Airport baggage handlers load aid bound for Myanmar onto a commercial aircraft in Singapore May 7. Disease, hunger and thirst pose a major threat to hundreds of thousands of survivors of Cyclone Nargis, aid agencies said.

(CNS photo/Vivek Prakash, Reuters)

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI appealed to the world community to be merciful and generous by offering aid and working to relieve the suffering caused by Cyclone Nargis, which killed tens of thousands in Myanmar.

During his May 7 general audience in St. Peter's Square, the pope called on people to open their hearts "to compassion and generosity so that with the collaboration of all who are able and want to lend help, the suffering caused by this huge tragedy can be alleviated."

When the pope spoke, more than 22,000 people had been killed, 41,000 were missing and 1 million were homeless after the cyclone's heavy rains and winds of up to 120 mph swept over southern Myanmar May 3.

The cyclone damaged at least three major cities, including Yangon, the capital of Myanmar and its largest city.

Earlier, in a telegram sent on behalf of the pope by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the pope had expressed deep sadness and "heartfelt sympathy" after hearing news of "the tragic aftermath" of the disaster.

The pope said he was praying for the victims and their families and called for "divine strength and comfort upon the homeless and all who are suffering."

A copy of the telegram, addressed to Archbishop Paul Zinghtung Grawng of Mandalay, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Myanmar, was released by the Vatican May 6.

The pope said he was "confident that the international community will respond with generous and effective relief to the needs" of those hit by the cyclone.

In Thailand and India, Catholic agencies prepared relief efforts for neighboring Myanmar, reported the Asian church news agency UCA News.

Father Pibul Visitnontachai, director of the Thai bishops' Office for Emergency Relief and Refugees, told UCA News May 7 that the Myanmar Embassy had just given permission for a church team to go there.

He said his request to send representatives was turned down, but he reapplied in the name of Caritas after Caritas Internationalis officials meeting in Rome May 4 resolved to let the Thai church lead its response to the disaster. Caritas Internationalis is a confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations.

A representative of the Thai bishops and a representative of the Irish Caritas organization, Trocaire, were to enter Myanmar May 8, said Father Visitnontachai. He said they were to assess the situation in the affected areas and plan a coordinated response with the bishops of the affected dioceses.

Father Visitnontachai said the delegation would take more than $31,450, an initial donation from Thai Catholics. Meanwhile, he said, the church would conduct a campaign to inform Thais of the situation in Myanmar and raise donations.

Caritas India also planned to send at least two volunteers to Myanmar to assess the situation, said the agency's executive director, Father Varghese Mattamana.

However, the Indian workers were facing visa problems, he told UCA News May 7. Caritas India, he added, wants to send 1 million rupees (US$25,000) as immediate relief. While he had "no definite" information about the extent of the devastation, Father Mattamana said Caritas was trying to work with German aid agency volunteers who had reached the affected region.

The U.S. bishops' Catholic Relief Services said in a statement May 6 that the Baltimore-based agency "is supporting the emergency relief and response efforts of the Caritas Internationalis network."

"Cyclone Nargis could not have happened in a worse stretch of land. The surge hit in the low-lying coastal areas. With the tidal surge at 12-15 feet, presumably thousands of people living along the delta were simply washed away," said Pat Johns, director of CRS' emergency response team, in the statement.

The Canadian Catholic aid organization Development and Peace said in a statement May 6 that it also had been evaluating the situation and coordinating its relief efforts with Caritas. The aid agency has been accepting funds to help the victims of the cyclone.

About 1 percent of the population of junta-ruled Myanmar is Catholic. Most of its citizens are Buddhist.

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Contributing to this story was Regina Linskey in Washington.