand out two tonnes of food and other supplies to those affected in Rangoon.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been left without shelter or clean drinking water after cyclone Nargis hit the country on Saturday.

In Rangoon, the homeless are crammed into public buildings, including schools and churches, with some shelters housing more than 1,000 people.

The Red Cross has already begun distributing water purification tablets and mosquito nets, and is preparing to hand out emergency shelters in the worst-hit areas.

The UN said Burmese government officials are willing to accept international aid, but details of how supplies will be distributed would have to be worked out first.

This followed pleas by UK Foreign Office minister Meg Munn calling on Burma's ruling military junta to act quickly.

She said: "The priority must be to mobilise aid to all those affected to avoid further suffering. We call on the Burmese regime to provide rapid support to its people and to accept international assistance."